Why this ride
A named mountain-road corridor with sustained elevation change and pass scenery. It links naturally to Embalse El Yeso and Andes valleys.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Cajon del Maipo and Embalse El Yeso
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 90 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 54
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Editorial context
Coordinates are curated start-via-end route seeds. They are not a surveyed centreline or navigation geometry. Run road snapping, topology checks, access checks and a live-status review before publication.
Access context
Do not auto-publish. Snap to a routable road network, verify current closures, legal motorcycle access, surface, permits, border controls and local safety information.
Seasonal context
Oct-Apr
Scenic road chapters
Cajón del Maipo
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For 25 km this is Cajón del Maipo, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 25 km
- Named road
- Cajón del Maipo
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. San Jose de Maipo
San José de Maipo is the gateway to the Cajón del Maipo, the deep river canyon that runs from the edge of Santiago into the high Andes. Only about an hour from the capital's sprawl, the town sits at roughly 970 metres, where the valley narrows and the air turns cooler and drier. Its centre is a quiet cluster of adobe and whitewashed houses with tiled roofs, a handsome church and a plaza shaded by old trees, and weekend visitors from the city fill the bakeries and restaurants. The Maipo River, brown with snowmelt, rushes below.
Read the complete San José de Maipo write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
San Jose de Maipo sits at 0 km, early in the day. Next is Embalse El Yeso.
2. Embalse El Yeso
Embalse El Yeso is a reservoir in the high Andes, an hour or two above the last village of the Cajón del Maipo, and its colour alone is enough to make riders brake. The water is a shade of turquoise that seems artificial, held in a bowl of bare brown mountains with snow patches on the heights and the cone of Volcán San José standing guard at nearly six thousand metres. The dam was built in the 1960s to supply drinking water to Santiago, and the lake is still a vital source for the capital, which is why access is controlled and swimming is not allowed.
Read the complete Embalse El Yeso write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Embalse El Yeso comes up 21 km in. Next is Banos Morales.
3. Banos Morales
Baños Morales is a small mountain village in the Cajón del Maipo, the deep valley that cuts into the Andes southeast of Santiago, and it sits at a height of nearly two thousand metres where the road starts to run out. Hot springs bubble from the hillside here, which is where the name comes from, and the village is a base for walkers heading into the nearby El Morado Natural Monument, a glaciated basin of cliffs, lakes and ice that feels far removed from the capital. The landscape is dry and rocky, with scree slopes, stunted shrubs and pale peaks, and the air is thin and bright.
Read the complete Banos Morales write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
90 km in you reach Banos Morales.
Recorded source links
More motorcycle rides nearby
- Cajón del Maipo · 118 km
- Chile · Andes and Cajón del Maipo · 191 km
- Portillo and Los Libertadores · 73 km
- Los Andes to Portillo · 61 km