Hua Hum Pass ( es, Paso Hua Hum ) is an international

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...

in the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

between

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

and

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. The pass takes its name from the Hua Hum River that flows from Argentina into Chile at the site of the border crossing. Even though the pass does not go through the

continental divide A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not ...

, it crosses the highest peaks of the cordillera.

Geography

The Hua Hum Pass is one of the lowest passes of the southern Andes at 685 meters above sea level, which means that unlike other nearby Chile-Argentina passes it never closes due to snow fall and is open year-round. The pass is used primarily for tourism as the Chilean

203-CH International Route 203-CH is a branch line road going eastward from Lanco at Chile Highway 5 to Huahum Pass at the border to Argentina. Some settlements along the road includes: Lanco, Malalhue, Panguipulli and Neltume. The road is paved from Lan ...

road is interrupted by

Pirihueico Lake Pirihueico Lake ( es, Lago Pirihueico, ) is one of Seven Lakes in Panguipulli Commune, southern Chile. The lake is of glacial origin and it is enclosed mountains of the Andes. It is located in a geological fault that includes Panguipulli Lake a ...

. A

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

equipped to transport vehicles as well as people may be taken to

Puerto Fuy Puerto Fuy is a Chilean village (Spanish: ''aldea'') in Panguipulli commune, of Los Ríos Region. Puerto Fuy lies along the 203-CH route to Huahum Pass into Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, Repúblic ...

, on the other side of Pirihueico Lake. The ferry ride lasts approximately 2 hours. It is the main pass of the Chilean

Los Ríos Region The Los Ríos Region (Spanish: ''Región de Los Ríos'', , ''Region of the Rivers'') is one of Chile's 16 regions, the country's first-order administrative divisions. Its capital is Valdivia. It began to operate as a region on October 2, 2007, ...

Neuquén Province Neuquén () is a province of Argentina, located in the west of the country, at the northern end of Patagonia. It borders Mendoza Province to the north, Rio Negro Province to the southeast, and Chile to the west. It also meets La Pampa Province a ...

in Argentina. The main cities on both sides of the pass are

Panguipulli Panguipulli ( ; Mapudungun for "hill of the puma") is a city and commune in Valdivia Province, southern Chile, administered by the Municipality of Panguipulli. It is located on the western edge of Panguipulli Lake, and is on a moraine in the Chi ...

in Chile and

San Martín de los Andes San Martín de los Andes is a city in the south-west of the , serving as the administration centre of the Lácar Department. Lying at the foot of the Andes, on the Lácar lake, it is considered one of the main tourism destinations in the province. ...

(45 km from the pass in Argentina).

External links

Official site
of Hua Hum Pass by

Argentine National Gendarmerie The Argentine National Gendarmerie ( es, Gendarmería Nacional Argentina, GNA) is the national gendarmerie force and corps of border guards of the Argentine Republic. It has a strength of 70,000. The gendarmerie is primarily a frontier guard forc ...

Mountain passes of Chile Mountain passes of Argentina Mountain passes of the Andes Landforms of Los Ríos Region Landforms of Neuquén Province Argentina–Chile border crossings Transport in Los Ríos Region {{Neuquén-geo-stub