Laguna Del Diamante

''Laguna del Diamante'' (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

for "lake of the diamond") is a lake located in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

of Mendoza,

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 ...

, in the San Carlos Department, some 198 km from Mendoza. It covers a surface area of about 14.1 km² and is one of the largest freshwater resources in the Province. Nearby is Maipo

volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates are ...

. The volcano and its reflection in the lake forms diamond-shape image, which gives the lake its name. It is known for its stunning beauty. However, few get the chance to see it because it is passable only in February and only via an off-road vehicle. The lake was described by

Antoine de Saint Exupéry Antoine is a French given name (from the Latin ''Antonius'' meaning 'highly praise-worthy') that is a variant of Danton, Titouan, D'Anton and Antonin. The name is used in France, Switzerland, Belgium, Canada, West Greenland, Haiti, French Guiana ...

in his book ''

Wind, Sand and Stars ''Wind, Sand and Stars'' (French title: ''Terre des hommes'', literally "Land of Men") is a memoir by the French aristocrat aviator-writer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, and a winner of several literary awards. It was first published in France in ...

'' as quoted, "...he uillaumetcaught sight of a dark horizontal blot which he recognized as a lake Laguna Diamante". Volcán Maipo NASA

Lakes of Mendoza Province Lava dammed lakes Protected areas of Argentina Protected areas of Mendoza Province {{SouthAm-protected-area-stub