Paso De Los Patos

The Paso de Los Patos ''(Passage of the Ducks)'' is an

Andean The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the List of mountain ranges#Mountain ranges by length, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range i ...

mountain pass between

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 ...

and

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 ...

, used by the main column of the

Army of the Andes The Army of the Andes ( es, Ejército de los Andes) was a military force created by the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata (Argentina) and mustered by general José de San Martín in his campaign to free Chile from the Spanish Empire. In 181 ...

to cross the Andes in early 1817, in order to liberate Chile from Spain. It is located to the interior of the town of

Putaendo Putaendo is a city and commune in the San Felipe de Aconcagua Province of central Chile's Valparaíso Region. History Before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors, Putaendo was a very old town of hunters and gatherers. The Spanish were attrac ...

, to the north of the city of San Felipe,

Valparaíso Region The Valparaíso Region ( es, Región de Valparaíso, links=no, ) is one of Chile's 16 first order administrative divisions.Valparaíso Region, 2006 With the country's second-highest population of 1,790,219 , and fourth-smallest area of , ...

, Chile, and framed by the imposing Valle de Los Patos Sur (Southern Valley of Ducks), SW of the Province of San Juan, Argentina. Other names are used for the same pass: the passages of Llaretas, Ortiz, the Honda and the Valle Hermoso. Mountain passes of Chile Mountain passes of Argentina Mountain passes of the Andes Landforms of Valparaíso Region Landforms of San Juan Province, Argentina Argentina–Chile border crossings Principal Cordillera {{Valparaíso-geo-stub