Cajón del Maipo is a canyon located in the

Andean 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 l ...

southeastern portion of the

Santiago Metropolitan Region Santiago Metropolitan Region ( es, link=no, Región Metropolitana de Santiago) is one of Chile's 16 first-order administrative divisions. It is the country's only landlocked administrative region and contains the nation's capital, Santiago. Mos ...

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 ...

. It encompasses the upper Maipo River basin, where the river has entrenched itself in a narrow valley. The zone features a series of confluent rivers such as

El Volcán River EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American p ...

Yeso River The Yeso River is a river in 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 ...

, and

Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...

, as well as other minor streams, including San Gabriel, Manzanito, Coyanco, El Sauce, El Manzano and San José. The main locality is

San José de Maipo San José de Maipo is the name of a commune in Chile and the city within it, located in the Cajón del Maipo, in Cordillera Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region, some 48 kilometers south-east of capital Santiago, bordered on the east by Argenti ...

, the capital of the commune that includes all of the Andean sector of the Metropolitan Region. The valley ends close to

Pirque Pirque () is a commune of Chile in Cordillera Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region; it is located 2.8 kilometers southeast of Puente Alto and 21.3 kilometers south-southeast of the center of Santiago. It is situated at the base of the Cajón de ...

and begins almost at the border with

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 ...

, where it is surrounded by some of the highest peaks in the region, including San José, Maipo, and

Marmolejo Volcán Marmolejo is a high Pleistocene stratovolcano in the Andes on the border between Argentina and Chile. It is located NNE of the active San José volcano, and is the southernmost -plus peak in the world. The Argentine portion is with ...

, the most southerly mountain taller than in the world. Several of the mountains are active volcanoes; San Jose was the most recent to erupt, in 1960. The canyon is a popular tourist destination for hikers and campers. Among the most visited sites are the reservoir Embalse El Yeso, and El Morado Natural Monument which contains the San Francisco glacier.

References

External links

Cascada de las Animas (Nature Sanctuary/Resort/Lodge/Adventure Center)
Landforms of Santiago Metropolitan Region National Monuments of Chile Canyons and gorges of Chile Principal Cordillera {{Santiago-geo-stub