What this stretch is
Cardenal Samoré is the main road crossing between the Argentine and Chilean lake districts and the one every bus, truck and rental car uses, which is exactly why our Andes Crossing enters Argentina by the quieter Hua Hum and the motorcycles come home this way once the tour has ended in Bariloche: it is fast, paved and open almost all year. From Bariloche, Ruta 40 retraces the Nahuel Huapi shore to Villa La Angostura, then Ruta 231 climbs north-west through the forest to the border complex, and on the Chilean side Ruta 215 drops through Puyehue national park, past the hot springs at Aguas Calientes and the lake at Entre Lagos, to Osorno.
It is 249 km and almost all pavement: OpenStreetMap tags 218 km as paved and 13 km as gravel or dirt on side roads, with 18 km untagged near the pass where the road was rebuilt. The climb is gentle, the descent on the Chilean side is longer and wetter, and the whole road is well surfaced except for the usual winter damage near the top.
Fuel: 114 km across the border
Thirty-five stations on the segment, almost all of them in Bariloche, Dina Huapi, Villa La Angostura and Osorno. The gap that matters is between the YPF and ACA in Villa La Angostura at kilometre 84 and the Copec at Entre Lagos at kilometre 198: 114 km with no fuel, across two border posts where a queue can add an hour or two of idling. There is no fuel at either post. Fill in Villa La Angostura, which is also where you spend your last Argentine pesos, and the fuel range calculator marks the segment as comfortable for any preset.
The border
The Argentine post sits in the complex just below the pass; the Chilean post is at Pajaritos, 20-odd km down the Chilean side. Chilean rental bikes re-entering Chile need the same papers they left with, plus the Argentine temporary import closed on the way out; the border crossing checklist has the exact list for each post. Chile’s agricultural inspection confiscates fresh food, so eat the fruit before the border. In January the queue at Pajaritos is the longest of the trip: arrive before midday.
The weather at the pass
The climate point for this segment is at the pass itself, and it is a different climate from the valleys. January highs average 17 °C, with 11 rainy days a month; July highs average 2 °C with 19 rainy days and 15 snow days a month. Snow closes the pass several times each winter, chains are compulsory from May to September, and even in October and November the road can be icy at the top in the morning. Wind is not a factor, with two to four gusty days a month. On the strict numbers at the pass, only January and February clear our threshold of a 12 °C average high with less than a day of snow a month; the valleys on either side are rideable from November to April, and in practice the pass is crossed year round by people who wait for the road to reopen.
Stops and detours worth the time
Villa La Angostura. The last Argentine town, at kilometre 84: fuel, pesos, lunch, and the turn onto Ruta 231.
Lago Espejo and the climb. Ruta 231 passes the northern end of Lago Espejo, then climbs through lenga forest to the pass, with the Cerro Bayo and the Puyehue volcano on either side.
Aguas Calientes and Anticura. On the Chilean descent, Puyehue national park has hot springs at Aguas Calientes, waterfalls at Anticura and the Salto del Indio, and the old-growth forest that makes this side so wet.
Entre Lagos and Lago Puyehue. The lakeside town at kilometre 198 with the first Chilean fuel and the last photo stop before the farmland.
Where to sleep
Bariloche at the start. Villa La Angostura if you want to cross in the morning fresh. On the Chilean side, Entre Lagos has lakeside hotels and the Termas de Puyehue resort is on the road; Osorno has the business hotels near Ruta 5 where the bikes are returned.
Riding it with us
Our Andes Crossing ends in Bariloche, so this is the road our crew rides the motorcycles home on to Osorno, and the crossing to plan for if you are continuing into Chile on your own bike. Read the Argentina and Chile documentation guide for the paperwork in both directions, and the Argentina versus Chile climate guide for the pass in each season.
