El Nihuil

Information

It is a dam whose reservoir has the largest surface area in the whole Province of Mendoza and a tourist locality on its shores, both of which bear the name of El Nihuil. The Atuel Canyon begins near the dam.

The locality has camping sites, lodging, restaurants and food and beverage shops. In the area of the dam there are several viewpoints to see the wall and the landscape on both sides. In the reservoir there is a sector with a path to walk along the waterfront that has free access to the beach, and some people practice nautical sports.

There are two ways to get to El Nihuil from San Rafael:
- Take Ingeniero Julio Ballofet Avenue southwards for 6 kilometres. There the road bends to the left, and after 400 metres you take Route 173 to the right. It is about 76 km along this road to the dam wall.
- Take Ingeniero Julio Ballofet Avenue south for 6 km. Before reaching a bend, Route 144 comes out on the right. It is 45 km along this road, up to where Route 180 comes out. It is 21 km to the dam.