The
Central Valley (Spanish
Valle Central),
Intermediate Depression or
Longitudinal Valley is the depression between the
Chilean Coast Range and the
Andes Mountains. The central valley should not be confused with
Central Chile that encompases part of the valley. At its widest definition, the geological one, the Central Valley have a discontineous extension from
Pampa del Tamarugal at 20° S to
Ofqui Isthmus at 46° S. The
viticultural Central Valley extends from
Santiago southwards to
Bío-Bío Region.
Sometimes Puerto Montt is considered the southern end of the Central Valley because south there of the valley is below sea level and emerges sporadically as islands until it has its last reapparition at Ofqui Isthmus.
The central parts of the Central valley (34° - 38 ° S) is a fertile region and the agricultural heartland of Chile. At this latitudes the Central Valley has a Mediterranean climate, with temperatures dropping and precipitation increasing in a regular pattern from north to south. Winters are mild and summers are usually moderately hot and dry.
Between the western foothills of the Andes and the eastern foothills of the Cordillera de la Costa lies a concave area known as the Depresión Intermedia or Valle Longitudinal (longitudinal valley). This valley, which has been filled with the byproducts of volcanic activity and erosion of the surrounding mountains, was sculpted into its smooth present state by glaciers, both eolian and hydrous. It runs across almost entirely across Chile, from Arica to Puerto Montt, where it falls into the sea at Reloncaví Sound.
