17
Nov

Going Down – Copper Canyon, Chihuahua, Mexico (Part 4)

Posted on November 17th, 2009 :: Posted in Adventure, Camping, Canyon, Hike, Mexico, Outdoor, SPOT map, video

Whenever you put the words “canyon” and “hike” together you know it’s going to be steep. That’s a given. It’s also a given that you never completely appreciate a canyon by simply peering over its rim.

With that in mind we added local guide Gustavo Lozano and local pony man Pepe to our motley crew and hit the trail bound for the Urique River at the bottom of the Urique Canyon, nearly 4,300 feet below us.

Unlike other canyon hikes that we’ve done–including twice into the Grand Canyon (once from the South Rim and once from the North Rim) and, more recently, to Havasu Falls–this time we had the luxury of a mule to drag our camping gear down and back up.

Initially we had reservations about this. Over almost two decades of hiking and trekking around the world we have always carried our own packs–partly out of pride, partly out of an uneasiness about forcing an animal to do our work for us and partly out of sheer cheapness. The mule wasn’t our idea but since it was there we added our packs to its load with an apologetic little nod and took off with just day packs on our backs.

Unlike other canyon hikes we've don, like the Grand Canyon (twice), our more recently Havasu Falls, this time we opted for a Mule to drag our bags there and back. Tha's Pepe from Cabañas Diaz and Dave Hensleigh of Authentic Copper Canyon on horseback. We opted to use our legs instead.

Pepe from Cabañas Diaz and Dave Hensleigh of Authentic Copper Canyon (in the back) traveled on horses. We opted to use our legs but we did ultimately let the mule carry our camping supplies.

The first hour of the hike and two miles or so of trail took us up-and-down into the canyon past sparely populated Tarahumara/Raramuri villages surrounded by steep fields until we reached a saddle in the ridge with a huge mesa in the middle of the canyon visible to our left. This, we learned is a stop on a massive new gondola (teléferico) being built.

When it’s done next year it will be take people in 60 person gondola cars more than a mile from a station on the rim near Divisadero to the mesa top in the midst of the canyon. Besides 360 degree views of the colorful rock, lush vegetation and awesome depths in this section of canyon, there are also rumors of a restaurant on the mesa.

Even more incredibly, there appear to be plans to ultimately extend the gondola from the mesa all the way down to the river at the canyon floor taking people down and back up in smaller 10-person gondola cars. Time will tell.

For now, the only way down is on foot or horseback so we pressed on.

After 2+ miles of an up and down trail into the canyon, past Tarahumara homes and fields, we approached the Mesa that sits in the middle of the canyon (right). A new tower being built for the cable car (teléferico) into the canyon is visable.

Look closely on top of the mesa in the upper right hand corner of this photo and you can see a tower being built for the new tourist gondola (teléferico) that will ultimately span a massive section of canyon.

A view down the cayon from the saddle with the mesa on the left and Dave Hensleigh of Authentic Copper Canyon and his trusty steed on the right. (click for full size panorama)

Looking down into Urique Canyon with the mesa and gondola tower on the left and Dave Hensleigh of Authentic Copper Canyon and his trusty steed on the right. (click image for full size panorama)

Dave Hensleigh of Authentic Copper Canyon looking deep into the Urique Canyon.

Dave Hensleigh (upper left) of Authentic Copper Canyon never seems to get tired of the Copper Canyon even though he sees it almost every month with the groups he brings down from the US.

Any reservations we may have had about not carrying our own bags disappeared as soon as we left the saddle and continued descending past the mesa. That’s when trail conditions went from “steep canyon hike” to “treacherous rock-strewn vertical obstacle course.”

Honestly, this trail was one of the hardest we’ve ever done, not because it was any steeper or any longer than other canyon hikes. Actually, it was much shorter than the Grand Canyon. What wore us out was the quality of the trail. Much of the hike required total focus just to stay balanced and upright as we hiked down steep inclines that were covered with 4″ of sliding round rocks and gravel then strewn with ankle-twisting mini-boulders. At times it was like walking down a slide covered with ball bearings and volleyballs.

Did we mention the giant swarming wasps and often sheer and substantial drop-offs along the trail?

Suffice to say we were glad for our boots and poles and our point6 wool socks as we slowly picked our way down, down, down–ultimately losing almost a mile in elevation over the course of about five miles from rim to river.

Karen hiking into the canyon. The trail was on of the hardest we've ever done, not because it was any steeper than other canyon hikes, but because of the quality of the trail. Much of the hike required total focus as it was like walking down a steep incline covered with ball bearings.

Karen carefully picking and choosing her way down the steep and unstable trail to the Urique River in the bottom of the Urique Canyon.

Below the mesa, about half way down the canyon, this side valley leads us down to the botton, yet the Urique River is still not visible far below.

About a third of the way into the canyon the trail veers off into this side valley which leads to the river. Even this deep into the canyon we still can't see the Urique River.

The canyon is so steep that the Urique River doesn’t come into view until we’re nearly at the bottom.

The canyon is so steep, the Uriqur River doesn't come into view until you are nearly at the bottom, about 6 miles and 4,300 feet below the rim.

Our first view of the Urique River, 4,300 feet below where we started on the rim.

After a long, hard, hot hike, even without carrying our bags, we reached the Urique River at the bottom of the canyon.

After a long, hard, hot hike we cooled off in the clear water of the Urique River at the bottom of the Urique Canyon.

We camped on a perfect little sand bar, by the side of the river.

After a long, hard, hot hike we cooled off in the clear water of the Urique River at the bottom of the Urique Canyon.

The full moon rising over the canyon. We were about to go from almost complete darkness to a moon-lit night you could read a book by.

A full moon rose over the canyon making it almost bright enough to read.

Comfortably camped on a sand bar by the Urique River, under a bright full moon.

Our comfortable camp on a sand bar by the Urique River under a full moon that was so bright it actually made it hard to sleep.

After a great night of grilled chicken and a nice bonfire and no run-ins with scorpions we awoke knowing only half the job was done. We’d managed to walk into the canyon, now we had to manage to walk out. Despite our best intentions to get a bright and early start to avoid as much heat on the mostly-exposed trail, we still didn’t get packed up an on our way until after nine.

Walking up the trail proved easier than walking down since the risk of sliding was reduced so we were able to make fairly decent time, ultimately returning to the rim–hot and tired–in about five and a half hours. The mule, with our bags, made it in less than three.

The following day it was time to hike back out of the canyon, led by our guide Gustavo.

What goes down must go up....local guide Gustavo Lozano leads the way back up and out of the Urique Canyon.

The view from the mesa where the canyon crossing gondala is being built. There is a view down to the bottom where the Urique River is visible more than 3,000 feet below.

The view from the mesa where the gondola that's being built across this section of canyon will ultimately stop. A sliver of the Urique River is visible more than 3,000 feet below. (click image for full size panorama)

Hike into the Copper Canyon – Areponápuchi to Urique River

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16
Nov

Gorditas, Guesthouses and Gorgeous Views – Copper Canyon, Chihuahua, Mexico (Part 3)

Posted on November 16th, 2009 :: Posted in Canyon, Drive, Mexico, Mountains, Sunrise & Sunset, video

If you’re taking the CHEPE train and not getting off and exploring areas along the way (silly, silly) the Divisadero station is your only chance to look down (way down) into a major canyon. For that reason the train stops here for 15 minutes–long enough for passengers to enjoy the view from a vantage point right across the street from the station. It’s also long enough to grab a snack.

Even if you’re not hungry do yourself a favor and head for any one of the handful of food stands on the train platform and get yourself some of the best gorditas we’ve ever tasted. Trust us, these lightly fried thick corn cakes stuffed with combinations of meat, cheese, beans and vegetables have the food on the train beat by many, many miles.

Divisadero train station exists only for the view -- as well as the food and souveniers. If you are taking the CHEPE train and not stopping along the way, this is the only view of the major canyons you will get from the rim. The train stops here for 15 minutes to allow passengers to enjoy the viewpoint.

The Divisadero train station: Get your views! Get your souveniers! Get your gorditas!

The view of the Urique canyon from the Divisadero viewpoint which is next to the station.

The view of the Urique Canyon from the Divisadero viewpoint which is right across from the train station.

Some of the Tarahumara craft stands at the Divididero viewpoint.

Shop with a view! Tarahumara craft stands at the Divisadero lookout.

We had some of the best gorditas we've had anywhere at Divisidero station.

Some of the best gorditas we've had were at the Divisadero station.

We grabbed some gorditas and headed into the neighboring town of Areponápuchi for some more canyon exploration.

Areponápuchi is a funny place. On the one hand it feels like a small town. Skinny dogs hang out in front of the tiny tienda. Dented trucks kick up dust even on the pavement. Laundry is hung out to dry on every available surface.

Sunset in the Urique Canyon from the Mirador Hotel in Areponápuchi.

On the other hand it’s got some fancy and expensive tourist facilities, including the Mirador Hotel which is, by many estimations, the best property in the Balderama Hotels chain.The Mirador Hotel certainly wins best location and best view as its perched literally on the canyon rim and every single one of its 48 rooms has a balcony facing the Urique Canyon–the deepest in the Copper Canyon system.

Panorama of the Urique Canyon from Areponápuchi. (click for full size panorama)

An almost full moon rises over the Urique Canyon from Areponápuchi.

An almost-full moon rises over the Urique Canyon as seen from Areponápuchi.

The Mirador Hotel is spectacular but it’s also secluded from the real workings of the town so we opted to stay with Armando and Herlinda Diaz and their family at Cabanas Diaz which offers comfortable and economical accommodation ranging from dorm rooms to new two story cabins with kitchens.Not that you need a kitchen. Herlinda’s cooking is copious and delicious which is a good thing since restaurants in Arepo (as everyone calls it) are scarce. Though there are always those tempting gorditas back at the Divisidero station. Mmmmmm. Gorditas!

Urique Canyon from Areponápuchi.

Some of the very steep roads around the Copper Canyon.

There are some very steep, very windy and very narrow roads around the Copper Canyon. Some hairpins were so tight that we had to back down sections in order to make the next turn.

The next day we met up with Gustavo Lozano, a rare combination of expertise, passion, humor and an excellent grasp on English. Oh, and he doesn’t conduct his tours in an obnoxious Hummer like they do from the Hotel Mirador.

Anyway, Gus took us and our companion, Dave Hensleigh from Authentic Copper Canyon (who gets more and more excited as our expedition gets further and further off the beaten path) on a day trip out to a section of the Copper Canyon, just off the Urqiue Canyon, that few visitors ever see.

It happened like this. The previous morning at dinner Gus showed up and asked if we’d ever been to the Oteviachi Canyon–one of the six canyons in the Copper Canyon system. We all shook our heads and said nope. He said he’d pick us up at 9 the next morning.

None of us, except Gus, really knew where we were headed and that was just fine. We drove through San Rafael but quickly turned off the pavement onto a dirt road that lead to a Tarahumara village called San Alonso. Gus had business here. Namely an SUV full of donated books, toothbrushes and athletic equipment for the school children.

Children at a Tarahumara school in San Alanso.

Children at a Tarahumara school in San Alonso.

San Alonso was the last village we saw. From there the terrain became pristine–just trees (including 18 kinds of oak according to Gus) and canyons and circling buzzards and and wacky rock formations and the odd, faint footpath to mark the passing of human feet.

A side canyon off the Urique Canyon near Oteviachi.

Odd rock formations atop the rim of the Urique Canyon near Oteviachi.

Odd rock formations, possibly lava, atop the rim of the Urique Canyon near Oteviachi.

The Urique Canyon from Oteviachi.

There is a road, of sorts, through this area and that’s because a spectacular lodge was built out here. It’s called the Hostal Oteviachi and Gus used to manage it. These days it’s mostly empty and that’s a real shame since the place has a spectacular location that rivals the Hotel Mirador–right on the canyon’s edge.

Panorama of the Urique Canyon near Oteviachi. (click for full size panorama)

Panorama of the Urique Canyon near Oteviachi. That's Gus on the left. (click for full size panorama)

The Tarahumara are adept basket weavers. This Tarahumara woman rarely looked at what she was doing, while her hands moved with practiced swiftness.

The Tarahumara are talented and creative basket weavers. This Tarahumara woman rarely looked at what she was doing while her hands moved with practiced swiftness.

Though Areponápuchi was not the mosr exciting place to experience Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), the small cemetary was still filled with color.

Areponápuchi's Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebrations were low key but the small cemetery was still filled with color as locals paid their respects to dead loved ones.

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10
Nov

World’s Best Blue Corn Tortillas – Copper Canyon, Chihuahua, Mexico (Part 1)

Posted on November 10th, 2009 :: Posted in Church, Mexico, Mountains, video, waterfall

Though you can get on the CHEPE train for a trip through the Copper Canyon starting in Chihuahua city, we decided to drive our truck part of the way into the region (this is a road trip after all) and we were glad we did if only for the chance to drive through the scenery between Creel and Cusárare.

Many visitors choose to stay in Creel because it has quite a few hotel and restaurant options and a kind of backpacker hangout vibe. We, however, were headed for something much more local in the nearby village of Cusárare along with Dave Hensleigh from Authentic Copper Canyon who was generously showing us the heart of this area, not just the main train stops and guide book listings.

Almost immediately upon leaving Creel and making the turn toward Cusárare (whose name means “place where eagles fly” in the local Tarahumara or Raramuri language) the scenery opened up into a high, flat, wide plateau full of rolling meadows, pine forests, boulders and lakes. If we hadn’t known we were in Mexico we might have thought we were cruising through Yosemite National Park. A dozen miles later we reached the Tarahumara village of Cusárare which felt like a million miles away from Creel and we mean that in a good way.

The village of Cusárare, a Tarahumara village is13 miles from Creel.

Cusárare, a Tarahumara village near Creel.

As we pulled off the pavement and drove into Cusárare it was like going back in time. Tiny hand-farmed fields of corn. Mud, stone and beam cabins. Wandering livestock. Electricity only arrived a few years ago.

In Cusárare we spent the night at Cabanas Arollo Cusarare owned by Bertha Parra, but don’t go looking for a sign or anything. Just continue through town, going right at the fork near the church, until you reach a footbridge that wobbles its way over a creek and leads to a small log cabin painted brilliant turquoise.

The draw at Bertha’s is not the basic rooms or the shared bathroom. It’s the chance to just be there in the midst of Bertha’s extended family and the chance to eat her wonderful cooking. We hope we never forget the rich taste and delicate texture of Bertha’s tortillas which she makes with 50% ground blue corn (which is grown in a field next to her house) and 50% wheat flour.

Inside the Cusárare mission church, originally built in 1741.

The Cusárare mission church, built in 1741, was restored to is original glory following the collapse of its bell tower in the 1969.

To learn more about Cusárare and the Tarahumara who live there, check out Jeff Biggers book In the Sierra Madre. Though he changed the name of the village he lived in for a year, it’s clear from his description (how many Tarahumara villages near Creel have a bus that’s been converted into a cafe?) that Jeff was in Cusárare.

An earlier, and much more influential, resident of Cusárare was Father Luis G. Verplancken who is widely credited with gentle and conscientious Jesuit missionary work and with saving Cusárare’s mission and a treasure trove of religious art that was on the brink of destruction.

While we were in Chihuahua city we met Wendy Suarez, a major force behind restoration and preservation efforts in the region, and she made it clear how much love and effort had gone into the Cusárare project, Nothing, however, prepared us for the beauty of the mission and the quality of the preserved art.

The church is gorgeously austere with a rough (and original) massive wood slab floor, no seats except a stone bench along the walls, crosses and even light fixtures made from tree branches, graphic traditional Tarahumara designs on the whitewashed walls and a notched-log ladder up to the choir loft. It felt both spiritual and rustically artistic.

Religious paintings (including a series of 12 depicting the life of the Virgin Mary) are on display in the impressive Loyola Museum.

We found traditional definitions of art in the Loyola Museum right next to the church. This is where more than 40 oil paintings of saints and other religious icons now live in a protective environment after the paintings were rescued from the Cusárare mission church and other area missions by Father Verplancken. With the financial backing of foreign benefactors the paintings were restored and the museum was built.

Artists include Mexican masters Juan Correa and his son Miguel Correa. The latter created a series of 12 5′ X 7″ paintings depicting the life of the Virgin Mary which William L. Merrill, PhD. and curator of anthropology at the Museum of Natural History Smithsonian Institute reportedly called “a truly spectacular series of incomparable historical and artistic value.”

Yep. In tiny little Cusárare. Surprise!

The 100 foot high Cascada (waterfall) Cusárare.

The next day we hiked a couple of miles to Cascada Cusárare along a rolling wooded trail to the base of the 100 foot waterfall. Though visitors to the falls a few years ago reported that the trail was full of litter we found it to be mostly trash-free. There were even a number of trash cans along the way.

Near the trail head is another gem worth noting: The Sierra Madre Hiking Lodge. Created by a guy named Skip McWilliams and run by Tarahumara staff, this long, low stretch of rooms with a communal porch has a kind of parkitechture meets Mexicana design aesthetic–tiled bathrooms, chairs and benches crafted out of gnarled and polished tree limbs and trunks, wood stoves and fireplaces–all in a spectacular setting on the bank of the creek with views of the hillside and caves on the other side.

What Sierra Madre Hiking Lodge doesn’t have is electricity. And the price tag is a bit steep at $100 per person per night including all meals.

Cascada Cusárare.

Karen enjoying Cascada (waterfall) Cusárare.

Karen enjoying Cascada Cusárare.

Tarahumara girls sell souveniers near Cascada Cusárare.

Tarahumara girls sell handmade baskets, sashes and other crafts near Cascada Cusárare.

After our waterfall hike we jumped in the truck and rushed out to the Valle de los Monjes, or Valley of the Monks rock formations in a wide rolling valley between Cusárare and Creel near the village of San Ignacio.

There are other areas of wacky rocks here including the Valle de Hungos (Valley of the Mushrooms) and Valle de Ranas (Valley of the Frogs) but the monks are the most numerous and the most imposing and we were determined to catch them in sunset light.

But we had to find them first.

An initial sign that pointed us to the right was the last direction we got and the longer we drove over the increasingly lousy dirt road the more we began to worry that we were going the wrong way. Meanwhile, the sun was setting fast. Finally we saw another sign and arrived at The Monks which towered over us imposingly in the last of the day’s light.

The Tarahumara, by the way, call this area of rocks Bisabirachi which means Valley of the Erect Penises. Monks. Penises. You be the judge.

The area between Creel and Cusárare is full of interesting rock formations. A facsinating area is the Valley de los Monjes or Valley of the Monks.

A small area between Creel and Cusárare is full of interesting rock formations including the Valle de los Monjes or Valley of the Monks, though the Tarahumara have a more anatomical name for them...

The Valley de los Monjes or Valley of the Monks.

The Valle de los Monjes or Valley of the Monks.

The small Tarahumara village of San Ignacio sits amidst the rock formations and when we passed through on a Sunday it seemed like everyone in the village was at church or on their way to church. When we peaked in we finally got to see how the Tarahumara worship without the benefit of pews.

San Ignacio Mission church between Creel and Cusárare.

Sunday in the San Ignacio Mission church.

Sunday services in the San Ignacio Mission church are spent on the floor (men on one side, women on the other) since there are no seats or pews.

Another attraction between Creel and Cusarare is Lake Arareko which spills and sprawls and curls itself around rocks and forests, lending an even more park-like feel to the area.