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Reviewed January, 2006
See also City Tours
Copper Canyon Trip
by Jack Moreau March 11, 2005
In 2004 we went on a fantastic bus and train trip to the Copper Canyon.
The Copper Canyon is only one of a number of interlocking canyons or barrancas in the area. This world famous canyon system is one of Mexico's natural, cultural and historic wonders. Copper Canyon is generally used by travelers to define the total canyon system, which covers 25,000 square miles and has depths up to 6,136 feet. In comparison, the Grand Canyon has a depth of 4674 ft and is approximately 1/4 the size of the total Copper Canyon. Whereas the Grand Canyon is desert-like, with virtually no vegetation, the Copper Canyon is thickly wooded in most places and a beautiful green, especially in the rainy season from June to October.
We began our journey in Mazatlan along with 42 other folks on a tour bus; which took us north to El Fuerte, about a 7-hour trip. El Fuerte is a beautiful city of about 30000 people, which has many things to see and do, including of course the fort, which is what the city is named for.
The next morning we boarded the train, which Reader's Digest claims is "the most dramatic train ride in the western hemisphere". Even that description fails to do justice to the spectacular scenery and sightseeing along the line.
A little history about the railroad: In 1872, the American entrepreneur Albert Kinsey Owen dreamed of building a rail line that would provide the shortest route to transport goods from Kansas City to the Pacific Ocean. The result of his dream was the Chihuahua-Pacifico Railroad, which winds its way almost 400 miles through the Copper Canyon in northern Mexico. The railroad's construction ran into all kinds of problems - from the opening of the competitive Panama Canal route, to the Mexican Revolution (which began in 1910), to the 1st and 2nd World Wars, but the greatest obstacle was the apparently untamable Sierra. The initial capital was mostly American but both the investors and their hired engineers gave up the project in the first half of this century, pronouncing it "impossible". After nationalizing all foreign-owned railroad lines, Mexico announced, in 1953, plans to complete the Copper Canyon line, which at the time still lacked a route through the most difficult part of the mountain range, near Temoris. Eight years later, the line was finished. It had involved some extraordinary engineering and the final cost was over $100 million US. Between Chihuahua and Los Mochis, the section usually traveled by tourists, there are 37 bridges and 86 tunnels; most of them are between Los Mochis and Creel. The line crosses the Continental Divide three times, reaches a maximum height of 2400 m, or 7874 feet, and for much of its route skirts the rim of an enormous canyon system.
About 6 hours after leaving El Fuerte we arrived in a village of about 5000 people called Creel, which is about 7,300 feet above sea level. After settling into our motel we took a tour to see the famed Tarahumara Indians.
Now a little history about the Indians.
The Tarahumara inhabit the Copper Canyon and this is what the first Spanish called these Native American people. The Spanish originally encountered the Tarahumara throughout Chihuahua upon arrival in the 1500's, but as the Spanish encroached on their civilization the shy and private Tarahumara retreated for the nearly inaccessible canyons of the Sierra Madres. Only the Jesuit missionaries followed at first and with only scattered success. After mineral wealth was discovered in the mountains, many areas where the Indians lived became desirable lands to the miners & mining companies which forced them once again to head farther into the remote canyons. Today, the Tarahumara are Mexico's second largest native Indian group with between 50,000 & 70,000 people. Even today they still live in caves, under cliffs and in small wood and stone cabins in remote areas. They live a simple life, relatively unchanged over centuries and undisturbed by modern technologies. They are known as a quiet and considerate people who are expert farmers and runners. Running is what they may be most legendary for in the world. Running or foot throwing has always been a tradition and necessity of the Tarahumara. It is their only mode of transportation and many of the small communities are far apart. Corn is their main staple along with beans. Potatoes, and apples can also be found. Some of them raise domesticated animals such as goats and cattle. Fish, small game & herbs (a Tarahumara speciality) round out their diet. Traditional clothing for the Tarahumara consists of a white cloth shirt, sometimes with colorful prints, white cloth pants or wraparounds with colorful belts or accessories. Headbands of cloth usually red are worn upon the head. Sandals or huaraches are the footwear of choice As part of our tour from Creel we were able to visit one of the caves and buy some of the handmade wares they make. Later that day it started to snow and didn’t stop until the next day. Good thing we were prepared and had warm clothes, although I forgot my gloves and had to wear socks for mittens. From Creel we reversed our trip and boarded the train to head south again. Our next stop was Divisadero about an hour ride south of Creel. It was here that we had our most spectacular views of the canyon. Other trip highlights included: Shopping, Valerie feeding the street dogs everywhere we went, Emulia the Friendly Emu in El Fuerte and Pizza Hut and KFC in Culiacan. All in all it was a great trip and we’d recommend it to anyone. You can make the trip yourself or go with a group offered by several different tour companies in the area. We chose to go with a group of wonderful people that we really enjoyed meeting and spending time with.
A Day Trip By Car To Copala
by Jack Moreau March 11,2005
My wife and I often take the day and go up to Copala, with a few interesting stops along the way. There is a lot of beautiful scenery and some of the vegetation we see includes mango trees, market gardens, banana trees, and coconut plantations. To start this trip you take the highway that heads towards the airport, this is Hwy 15. You go past the airport sign and through a town called Villa Union. Now, Villa union is known for it's military post the Spaniards established there when they used Mazatlan as a sentinel post.
Not far down the road our first stop is the brick factory. Did you know a brick maker can make up to 1000 bricks a day? They are still using the centuries year old tradition of grainshafts, clay, and water mixture. This is then put into a form, which is made of wood and makes four bricks at a time. The bricks are then dried naturally by the sun on both sides for about 24 hours. They are then stacked up tinker toy style and wood from the area is put in the middle of this structure, lit on fire, and in about one hour the bricks have been cured. The heat generated by the burning wood and combustion of the grain shafts hardens the bricks. This process also turns the bricks from brown to the reddish color that we see them. In the summer when the heat and humidity is high, they light a big bonfire during the night and work from about 2:00 am to 10:00. Also if they have a rainfall all the days work is ruined unless it's covered with plastic tarps.
How much do they sell for? A 1000 bricks sells for about 700 - 800 pesos. We turn onto hwy 40 and our next stop is a small pueblo called Malpica. Here we visit the town bakery, which is in the family home. We always buy a treat or two, which are always fresh from the oven. Across the road is the town's tile factory, which is in the backyard of the family home. Gorge has been making tiles for about 30 years, since he was 12. Gorge always makes a tile for us. It's a combination of sand, marble dust, cement and water. The tiles are soaked in water for 18 hours and then sun dried. No two tiles are the same as each one is made individually. These are not the glazed and baked tiles that we're use to. These tiles get shinier the more you wash them. Gorge sells samples of his work and I use mine as heating pads.
Our next stop is Felipe's pottery and furniture factory. We love visiting with Felipe as he always has interesting stories to tell us. On one visit he pointed out different local plants to us and explained their healing powers. Some were for digestion, pain, fever. He was drinking an elixir that particular day for stomach pain. He has a thriving pottery business, and a family run furniture factory. The clay for his pottery is found in the nearby mountains. Once the piece has been formed, it is then dried in the shade for 3 days, the 4th day in the sun, and the 5th day in the firing kiln. The maple furniture is the heavy wood, and the most common used as they can get it from the forests near by. The cedar is imported from Chiapas, Guatemala, Venezuela, and Belize and costs a bit more. A beautiful table and 6 chairs can be yours for 4000 pesos. And he does ship all over the continent. You can find Felipe just before entering Concordia on the lefthand side of the Highway.
Our next stop is the washing ladies. This is just as we're entering Concordia. It's a bit hard to find, but well worth it. It's a natural hot spring that is centuries old. In 1953 the government decided to preserve and upgrade these springs for the Concordia villagers. The open-air structure modernized the washing process by replacing the rocks the ladies scrubbed the clothes on with concrete slabs and installed roofs for shade. You can see ladies walking from town with their washing wrapped and carried on top of their heads. The washing stalls are always filled with women working. They are very friendly and even offer to let you help them with the wash! Or if you want to leave your laundry they will do it for you for 1 peso per item.
Concordia is the next stop. This community is known for it's furniture, pottery and mining. It was founded in January of 1565. Concordia was once a French garrison during France's occupation of Mexico. That is why you will see fair skinned and blue eyed Mexican's in this town. The colonial church built in 1640 is the oldest of its style in Sinaloa. City Hall, constructed in 1905 is an interesting structure with its French style. A fine chime clock brought from Italy is still preserved in the building. Concordia also holds the claim to fame for the world's largest rocking chair located in its town square. A great photo opportunity!
Our final destination is Copala. Climbing to over 2000 feet above sea level, this community of about 700 people is what a typical colonial village should look like. The Spanish discovered the town in 1565 and worked the silver and gold mines there.They are still in operation to this day to a lesser degree. It is not unusual to see chickens, pigs, and donkeys running through narrow cobblestone streets. The San Jose Church built in the 1600's is now under preservation, so blasting has been put to a stop pending its restoration. Copala is also home to 2 fine restaurants, the Butter Company and Daniels. We like having lunch at Butter Co and margaritas and banana coconut cream pie at Daniels. Daniel sold the restaurant a few yrs ago but still owns and operates the hotel near the restaurant. He is a wealth of information and is a pleasure to talk to. This village was featured in National Geographic some years ago and much of its fame is owed to Daniel, as he was instrumental in bringing the tourist trade to Copala.
We fully recommend this day trip and if you don't wish to drive then leave the driving up to one of the many fine tour companies in Mazatlan.
Day Trip to La Noria
by Jack Moreau March 16,2005
The little mountain village of La Noria is just 40 minutes northeast of Mazatlán– and well worth a visit. Nestled into its own little corner of the world, "La Noria," which means "The Well," is named for the shape it takes; entering the town means descending into a bowl-shaped area, giving the appearance of a town set in a well. Highlights include an old jail, which is still in use, the church of San Antonio, and a variety of locally made leather goods. Since it is not uncommon to see a cowboy ride up to the local supermarket on horseback, it is fitting that leather shops specialize in saddles, which are sold all over Sinaloa. You can watch these and other leather goods being made right in the shops, must-buy huaraches with their ever-lasting rubber tire soles. To get to La Noria by car, take Highway 15 north out of Mazatlán. You'll pass the toll (cuota) road to Culiacan and eventually see a sign on the right side directing you to La Noria. Following the sign, turn right (or east) and follow the road that will take you right into the town.
Day Trip to Rosario
by Jack Moreau March 16,2005
South of the Tropic of Cancer and 75 km from Mazatlán, lies the quaint, former mining town of Rosario which was founded in 1655 with a fortune of gold and silver. According to legend, the silver mines were inadvertently discovered when a local farmhand was chasing a cow. His rosary ("rosario" in Spanish) got caught in a tree, so he threw his hat in the tree to mark the spot for his return. When he returned to the spot, it was near nightfall, so he set up camp and stayed the night. In the morning, he noticed that, where he had made a fire, there were a number of streaks of silver in the earth. When word got out, precious metal seekers came to Rosario from all over, and Rosario was a successful mining town for many years. Although the mining activity ended in 1945, the town's prosperity is evident in houses, buildings and streets, and particularly in the "Mission of our Lady Rosario" church. The altar in this church is an impressive floor to ceiling wall of gold, and is said to be one of the most beautiful in the country. Aside from the altar, the church has a story of its own. Hard to believe, but Rosario has over 70 km of underground tunnels that were dug over a series of 290 years (they say that there are more underground tunnels than above ground streets). Fearing the destruction of the church from crumbling underground tunnels, the villagers moved the entire church, brick by brick, to the Town Square. To get to Rosario take Federal Hwy 15, and it’s about 75 km southwest of Mazatlán. And be sure to taste Toni-Col, a deliciously refreshing vanilla soda made right in Rosario.
