Copper Canyon with Chepe Train

Day 2     Los Mochis - El Fuerte:

Your tour guide personally welcomes you in the lobby of the Santa Anita hotel at 8.30 a.m. You now set off for Topolobampo, a port not far from Los Mochis. Topolobampo - a resounding word for the sleepy village, which is situated amidst a labyrinth of green rocky islands and hidden inlets. This region of Mexico is a real treasure chest for all nature-loving people. Dolphins and Californian sea lions frisk about in the very harbor. Brown pelicans fight for fish on the quay. Cormorants, magnificent frigate birds, blue-footed boobies, terns, and seagulls share the sky and nest on the surrounding islands together with great white egrets or great blue herons. Sometimes you will see hundreds of black vultures on the big cacti, the cardones, using them as outlooks high above the subtropical vegetation.

Passing the fertile lowlands, we reach El Fuerte in the afternoon. This beautiful colonial town, situated on the Río Fuerte, is still unknown to travelers. Yet historically, El Fuerte is one of the most important and most interesting towns of northern Mexico. The Spaniard Francisco de Ibarra had founded the town under the name La Villa de San Juan de Carapoa as early as 1564. The first Jesuits came to the region of El Fuerte in the late 16th century. However, as the unyielding Indians kept on attacking the Spanish, a fortress (Spanish: fuerte) was built early in the 17th century and eventually gave the town its name. Many conquerors passed El Fuerte on their way north ? towards US California and Arizona ? and provided themselves with victuals there. This was the time when El Fuerte became an important trading town. In 1824, El Fuerte was made the capital of the Estado de Occidente, the then federal state that corresponded to the modern states of Sinaloa and Sonora and extended as far north as the Grand Canyon. After our arrival in the hotel, your tour guide will show you his El Fuerte and guide you through the streets and the history of the town.

Day 3    El Fuerte - Bahuichivo - Cerocahui:

"All aboard, please!" - the train Ferrocarril Chihuahua al Pacífico of the Ferrocarril Mexicano company will leave soon this morning. In 1872, American Albert K. Owen began to realize his vision of a railroad between Kansas City and the Pacific Ocean. It was, however, only in 1961 that the Mexican government completed the track, which is considered to offer one of the most beautiful rides in the world. Enormous physical, political and economic efforts had preceded the opening of the railroad. In particular the last section of 120 miles (195 km) with its 7,000-foot (2134 m) drop down to the Pacific took more than 20 years to build and would not have been realized without new developments in engineering after WWII. The track from Chihuahua to Los Mochis numbers 39 bridges and 86 tunnels that add a lot to the fascination of your ride from the apex at 8000 ft (2,439 m) to sea level. The section you travel this morning is the most adventurous part of the track. After the longest bridge, which crosses the Río Fuerte, the steep ascent to the canyons begins and offers you breath-taking views of the Copper Canyon. We reach the station of Bahuichivo early in the afternoon. Transfer to a rustic hotel that blends beautifully into the lonely rock landscape of this area.

After lunch we begin our excursion to the Copper Canyons with a visit to the mission church of Cerocahui, which Father Juan María de Salvatierra founded in 1690. We have already reached an altitude of 5,250 ft (1,600 m) and enjoy the view down into the valley with its small plantations of fruit trees. If possible, we will visit the mission school of the village. We then continue to Cerro Gallegos, a place that allows you a breath-taking view down to the district capital of Urique at the bottom of the Urique canyon (the depth of this canyon is 6,135 ft (1,870 m)). This excursion into the world of the Rarámuri Indians and the virgin wilderness is an unforgettable event. The Rarámuri people came to the Copper Canyons long before the conquistadors and missionaries arrived. The Rarámuri Indians? culture is based on respect for one another and the obligation for mutual assistance. More than 50,000 Rarámuri, associated in extended families, live in the Copper Canyon and the Sierra Tarahumara and grow beans, corn and squash on scattered rancherías. The Indians are excellent craftsmen and make exquisite pottery, woven fabrics, and wickerwork. The most important part of their spiritual life concerns racing contests, which take place several times a year and, covering distances of up to some 125 miles (200 km), extend for several days and nights. Return to the hotel via a Rarámuri settlement on the way. Restful end of the day in our hotel.

Day 5    Posada Barrancas - Cuauhtémoc:

This morning we take a minivan to continue our way through the rugged mountains of the Sierra Madre Occidental to Creel, an adventure-laden town of lumberjacks. The Jesuits came into the world of the Rarámuri Indians together with the Spanish in 1598. While the Spanish searched for gold and silver deposits, the Fathers? aim was to save souls. However, when you visit the Jesuit mission store with its selection of the Rarámuri Indians? exquisite handicraft, you will see that the Fathers today work less for conversion than as development workers.
Your first excursion will lead you to the mountains and woods surrounding Creel. On a light walk, you visit the charming Cusaráre falls, which lie amidst a pine and oak forest. Along the way, you will see Indian women weaving baskets from pine needles and leaves of the desert spoon. Take a brief rest at the waterfall, or descend to its foot if you are a secure walker. Afterwards we visit the Cusaráre mission, which is led by Jesuits from Creel and cares for the Indians who live in the surrounding Sierra Tarahumara. Until today, the Rarámuri Indians live independent of the Mexican government, which targets its development politics predominantly to urban areas. The Rarámuri have preserved their own language and adopted Catholicism as part of their natural religion. The Lago Arareco reservoir lies in the Valley of the Mushrooms and is evidence that time has not stood still even in the Sierra. The lake captivates the spectator by its color and rock formations surrounding it. If the situation and time allow, we will visit a cave dwelling of an Indian family on our way back. Even today, many Indians still make the natural protection provided by the rocks the basis of their homes.

We have some time in Creel to explore the town and buy the last Copper Canyon souvenirs. Creel, embedded in the endless pine forests of the Sierra, was formerly a center of forestry. In the past few years, however, it has changed its character very much because tourism has become more and more important. When you stroll on the streets of the town, you meet people mixed of local workers, Rarámuri Indians and visitors of different nationalities. Lodgments, restaurants, agencies of all kinds, building enterprises, and furniture and souvenir shops shoot up like mushrooms. There is a large range of trades: You can rent mountain bikes, ride on horseback, take part in various day excursions, or start several days? hiking tours. Creel is considered the gateway to the Copper Canyon. Tourists who stay for a longer time can easily reach Divisadero and Cerocahui from here, as well as Batopilas, the legendary town in the canyon of the same name. The richness in silver, which was extracted in more than 200 mines, made the place an El Dorado for adventurers and entrepreneurs for centuries.
We eventually leave Creel for Cuauhtémoc. Our ride to the Mennonite settlements takes a little less than two hours. We pass isolated farm communities and vast apple plantations and see the landscape change from mountains to dry steppe. Your program in Cuauhtémoc includes a light meal with a Mennonite family, the visit of the Mennonite museum and ? if the opening hours allow ? the visit of the local dairy, where regional cheese and meat produces are for sale. We spend the evening in the peaceful town of Cuauhtémoc, which is named for the last Aztec king of Mexico.

Day 6     Cuauhtémoc - Paquimé, Casas Grandes:

We leave the plateau of Cuauhtémoc northward and, heading for Madera, pass the area of Mennonite settlements. Mountains begin to rise again, and large pine forests growing on the slopes of the Sierra Madre Occidental replace the apple plantations. Via Buenaventura, we finally reach Casas Grandes, our next stop.
Casas Grandes with its famous archeological site Paquimé - a World Heritage Site protected by the UNESCO - lies in the northwestern part of the federal state of Chihuahua, west of the old Camino Real between El Paso and Chihuahua, the state capital. The archeologically interesting area at the foot of the Sierra Madre Occidental extends over about 150 acres (more than 60 hectares) on the western bank of the Casas Grandes River. Only 25 acres (10 hectares) of this historically very important place have so far been excavated and secured. After the visit to the excellent museum on the history and development of the Paquimé civilization, you will eventually visit the interesting ruins.
The remains of the settlement are impressive. Several buildings, which consisted of up to 600 rooms, were constructed from tamped clay in the toilsome hand-molding technique: Wet clay is manually applied to an existing clay layer and spread equally. Interestingly, the buildings had rectangular walls, a fact that is indicative of intense planning and is a remarkable difference from buildings erected in other civilizations at the same time.
Like all pre-Columbian settlements, Paquimé poses more riddles than can currently be solved. The people who lived there did not leave any written documents, or if so, such documents were completely destroyed by the Spanish. The findings suggest that while the place was settled (700 - 1450 AD), economic and cultural relations were built to Middle America in the South and to what is today Texas, New Mexico and Arizona in the North.
Although it had been a flourishing center, Paquimé was abandoned even before the Spanish arrived. The end of the Casas Grandes civilization in the 15th century may have been caused by raids of enemy peoples or by the collapse of trade.
The descriptions of the excavations relate of bodies lying in the irrigation system and of valuable breeding birds that had obviously starved in their cages; all this is suggestive of a violent end of the pueblos. Another possibility is that the large number of people could no longer be sustained and therefore reorganized in smaller settling units that burdened the environment less.

Except for some pieces, the famous pottery from old Paquimé, an important item of pre-Columbian trade, can be admired in the large museums of the world only in the form of potsherd. In the 1960?s, young Juan Queseda was so fascinated by the ceramic remains found in the excavations at Mata Ortíz, a small village near Paquimé, that he made numerous experiments to try and manufacture similar ceramics. The first thing necessary was to find the right raw material. Pure clay cracked when drying. It took some time before he found the material originally used ? clay mixed with volcanic ash, which was excavated in a site near Paquimé. Further experiments were necessary to determine how the vessels were formed, painted and burned. Today, almost 500 potters work in Mata Ortíz and try to equal the quality of the Paquimé originals in each work. We will visit a workshop in the afternoon and observe how the descendants of the old artists repeat the work of their ancestors.

Day 7    Casas Grandes - Chihuahua:

We finally leave Casas Grandes and head for Chihuahua, the state capital. We pass the seas of grass of the former cattle barons. At a stop in Ricardo Flores Magón, you have the opportunity to taste the best burritos of Chihuahua. We then go to the ranch of the Terrazas family, once - before Mexico´s great land reform - the largest landowners in Mexico. A short stop gives us a chance to learn how rancheros and gauchos live on this lonely working ranch today. Arrival in Chihuahua early in the afternoon.
You now can look forward to the exploration of Chihuahua - sense the adventurous atmosphere of this large city that has been molded by rich silver mines and cattle farms. During the Mexican Revolution, Chihuahua was the headquarters of the popular hero and general Pancho Villa. Besides the museum La Quinta Luz, which has been established in the general?s sumptuous villa, the Governor?s Palace with Aaron Piña Mora?s excellent murals on the history of Chihuahuas is certainly worth a visit. We end our tour with a visit of the cathedral in the city center.
Unfortunately, it is already time to say goodbye. Now, in the last evening of our trip through the land of the Rarámuri and Chihuahuenses, we invite you to a farewell dinner in one of the best restaurants in town. Salud to the north of Mexico!