Last Updated: 07/22/03

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Copper Canyon - The Railway:  Ferrocarril Chihuahua al Pacifico (Copper Canyon Railway) is a scenic and exciting rail journey with 39 bridges and 86 tunnels along approximately 400 miles of track connecting the mountainous interior of northern Mexico with the Pacific coast.  We left our truck and road the train from Los Mochis (near the coast) to Creel (in the mountains) stopping and staying in various towns along the way.  In total, we spent about seven days enjoying the sights of Copper Canyon.

Copper Canyon - Cerocahui:  At our first stop, we had to do some quick negotiating to hitch a ride to the picturesque village of Cerocahui which lies about 10 miles from the train stop.  This journey takes about 45 minutes by truck on a small dirt road carved into the canyon.  Luckily, there was a tour group that had arranged transportation and hotel accommodations (something we rarely do in advance) that had some extra room.  We squeezed in and ended up joining them on their tours for the next couple days.  The group was fun (not to mention nice, open and flexible enough to let us crash their tours) and we continued to see them off and on in different towns as we traveled through the canyon.

Copper Canyon - Posada Barrancas and Divisadero:  These two spots, just a few miles from each other, offer some of the best views of the canyon from the railway.  Divisadero has one luxurious hotel at the viewpoint (with prices to match), so we found a nice family in Posada Barrancas that rented rooms and cabins that included home cooked meals in their home.  It was an interesting dinner with the Diez family as Armando, his brother, and well… all the men seem to have had too much to drink!  None the less, we enjoyed our stay.

Copper Canyon - Batopilas:  After making it via train all the way to Creel – the backbackers hub for visiting the canyon and the regional center for the Tarahumara Indians that live throughout the canyon – we quickly arranged a trip with other backpackers to a village deep in the canyon called Batopilas.  The trip covers over 6000 feet in elevation with dramatic descents and ascents through several canyons, climates and vegetative zones.  It was hard to believe they had created a road through this intense environment.  It took us almost four hours to reach Batopilas, where we stayed the night and then made another 45 minute journey to Satevo to see The Lost Cathedral before we headed back to Creel.  The return trip was not as easy as the way down, as we were plagued with flat tires!

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