Informational
Description : by Moe. Jeppesen, DaneTourTo compare this mammoth, wild and remote canyon in north central Mexico, you would have to mentally combine the Canadian Rockies and the Grand Canyon. It takes a traveller rather than a vacationist to experience the vast splendor of Barrancas de Cobre. It is rather cumbersome to get from home to the site where the action starts, but once there, you know you are in a truly remote part of North America which has not, and will never, see mass tourism. The in-situ action is made delightfully comfortable by first class rail travel and genuinely rustic and cozy Haciendas at the 3 destinations. For the 12 hour journey across the roof of Mexico, two trains of Chihuahua del Pacifico line pull out every morning at both ends of the line, one from Los Mochis on the Pacific coast, across from Baja California, and the other from Chihuahua in the east (due south of El Paso, Texas). They cross each other roughly midways at Divisadero and Barrancas stations at 7000 Ft. altitude. The first few hours of the rail journey are somewhat dull, passing through a few typical Mexican farming towns. But as the train snakes into the mighty canyons, you are mesmerised by the spectacular unending vistas that unfold along the single gauge track and awe struck when you reflect on the determination and skill it took to create a track burrowing through narrow mountain passes by way of 86 tunnels and crossing 39 bridges, some erected on foundations rising over 100 meters above a river bed. It took Ferrocariles de Mexico nearly 100 years to finish the job in 1922.
If you get off at Divisidero it's a 5 minute ride on a bus dispatched from your hotel. You are then ensconced in either the Mirador or El Castillo, both first class timber lodges right on the very Rim of the canyon and looking down over a thousand meters. With a fresh ice cold Margarita in hand, you relax taking in the vistas of mountain peaks, valleys and unique rock formations as well as the Urique River laid out at your feet, a mile below.
Those with energy to spare, after settling in to fireplace equipped rooms (it gets cool some night) and to eliminate effects of those Margaritas, can walk over to the Mansion another lodge with cave-like casitas, ideal for families staying more than one or two nights. From here, the last 2-300 meters up to the Rim is a real test of your general stamina. The trek up foot paths and wooden stairways is not for the faint of hearth. A healthy person has to pause a few times, but once at the RIM you are rewarded with several look-out points along the rim pathway.
This is Tarahumara Indian territory and this extremely shy and timid people are probably the most isolated and primitive of North American tribes. They are largely unknown, even to most Mexicans and do not seek contact with the trickle of adventurers who make it to their 50.000 square miles of territory. While mostly invisible, some 40.000 of them are scattered throughout the High Sierras wherever there is a reasonably flat piece of land, away from the general population. Partially nomadic, they move with a heard of goats to the canyon top in summer and to the warmer bottom, in winter. The faint sound of drums, the crow of roosters can be heard now and then, without a clue as to it's source. Only sometimes can one see the wispy smoke of a cooking fire from a cave in the distance. Women and children are dressed colorfully and sit quietly displaying woven baskets of intricate designs, near your hotel. The men are great endurance runners and sometimes play a game during festival times, where a wooden ball is kicked continuously forward over great distances, for days on end. The best place to encounter Tarahumaras is on an excursion from the Copper Canyon Lodge at Cusarare just south of Creel, to Batopilas, the old silver mining town at the canyon bottom.
This excursion is not to be taken on the spur of the moment. The 4-wheel drive vehicle descend from the rim to canyon bottom takes about 6 hours with en route stops. Hiking around Batopilas and down the river one can see the Cerro Colerado mountain in the distance. There are still un-mined silver deposits, which brings to mind the lure of wealth that drove Humphrey Bogart insane in the movie .... " The Treasure of Sierra Madre "
When you go Advance bookings are absolutely required, as lodges have few rooms and train schedules can vary.
Recommended :
• advance booking is minimum 2 months, but 4 months or more, is best.
• time to go is early spring to early summer and late summer to late fall.
• reading "A Peoples guide to Mexico" by Carl Franz, originator of the travellers credo ... " wherever in the world you go ... there you are. "