The Cartel Coast

On Friday 20th May we arrived in Comala, a small and very pretty town on the edge of Colima national park. This national park includes two dramatic volcanoes, the Volcan de Fuego and the Volcan Nevado de Colima. The Volcan de Fuego is Mexico's most active volcano and has erupted dozens of times in the last few centuries, the last major one in 2003. We tried to book into a B & B, not having found a campsite, but the B & B was full. However, the proprietor said that he had a room over the road and this turned out to be a lovely house with an open central courtyard and kitchen facilities which we had entirely to ourselves!

Central Courtyard, Casa don Jose

Local character with pit-bull,  Comala

We spent Saturday exploring the villages close by, one had an interesting museum with some prehistoric artefacts from the area, and they all had a pretty plaza with a bandstand in the middle and a church on one side.

Central plaza with church, Comala

We then drove on up into the mountains towards the Volcan de Fuego which we could see looming through the haze of cloud which it was constantly puffing out. We stopped at a couple of lakes, the first was a little disappointing but the second one, closest to the volcano, was quite beautiful and we decided that we would return there the next day.

On Sunday morning we packed up and checked out of Casa Don Jose (a suitably grand name for quite a grand house). It was then that Alan noticed that some b*****d had slashed the tent cover on top of Footloose Lucy. We had left her parked on the street as there was no off-road parking but we had been assured our vehicle would be safe. Wrong! Mara, the proprietor's wife, took photographs of the damage, said she would be reporting it to the mayor and undertook to make arrangements for the cover to be repaired by a local vehicle upholsterer.

Meanwhile, we set off back up the mountains and drove to the closest point we could get to the volcano, about 5 km from it, where we got a really spectacular view and could clearly see puffs of steam billowing out. From there we returned to Laguna la Maria which is, in fact, the caldera of an extinct volcano where we set up camp close to the lakeside.

Volcan de Fuego with steam cloud

View of volcano from campsite

The next incident of the day was a bush fire, quite a fierce bush fire close to the campsite, and there were lots of Mexican people rushing off in all directions. They diverted a water source from goodness knows where, took big buckets of water and started throwing it on the fire. Luckily for us the wind was blowing in the other direction and we were relieved it didn't change. It took several hours to get the fire under control and they were still monitoring it late into the evening. Meanwhile, we took a rowing boat out around the lake and Alan got some good exercise using the very crude man made 'oars'. Sue helped a little, but not a lot.

Sunset at campsite, Laguna la Maria

We returned to Comala on Monday in order to get the tent cover fixed and a very good job the upholsterer made of it too.

On Tuesday, we set off on the road again to head back towards the coast, but not before another 'little incident'. Alan put his right contact lens in and immediately hit the ceiling in agony. Unbeknown to him he had been given the wrong lens fluid which requires a different lens holder to neutralise the cleansing fluid, which he wasn't using. The result was a very painful, bright red and swollen eye.

The drive from Comala was a couple of hundred kilometres down through the Sierra Madre del Sur, also charmingly known as the Cartel Coast as a notorious cartel apparently owns and runs this stretch of road along the Pacific coast, although you wouldn't notice anything different. The road is wonderfully dramatic with frequent glimpses of big beaches full of rolling surf and palm fringed lagoons but Alan never saw much of it, first of all because he was having difficulty keeping his eye open and, secondly, because he was a bit busy driving on the windy mountain road (Note - Alan will not allow Sue to drive Footloose Lucy and she can't reach the foot pedals anyway, even with the seat in it's most forward position).

Lunch stop somewhere off Cartel Coast highway

Cantilever restaurant, Cartel coast

We stopped for the night at a surfer's beachside flop house in a village called Nexpa which had nothing but surf and sand to recommend it.

Surf bums flop house, Nexpa

On Wednesday 25th May we continued on our way south along the coast and arrived at the small fishing village of Barra de Potosi with a seemingly endless palm fringed beach on one side and a lagoon on the other. We stayed at a delightful place called Casa del Encanto which can only be described as something between Scheharezade, Aladdin's cave and Carnaby Street in the 1960's. Alan's eye was still pretty sore so we spent Thursday generally chilling out, exploring the village, eating the delicious freshly caught seafood and even managed to kayak around the lagoon and adjoining mangroves. We also called in at a nearby nature sanctuary where the American owner warmly welcomed us and invited us to camp in her compound once we have finished our stay at Casa del Encanto.

Surreal 'apartment' at Casa del Encanto

Fisherman at sunset with casting net

Fisherman tending to his casting net, Barra del Potosi

Endearing little daughter of local waiter

We got up very early on Friday morning as we had organised a boat trip to a cluster of guano covered rocks which are home to a large number of seabirds. The rocks look like icebergs, they stick up out of the Pacific and are basically pure white because they are completely covered in bird poo! The power of the ocean as it slams around these rocks is pretty impressive and, in spite of the boat pitching all over the place, Alan persevered with his camera and managed to capture a few good shots. The boatman then took us to a place for some snorkelling, although it was pretty mediocre. Mind you, we have been rather spoiled by some spectacular diving and snorkelling sites in other parts of the world.

Brown booby and guana on Morros rocks

Storm petrels off Morros rocks

Pacific combers breaking on Morros rocks

In the evening we met up with Laurel and a couple of her friends at a beachside restaurant and enjoyed delicious tuna and prawns.

On Saturday morning we pottered off to see the local archeological site which is called Soledad de Maciel. This comprises a partially excavated ball court, a pyramid with 4 small temples on the top, a plaza and other bits that they haven't got round to digging up yet. We were assailed by the local 'certified guide' (quickly joined by his mate) who took us around the museum which was admittedly very interesting and then around the site itself. Following the trip round the antiquities they then took us to their village and the predicted sell of fake antiques and figurines which we resisted.

Temple at Soledad de Maciel

After that we had yet another fresh seafood delight at the beach and then set up camp at Laura's wildlife refuge where Alan spent a great deal of time and patience trying to photograph humming birds on the nectar producing plants, with some success!

Humming bird at nature sanctuary, Barra de Potosi

Humming bird visiting flower

Laurel cooked us supper and we had a very convivial evening with her and some friends she invited along.

We set off on Sunday morning and we have since been continuing to make our way along the Pacific coast and managed to get through Acapulco in one hit with the help of Doris, our sat nav. Alan said it reminded him of Calcutta so we were very pleased to see the back of it. We had a minor mechanical problem with Footloose Lucy (the horizontal steering damper came adrift) but luckily found a 'mecanico' who was able to fix it very quickly. Tonight we are once again staying right next to the beach watching the huge combers come crashing in.

Sunset on the Pacific coast

This is the last bit of the 'Cartel Coast' and in the next day or so we will be heading inland again towards Oaxaca (pronuounced wha-ha-ka)

Into the Tropics

So, on Wednesday 11th May, we bid good riddance to Gomez Palacio and made our way south to Dorango, where we spent a very pleasant afternoon and overnight stay.

Dorango is a lovely city, quite the opposite from the one we had just left. Apart from anything else it's a world heritage sight, or at least the cathedral is and the cathedral is a delightful piece of 19th century baroque architecture, unlike many catholic ecclesiastical buildings. It's actually quite

Durango Cathedral at night

restrained but it is beautiful (sorry pic is sideways on but couldn't work out how to turn it around). We stayed in a very old and gloriously shabby hotel which was immediately opposite the cathedral. It is probably a 19th century building, constructed around a central quadrangle with stone columns, old tiles on the floor, and stone and tilework steps. All the rooms had original wooden shutters and the place was gently falling apart.

Sue on hotel balcony, overlooking cathedral

Cowboy country, Durango

Old colonial hotel at Durango

The main pedestrian thoroughfare called the Constitucion is a delight, it passes from one park to another park via a park in the middle and has a lovely, lively feel to it. A lot of Western films were made in and around Durango and it does have a bit of a Hollywood feel to it, there is a similar walk of fame and bronze statues of movie stars like Clint Eastwood and John Wayne.

We left Durango on Thursday morning and made our way south to Mazatlan on the Pacific coast. The road from Durango to Mazatlan comes down through the Sierra Madre where it loses many thousands of feet via a series of tunnels and quite dramatic bridges with gulp inducing drops over the edge. We also realised once we had arrived at Mazatlan that we had crossed the Tropic of Cancer so we are now truly in the tropics!

Mazatlan is essentially a large holiday destination but we managed to find a lovely campsite to the north of the main town, away from the tack and kiss me quick of the golden triangle. We parked up right next to the Ocean and went to sleep each night listening to the big combers crashing onto the rocks.

Footloose Lucy parked at Punto Cerrato, Mazatlan

Waves crashing at Punto Cerrato

Brown Pelicans at Punto Cerrato

Frigate bird

It was surprisingly easy to catch a bus which took us along the coast, through the main holiday bit and into the old town of Mazatlan. We spent a happy couple of days visiting the market, the lovely plazas and taking a water taxi out to Stone Island.

Fish seller at old Mazatlán market

Street cobbler, old Mazatlán

On Sunday 15th May we went on our way down the coast to a sleepy fishing town called San Blas, also a bit of a magnet for surf bums. There we camped at Los Cocos campsite which was basically a coconut grove. Whilst a lovely setting, it had a down side which was that it was also home to thousands of mosquitos and sand flies which had Sue doing a dirvish dance in an attempt to keep them from biting every exposed part of her (in spite of being covered with mozzie spray).

Campsite at San Blas

The highlight of our trip to San Blas was a superb boat trip up the river through the mangrove swamps and jungle where we saw a wide variety of birds. If you enjoy bird watching (the feathered variety) then we hope you will like this small selection of the many photographs which Alan took. If you are not at all interested in birds, then skip through!

Great egret among mangroves

Boat billed heron

Boat billed heron, close up

Northern Potoo, disguised as a piece of tree

Yellow-crowned night heron

Tri-colour heron

Terrapin

Whilst in San Blas, we met up with Ian and Penelope, an Australian couple who are spending 4 years travelling round the world. We met them briefly in Creel and then we were following in each others footsteps on the road down from Mazatlan. They have a large and very impressive Isuzu truck which dwarfs Footloose Lucy but which looks entirely suited for 4 years of travelling. They have been on the road now for a year, having started in Alaska. Ian very kindly helped us download the IOverlanders App which has maps of the entire world and marks campsite spots which will make life a lot easier for us from now on.

Unsurprisingly, it was very, very hot and we also decided that we wanted to avoid the next big holiday destination further down the coast. So, on Tuesday 17th May we went back inland through the Central Western Highlands and made our way to Lake Chapala just south of Guadalajara, Mexico's second largest city. Our journey took us through Tequila and fields of blue agave, the plant from which Tequila is made, and we have purchased a bottle! Alan has been reminded of a well known quotation: one tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor.

Faro (lighthouse) at Lake Chapala

Thanks to IOverlander we found a lovely campsite right next to the lake, close to the little town of Jocotepec. The great thing about this place is that, whilst it is hot during the day, it is wonderfully cool at night so you get a good night's sleep. And, of course, Alan has been photographing more birds by the lakeside!

 Flamboyant tree at Lake Chapala

Sue relaxing at the campsite

Black crowned night heron with supper

Ian and Penelope joined us here a day later and we have very much enjoyed their company and generally chilling out. They are off to Cuba shortly so our ways will part, but we may meet up further down the line.

With aussie friends and their gert big truck

We left Lake Chapala this morning (Friday 20th May) and have arrived at a delightful village called Comala which is in the volcanic area of Colima. More about this in our next post!

Going down and down and down . . . . . . . to the bottom of the canyon

Having spent several days taking in the breathtaking highland scenery in and around Creel, we decided it was time to go down to the bottom of the canyon. The Copper Canyon is, in

fact, made up of a series of 7 canyons, the deepest of which is the Urique Canyon.

View of Urique from top of the canyon rim

So we set off from Creel on Thursday 5th May and made our way some 80 km to the town of Urique at the very bottom of the deepest canyon. The last 40 km was dirt road and the final 20 km was all hair pin bends, a lot of it single track with no guard rail and drops of 1,000 ft.

In all we dropped from 8,000 ft at the rim to 1,500 ft at the bottom.

Sat nav impression of the road to Urique

Unsurprisingly, it was very hot when we go to the bottom, about 40 degrees C.
















We made our way to the Entre Amigos campsite where we set up camp for the next few days. The campsite was set in a lovely cultivated garden filled with fruit trees and flowers, humming birds and other beautiful birds which we couldn't identify. The site was managed by Tomas who, each morning, gave us fruit from the trees for our breakfast - prickly pear, papaya and grapefruit - delicious!!

We fell in love with Urique - we hope the following photos help to show why

View up from the canyon bottom

Red Cardinal

View from the campsite

Collared  dove on prickly pear

Spot the camouflaged lizard

Urique High Street

Alan keeping cool

Lucy parked up at Entre Amigos campsite

Mexican gate hinge (worn out sole + coca cola tops)

Car wash Urique style

Urique river in the canyon bottom

Adult and juvenile birds (unidentified)

We left Urique on Sunday and made our way back up the canyon to Creel. They are beginning to tarmac the road from Urique upwards so it is closed for most of the day whilst they work on upgrading the road. We were reliably informed that the road would be open between 1 pm and 2 pm. We got to the closed part of the road over an hour before it was going to open. Much to the amusement of the flag man we deployed the canopy and got the chairs out. Shortly after the 'patron de camino' came along and decided to wave us through anyway.

Waiting for the road to open

Having retraced our path back to Creel and then Chihuahua, we are now in a rather seedy town called Gomez Palacio (nothing palatial about it) in the hope of reaching the pacific coast in the next couple of days.