Exploring Mexico's Copper Canyon

Exploring Mexico’s Copper Canyon

October 2, 2018
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Mexico
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Welcome to the final post from our three-week road trip through Mexico. Last I left off we had just finished our lunch at Basaseachi Falls, and we were headed towards Creel, the little mountain town that operates as the jumping off point for Copper Canyon adventures.

For more on how this road trip through Mexico got started:

Creel is a picturesque mountain town, chock-full of log cabins and sitting at an elevation of 2,300 meters above sea level. It’s surrounded by pine forest and glimmering lakes. The residents of Creel actually wear cowboy hats and there are horses everywhere.

Creel was not what I was expecting, but the change of scenery was refreshing. Although it was summer, the altitude meant that the evenings were chilly. I had to dig out my sweaters and bundle up; I felt so cozy!

Prior to our arrival in Creel, we had looked online for a place to stay, but we couldn’t find anything that was reasonably priced. We figured that was because the smaller guest houses didn’t have websites, but when we arrived in town everything was actually booked!

We finally found a room for rent in a rustic, log-cabin lodge. I don’t even think the place was an operating hotel; I’m pretty sure the family that lived there figured they could make a few bucks by renting their spare room. It was cozy enough, and we didn’t have any other option, so we took it.

That night we headed to dinner on the main street. The town was busy and there were a few cute restaurants and coffee shops. We had a warm meal and a cocktail and called it a night.

Driving Through Copper Canyon to Batopilas

The next day we woke up early to head to Batopilas, a town at the bottom of Copper Canyon.

Although it’s only 85 miles from Creel, the drive takes about five hours because of the steep windy road into town. Thinking we’d be tired at the end of the drive, we had booked a room at a beautiful-looking hotel (we decided to splurge because the options were pretty slim anyways).

The drive was amazing, although a bit scary at times. The scenery was so vast and dramatic. Even though we didn’t have time to fully explore the canyon, the drive gave us a really satisfying taste.

We arrived in Batopilas around lunchtime. We found our hotel, which was a charming Spanish-style building on the outskirts of town.

We walked into the quiet building to check in and the only person around was the cleaning lady who didn’t speak a word of English. We did our best to explain that we had a reservation. She did her best to tell us that was impossible because they were closed. In addition, we had no phone service or wifi, and neither did they!

With no other option, we headed into the town center.

Batopilas

We had read in other travelers’ accounts that Batopilas often had some cartel activity going on, but that tourists were generally left alone so as not to damage the area’s growing tourist industry. This knowledge contributed to our eerie feeling when driving into town. The other issue of concern was that Batopilas is tiny! With only one narrow road leading into town, we felt as though the whole town knew as soon as we arrived.

I’m not sure if it was because of the potential dangers, or because it was the extremely hot and humid off-season, but the town felt extremely sleepy. While Creel was crisp and cool, Batopilas sits at the bottom of the canyon, making it about 35 degrees warmer. On top of that, the daily rains make trekking a bit more difficult in the summer months. Thus; tourists tend to wait for the cooler dry season before venturing into the canyon.

We found a spot for lunch; the options were quite limited. Then we searched for signs of life. There really wasn’t anything else to do. There weren’t any little shops or food stands, and no visible hotels. The town was dead.

It was quite the opposite vibe from Creel. With the rising temperature and humidity, nothing to do, and a slightly unsettling feeling, we decided to take a quick look around town before heading back to our cooler haven in the hills.

As we drove around the town’s central square, we noticed a familiar motorcycle parked outside one of the houses. It belonged to an Australian traveller we had met a couple of days earlier.

We decided to knock on the door of the house and discovered a lovely older woman with the best English we’d heard in days. She ran a lovely little guest house out of her home (we later learned that she exchanged free boarding for language lessons with some of her guests). Our friend wasn’t feeling well and was asleep so we had a nice chat with the owner of the house. She told us a bit about her life story and the history of the town, and made sure we left with some fresh fruits off her trees in the backyard.

With a bag full of fruit, we bid our new friend farewell and got back on the road to Creel.

The road from Batopilas follows the river for a short way before turning into very steep switchbacks up the mountainside. We hoped that we’d get to the top before the afternoon rains, because we had serious concerns that our heavy Escape wouldn’t be strong enough to make it up the steep mountain in a heavy downpour.

Although the rest of the road to Creel is not as bad, the road out of the canyon is precarious and best done during daylight hours. We caught some rain on our climb out of the canyon, but luckily the storm didn’t really hit until we were safely on flatter ground.

We’d love to go back to Batopilas to explore some of the epic hiking and biking in the area, but we realized this trip is definitely best done in the spring, when the conditions are more hospitable.

Bike Riding in Creel

The following day we decided to put our bikes to use and explore the countryside. Creel is known for its interesting rock formations. Arie had found some bike routes that went through the surrounding hills, which would take us along the path to each of these sites.

The area around Creel is home to the Tarahumara, a community that is indigenous to that region of Mexico. Portions of the bike path pass nearby Tarahumara homes and farms, so we tried our best to be respectful as we rode by (one of the sometimes complicated balances of being a tourist).

Our bike ride was lovely. The air was fresh, the sun was shining, and the landscape was gorgeously green. It was such a great way to spend our last full day in Mexico!

Logistics

If you’d like to road trip to Creel and Copper Canyon from the US, it’s about a six hour drive from Presidio, Texas. You can also fly into Chihuahua and rent a car or take a bus from there. If you do drive from Texas, make sure to fill up on gas at the border, because the first stretch of road towards Chihuahua has no gas stations for over 100 miles.

Presidio is only about an hour from Marfa, Texas and Big Bend National Park (opposite directions). If you have the luxury of time, all are worth a visit. Also, see this post for additional information on driving a US registered vehicle into Mexico.

That wraps up our road trip through Mexico. It was such an amazing few weeks and I am so happy that we were able to do it. I also hope that it encourages you to visit some of these less touristy, but completely magical areas.

If you’ve already visited Creel or Copper Canyon – leave a comment below – I’d love to hear about your experience!