What better way to spend a Sunday in mid-January than to enjoy a terrific downhill ride from the mountain trails at La Cumbre to the little town of Huayapam on the outskirts of Oaxaca city? While friends in Colorado are aching for spring and the chance to get their mountain bikes out of cold storage, it is warm and sunny in Oaxaca — perfect weather for a ride!
Today’s outing requires a shuttle to drop off riders and bikes in the high country of La Cumbre. The bike ride can commence at the entrance to the forest preserve on Highway 175, if you like, or at the point where a mainly-singletrack trail intersects the road that leads to the ecotourism camp (which is what the map below shows).
Breaking the ride into segments, the outing goes like this:
0.0 to 2.3 mi – Road from entrance station to start of trail / 817′ up & 50′ down over distance of 2.3 miles
2.3 to 4.1 mi – Cabeza de Baca Trail through the forest / 710 ft up & 163 ft down / mostly singletrack that winds for 1.8 delightful miles
4.1 to 7.1 mi – Logging road winding gradually uphill to high point of 10512 ft / 954′ up & 244′ down / clock another 3.0 miles for this segment
7.1 to 14.7 mi – La Reina Trail / Screamer descent on rough service road with loose scrabble ends at church in Huayapam / 4895′ down & just 56′ up in the course of fast 7.6 miles
14.7to 20.1 mi – Gradual downhill to center of town in Oaxaca / 698′ down & 150′ up / paved highway and city streets add another 5.4 miles to finish the ride
The stats for the whole adventure: 20.1 miles (32.3 km) with 2687 feet (819 meters) of climbing and 6050 feet (1844 meters) of downhill. The entrance station at La Cumbre sits at an elevation of 9288 feet (2831 meters); the high point on the ride tops out at 10512 feet (3204 meters); the church in Huayapam is at 5680 feet (1731 meters); the Zocalo at the center of Oaxaca city sits at 5124 feet (1562 meters).
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