It is always a special treat to discover a new route to a favorite place. Such was the case on today’s 70 kilometer ride through the countryside of the Zimatlan Valley to the south of Oaxaca City. Even though this author has cycled a number of times around Zegache and led several hiking groups from there to Tilcajete or Ocotlan, I was not aware it was possible to bike all the way to Zegache using unpaved country lanes, thus staying clear of traffic on the main highway. What a pleasant surprise! There were sixteen riders in our group when we set out from the church of Santo Domingo in the center of Oaxaca on a bright and clear Sunday morning in early November. We stuck to the valley floor all the way to our destination, so there was almost no change in elevation, making for easy pedaling the whole distance. It took almost exactly two hours to cover the distance of about 20 miles (32 kms) from Oaxaca to the church in Zegache, which was rebuilt and painted by Rodolfo Morales, the famous painter from Ocotlan. We did not stop there, though. Keeping the cranks turning, we rode 4 miles (6.4 kms) more to Santo Tomas Jalieza where we stopped for a late breakfast. From there we had a choice of several different routes back to the capital city, the shortest and fastest of which was Highway 175. All told, the loop ride ran for 43.4 miles (70 kilometers), with an elevation gain and loss of 1796 feet (547 meters), most of which came crossing a ridge of hills on Highway 175 between Guegorexe and San Bartolo Coyotepec.
