Category: Countryside

No place in the Valley of Oaxaca celebrates Mardi Gras with the wild exuberance of the village of San Martin Tilcajete. Young people there dress in zany costumes and parade through the streets at mid-day to the accompaniment of brass bands and fireworks. Tilcajete is famous for the production of the fanciful carved wooden figures known as alebrijes. Many of the merry-makers are artisans who use their imaginations and skills to craft their costumes. Camera-toting tourists flock to the event to join in the fun. While most visitors arrive by tour bus, it is a relatively easy 2.5 hour bike ride from Oaxaca to Tilcajete. Cyclists leaving el centro at 8:30 am can easily get to Tilccajete in time to watch the grand parade which gets underway at 11:00 o’clock. The highjinks continue until about 12:30 and then resume with a community dance after dark. While it is possible to pedal to Tilcajete along Hwy 135, most cyclists prefer to use country roads to avoid traffic. The route shown covers a total of 78.8 kms (49.0 miles) out & back from Santo Domingo church, with an elevation gain and loss of 425 meters (1394 feet) along the way. Allow about seven hours for the excursion, which includes 1.5 hours to watch the celebration and enjoy some food and drink in the zocalo.

San Pablo Huitzo is the principal town located at the northernmost point of the Valley of Oaxaca. It was the chosen destination for a group bike ride this first Sunday in February 2025. The community was celebrating its annual feria this weekend, so there were lots of food vendors set up around the zocalo. Cyclists from Oaxaca going that way usually follow the route of the abandoned railroad that once linked the valley with Mexico City. Though 24 miles distant, it is an easy ride since the terrain is mostly flat the whole way. Today’s riders were a well matched group of seven men and five women, consisting of six locals and six gringos. It was another perfect day, weather-wise, with light scattered clouds and a temperature in the low 20’s C (70’s F). Altogether the gang pedaled 78.5 kilometers (48.8 miles), with a modest 294 meters (965 feet) elevation gain and loss on the way. Note that the map below shows the route going just one way, so the mileage indicated is only half the total distance.

Anyone keeping a close watch on this website has likely noticed fewer posts in recent months. The reason for this is not that there have been fewer terrific rides, but because most of the back roads and trails around the city of Oaxaca have been pedaled many times over the years; consequently there is nothing new or exciting to report. So why this post? There is an amiable and close-knit group of gringo riders, all snowbirds from the U.S. and Canada wintering in southern Mexico, who get together every Sunday morning for leisurely rides in the country. Unlike some local bike clubs which hit the trail at 7 or 7:30 am even in the depths of winter, the gringos have the good sense to wait until the sun has warmed things up before getting in the saddle at 9 am. This author’s old bones appreciate that touch of civility, and so has joined this group for the winter of 2024-2025. Today’s outing was typical, covering a modest distance at a leisurely pace, with a stop for lunch at a local eatery near the end of the ride. The destination – the trail beyond the two presas in the mountains above Santo Domingo Tomaltepec – has been visited many times before, as it is a very popular target for Sunday hikers and cyclists. Today’s ride covered 44.6 kms (27.7 miles) and entailed gaining and losing 326 meters (1070 feet) in elevation along the way. The gang was enroute for a bit over five hours, counting time for a delicious noon lunch at the Blue Whale in Santa Marie el Tule. It was a sparkling clear day with the thermometer touching 27°C (80°F) by the early afternoon. A good time was had by all.