Category: Photos

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Countryside, GPS, MTBing, Photos

A Ride In The Country

by Larry • 2021-08-01 • 0 Comments

Nine people showed up for this ride in the country on the first Sunday of August in 2021. It was a perfect blue-sky morning with a pleasant temperature and a slight breeze. Two riders were newcomers to the group, one visiting from Atlanta, GA and the other from Salt Lake City, UT. Another came aboard his Brompton folding bike, which has seen extensive use traveling through several Mexican states.

Pedaling along city streets and then highway, the group covered the distance to Cuilapam in about half an hour. After a brief stop to view the ruins of the never-completed monastery there, the band proceeded out into the country, riding various dirt roads and at times cutting across meadows planted in tall grass. There was no particular destination for the day’s outing – we were just looking to enjoy some time in the saddle, content to explore the network of farm roads criss-crossing the hills. All told, the group covered 41.7 kms (25.9 miles), with an elevation gain and loss of about 462 meters (1516 feet). Total time on the ride came to just a bit over four hours.

At times dirt roads disappeared entirely in fields of grass.
At one point we hiked our bikes across a field of newly planted aguave.
The lack of a road or trail did not stop our group.
Neither did a fence line stretched across the trail.
The Brompton folding bike needed some bolt tightening to keep the seat up.
A great view looking out over the Zimatlan valley.
A stop for a drink of tejate when passing thru Cuilapam on the return journey.

Countryside, GPS, MTBing, Photos

A Favorite Loop Ride Revisited

by Larry • 2021-07-25 • 1 Comment

This week’s Sunday ride saw our gringo group retrace the route of one of our best loop rides. After taking the paved bike path to Tule, we rode on through Rojas de Cuauhtemoc, Santa Rosa Buenavista and San Sebastian Teitipac before beginning the climb up and over the ridge of hills separating the Tlocolula and Zimatlan valleys. Up to this point the route was on relatively level ground and so the pedaling was easy. The trail over the hill, though, was gnarly and much steeper, making even the strongest riders dismount for some hike-a-biking. Once over the crest, though, it was a fun and fast descent into San Bartolo Coytepec and then an quick and easy ride back to Oaxaca. Ride participants covered 49.5 kms (30.9 miles) and gained and lost a total of 392 meters (1287 feet) in elevation on the circuit, which took just over four hours to complete. We encountered a dozen or more cyclists riding the loop in the opposite direction. It is a toss-up as to which direction is the easiest or best way to go.

Rest stop at a dam along the way.
Getting ready for the climb up and over the ridgeline.
View looking west toward San Bartolo Coyotepec from the top of the hill.
Snack time!
A happy cyclist.

GPS, MTBing, Photos, Uncategorized

Tomaltepec Presas

by Larry • 2021-07-11 • 0 Comments

Eight people showed up for the ride today which took the group on a moderate 43 kilometer (26.2 mile) traverse through the countryside linking Oaxaca with Tlalixtac, Santo Domingo Tomaltepec and Tule. The weather could not have been nicer, with a pleasant temperature and blue skies overhead. We encountered quite a few other cyclists similarly enjoying a Sunday morning outing.

The two presas above Tomaltepec were brim full after recent heavy rains.
This is the first time in several years water flowed over the spillway.
A family fishing from the dam.
Zowee! The water is deeper than it looks!

Countryside, GPS, MTBing, Photos, Uncategorized

Huayapam / Los Molinos Ride

by Larry • 2021-06-20 • 0 Comments

For the past three weeks Tlaloc, the god of rain, had a stranglehold on the Valles Centrales. Oaxaca lay beneath heavy cloud cover for days on end. Residents could not see the top of Cerro San Felipe, let alone catch a glimpse of blue sky. Rain showers moved through the valley half a dozen times a day. The city received 11.0 centimeters (4.35 inches) of rain in the past six days. So it was a welcome surprise when Sunday morning brought sunshine at last! Today’s ride was laid out to minimize riding through mud. There are numerous ways to get to Huayapam while remaining either on paved roads or byways that have good drainage. Our riders managed to arrive there dry and unsplattered with mud. Pushing their luck, they then decided to check out the Los Molinos trail, a perennial favorite of hikers and mountain bikers alike. The first three-quarters of the distance to the ruins of the old water-powered grain mill was in great shape. Only in the final segment did the single track trail get mired in mud. From the mill the riders opted to cross a creek and climb to the nearby Hwy 175 so as to have dry pavement for the downhill ride back to the city. This outing was a test drive of sorts, as Ron M. was aboard his new Priority brand bike designed for bikepacking. The sturdy rig is equipped with an internal gear hub mounted inside the bottom bracket, is driven by a rubber belt rather than a chain and rolls on extra-wide 29 inch tires. Ron declared himself delighted with the bike at the end of the day’s ride.

Ron baptizes his new Priority backpacking bike in the stream
near the ruins of the old grain mill at the end of the Los Molinos trail.

Countryside, GPS, MTBing, Photos, Uncategorized

Another Grand Loop Ride

by Larry • 2021-06-06 • 0 Comments

The first Sunday in June was a special day for a couple of reasons. First of all it was election day in Mexico, with people voting for candidates running for local, state and national offices. We passed a number of polling places on today’s ride where folks were lined up to cast their ballots. Secondly, recent heavy rains occasioned the appearance of the large winged ants – called chicatanas – which are considered quite a delicacy hereabouts. Both while waiting for riders to assemble at Santo Domingo church and all along the route of today’s ride we saw dozens of people scavenging for the insects, deftly capturing them and putting them in plastic bags to be carried home to the kitchen for preparation in a meal later in the day.

The route for this Sunday outing was a long loop that took participants 56.2 kms (34.9 miles) from Oaxaca south into the Zimatlan valley through San Bartolo Coyotepec (famous for black glazed pottery), then up and over a ridge of hills to San Sebastian Teitipac in the Tlacolula valley before angling back to Oaxaca through San Francisco Lachigoló and Santa Maria del Tule. Those rains referenced above meant slogging through a lot of mud along the way. The 233 meter (763 foot) foot climb up and over the hills separating the Zimatlan and Tlacolula valleys was a challenge, but the ride down the far side was a blast. Overall, riders gained and lost 509 meters (1670 feet) on the circuit. Time in the saddle amounted to 5.5 hours, including time for a delicious lunch at the Milenario restaurant in Tule on the final leg of the journey. Once back home the first order of business was to give our bikes a thorough cleaning and wash our filthy clothes and shoes!