Countryside, Hiking, MTBing, Outing, Photos

Apoala

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Santiago Apoala is a very small (pop. 200) Mixtec village located in a deep, secluded valley 68 miles northwest of Oaxaca city. Its dramatic setting and some of the physical characteristics of the area make it a fine destination for hiking and mountain biking. The Mexican government has designated Apoala as a natural biosphere, and has constructed an ecotourism center there. The principal things of interest to visitors are the extremely narrow, vertiginous canyon that guards the northern approach to the village; the natural spring at the base of a cliff that gushes clear, frigid water year around; the various caves that riddle the nearby hillsides; and the series of scenic cascades and waterfalls created by the water flowing out of the valley and over yet another cliff. The highway between Nochixtlan and Apoala was paved in 2022, reducing the drive time from Oaxaca from 3.5 hours to just 2 hours.

Mountain bikers will find the area challenging, in part because trails are difficult to find and partly because of the technical obstacles of the terrain. Hiring a local guide to ride with you is strongly recommended — as is having a sturdy bike and being in good physical condition. Be sure to carry plenty of water and food, as you may spend a grueling day in the saddle with no opportunity to resupply. Also carry a decent supply of tools, tire repair kit and a spare tube.

Apoala es un pueblo de 200 habitantes en la Mixteca a 109 kilómetros al noreste de la Cuidad de Oaxaca.  Su ubicación en un dramático paisaje lo hace un destino muy atractivo para hace paseos de “mountain biking” y para caminatas.  Puesto que se necesitan tres horas y media para llegar a Apoala es mejor quesdarse dos días allá.  El gobierno mexicano se ha designado a Apoala como “un biosfero natural” y ha construido un Centro de Ecoturismo.  Para los visitantes los aspectos más interesantes son los barrancas estrechas y profundas que están al lado norte del pueblo, el manantial de aguas limpias y muy frías al fondo de un despeñadero,  varias cuevas en las laderas, y una serie de cascadas que vienen del valle y caen de otro despeñadero. 

Los que son ciclistas de las montanas encuentran el área un reto puesto que las sendas son difíciles de encontrar y los obstáculos del terreno.  Se recomenda que los participantes contrate un guía local y tenga un bicicleta en óptima condición.  Es importante tener consigo una buena cantidad de agua y comida dado que el viaje es agotatante y sin oportunidades de conseguir ni agua ni alimentos. Es aconsejable  llevar herramientas para reparar llantas y un cámara de aire extra. 

Countryside, GPS, MTBing, Outing, Photos, Ride Routes

Nitos Ride To San Andres Ixtlahuaca

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San Andres and San Pedro Ixtlahuaca are two small villages in the Etla Valley just a few miles west of the archeological site of Monte Alban. The rolling hills in the countryside here are both scenic and fun to explore on a mountain bike. Twenty-eight members of the Nitos bike club set out from the center of Oaxaca on this bright Sunday morning in early October to make the most of a beautiful day. The group covered 34.7 kilometers (21.6 miles) on today’s outing, spending about 3.5 hours in the saddle and taking an additional hour for a pleasant lunch at a local comedor along the route, which followed a convoluted path so as to avoid riding on the main highway as much as possible. The ride was an easy one, as the hills were gentle; the total elevation gain for the day amounted to 315 meters (1034 feet).

San Andrés y  San Pedro Ixtlahuaca son dos pueblos en el valle de Etla a unasos pocos kilómetros al oeste de Monte Albán.  La cadena de colinas aquí son estéticamente bellas e interesante para explorar con un “mountain bike”.  Viente ocho socios de el Club Nitos salieron del centro de la ciudad de Oaxaca un domingo asoleado a principos de octubre para disfrutar del día.  El viaje era de 34.7 kilómetros y tres horas y media con una hora de descanso y una comida fue por una ruta fuera de la carretera principal en la medida posible.  El viaje no es difícil con colinas no muy altas. De hecho la subida total era de 315 metros.

 

 

Countryside, GPS, MTBing, Photos

Ruta Las Haciendas

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The mountain community of San Miguel Amatlan celebrated the feast of its patron saint – Michael the Archangel – the last weekend in September. As part of the festivities, the city council and the administrators of the ecotourism facility issued an invitation to mountain bikers to ride the Ruta Las Haciendas on Sunday, 28 September. The Nitos club of Oaxaca responded with 49 riders. Representatives also arrived from the La Veredita, Oaxacletos, El Camino, Madruganitos and Nocturnitos groups, as well as members of the Calpulálpam race team — a total of at least 80 riders! The town put on the feed bag for the entire group, supplying both a breakfast before and a lunch after the ride. The community president and various members of the council were on hand to personally welcome the riders, and many townspeople turned out to watch the bikers ride through town and out into the countryside. A brass band welcomed them on their return to Amatlan at the conclusion of the loop ride. Now, that’s hospitality!

The ride covered a total of 10.3 miles (16.57 km), utilizing dirt roads and a stellar single track trail running along the Papaloapam River that also gave access to the mine ruins of the Cinco Señores and Socorro haciendas. Participants pedaled up and over a number of hills, racking up 1739 feet (530 meters) of elevation gain in completing the circuit.

San Miguel Amatlan celebró su festival de Miguel el Arcángel, el santo del pueblo, durante la última semana de septiembre. Como parte de las actividades el Consejo Municipal y los Administradores de su conjunto para ecoturismo invitaron a ciclistas de llegar al pueblo por la Ruta de Las Haciendas el domingo 28 de septiembre. Cuarenta nueve socios del Club Nitos aceptó la invitación. Otros grupos llegaron desde La Veredita, Oaxacletos, El Camino, Madruganitos y Nocturnitos y también el equipo de carreras de Calpulalpam por un total de 80 ciclistas. El pueblo invitó a todos a desayunar y a comer. El presidente de la comunidad y varios miembros de Consejo nos dieron la bienvenida y mucha gente del pueblo vinieron a ver los ciclistas emprender su paseo. Una banda de pueblo nos dió la bienvenida al regreso del paseo. Un pueblo muy hospitalario! La ruta era de 10.3 millas (16.57 KM) sobre terracería y un sendero al lado del Río Papaloapam que ofreció acceso a las ruinas de las minas de Cinco Señores y la hacienda de Socorro. La ruta tenía varias colinas, por una subida total de 1739 pies (530 metros) del circuito completo.

 

Countryside, GPS, MTBing, Photos

Nitos Ride To Santiago Ixtaltepec

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This Sunday morning dawned with clear skies, proffering the possibility of a ride through the countryside without afternoon showers. That turned out to be a false hope, as light rain was falling along a good part of the ride back to Oaxaca — but not enough to dampen the spirits or wash away the good feelings of the day’s outing.

Santiago Ixtaltepec is a small village not far from its more famous neighbor, Teotitlan del Valle; and both of them lie in the Tlacolula valley to the east of Oaxaca city. The terrain there is mostly flat, but we managed to find a few hills to climb on the circuitous route we took on the way out. At times the group navigated barely discernible trails across open fields, trying — unsuccessfully, it turned out — to avoid a multitude of thorn bushes that had previous claim to the territory. At least a dozen flat tires resulted from this crossing, but these were mainly discovered after the group stopped for lunch in Santiago, where it was possible to deal with all of them at the same time.

Today’s trek through the countryside totaled 28.9 miles (46.5 kilometers) for the round trip, with an elevation gain and loss of 1377 feet (419.7 meters) along the way. We crossed a series of hills to accumulate that much climbing, as the high point of the ride was only 5489 feet (1673 meters), just 365 feet (111 meters) higher than the Zocalo in the center of Oaxaca.

Foothills, GPS, MTBing, Photos, Racing

Mexican National Mountain Bike Race In Oaxaca

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Today’s event was a double-header. First, local mountain bike racers held their usual monthly contest on the San Felipe bike trail network. Then contenders in town for the National race conducted a second round of races. Weather conditions were ideal, and track conditions were good. The course laid out for the event mirrored the route used in past years, with the addition of an extra uphill segment to push riders to their limits.

The convoluted loop wound 3.8 miles (6.1km) through the forest, with challenging technical spots and some sharp climbs and drops thrown in for good measure. Altogether there was a total of 737 feet (224.6 meters) of elevation gain and loss around the circuit. The Start/Finish line was at the site of an old stone quarry and registered 6045 feet (1842.5 meters) in altitude. The high point of the race course hit 6313 feet (1924.2 meters) and the lowest point came in at 5941 feet (1810.8 meters). No one went home feeling this was a wimpy course!