I went over to Etla to ride with a MountainBikeOaxaca.com tour today. Geoff and Glen(n) were in town visiting and deciding to go out with Carlos for a sampling of Oaxaca singletrack.
D, G, G on the trail
There is an abundance of trails in the hills above San Pablo that are suitable for mountain biking. Here is another loop ride that is a variation on the theme established earlier with Loop 1 and Loop 2. The starting point and access routes are the same, but the lollipop loop that is the heart of this ride is different.
The biker attempting this ride will clock 9.1 miles (14.6 km) and find him or herself climbing and then descending a total of 2164 feet (650 meters) on mostly singletrack trail that winds through forested hillsides, often on rocky tread. The hardest climb, though, is on a dirt road that leads to the parking lot and community building at the new Mountain Park above San Pablo. After that, the grade of the singletrack trail is more moderate.
After a short Thursday Morning No-Drop Group Ride with Larry and Judah, Carlos and I headed up Trail HFR to check on the post-rainy-season condition of Trail BK and to scout for possible singletrack trails to connect over to the trails Carlos and his amigos have built in the Etla hills. Our ride/scout GPS data is in grey, other trails and scouting efforts in the Viguera valley area are also included. In short, we didn’t find a way that gets us far enough north, but we were please to find Trail BK in such good condition and to be reminded how interesting and fun that trail is. We’re going to pursue pushing it on to the north and thus provide a bi-directional rideable route of singletrack. Care to help us?
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Here is the GPX file.
Here is the KML/KMZ version.
If downhill is your favorite direction, then the ride from Cuajimoloyas to Lachatao should get you really excited! Both of these villages are part of the Pueblos Mancomunados, a collection of eight very small communities high in the Sierra Norte mountains of Oaxaca state, about 30 miles northeast of the capital of Oaxaca. Cuajimoloyas sits at an altitude of 10,398 feet (3169 meters), while Santa Catarina Lachatao registers 6986 feet (2129 meters) on the altimeter.
This particular ride follows dirt roads that connect the two. You can also ride between these villages using a singletrack footpath that covers a portion of the distance before linking with the same roads – but taking the path requires hiring a local guide (to support the local economy and prevent your getting hopelessly lost in the forest). If you look at a map, you will see that it is also possible to extend the ride by doing a detour to Yavesia on the way to Lachatao – again using either dirt roads or unmarked footpaths in the woods. And, of course, you can make this either a one-way or out & back trip.
However you accomplish the ride, there are logistical considerations. Both towns are rather remote. There is bus and colectivo service to each place from Oaxaca city every day. But there is no service between these villages. We managed a one-way ride by leaving our van in Cuajimoloyas and hiring a resident of Lachatao to haul us back to our starting point. That wasn’t cheap (400 pesos) but was better than the alternative – which was to crank back up over 4500 vertical feet over 18 miles and riding several hours after sunset.
The route shown begins at the ecotourism office in Cuajimoloyas, where you pay the 50 pesos per person fee to enter the communal lands, and ends at the village church in Lachatao. The distance between the two is 18.4 miles (29.6 km). The elevation gain along the way amounts to 1116 feet (340 meters), while the downhill totals 4530 feet (1381 meters). The downhill sections are fun and fast! Our group managed to complete the ride in about three hours, pausing frequently to take photographs. We also had a late breakfast in Cuajimoloyas and stopped for lunch in the very pleasing restaurant next to the church in Lachatao, which precluded our trying to ride back to Cuajimoloyas under our own power while there was still daylight.
The north end of the Etla valley offers some fine scenery and excellent singletrack trail to view it from. This moderately challenging ride will take the rider from San Pablo Etla on the eastern edge of the valley almost to the mountains that form the western rim. Along the way you will follow paved and (primarily) dirt roads, cut across farm fields, and savor some fine singletrack, especially in the rolling hills that characterize the landscape along the western side of the valley. None of the track is particularly technical, but your legs and lungs will surely get a good workout. Accomplished riders can probably knock out this loop in a bit over four hours. Those finding their way around for the first time and less adept bikers should tack on an additional hour or two for good measure.
The ride as shown begins and ends at Carl Silverberg’s San Pablo Etla home (www.MountainBikeOaxaca.com), and he will be happy to offer visitors to Oaxaca a guided tour of the area. The loop covers 25.5 miles (41.0 km), with accumulated gain & loss of 2844 feet (866.8 meters) along the way. Some of the singletrack trail is very narrow and on rather steep slopes. When crossing some farm fields, you will have to create your own path.
