The La Reina trail is a very steep gravel road which links San Andres Huayapam with the ecotourism camp at La Cumbre Ixtepeji at over 9000 feet in altitude. This is a killer climb and, conversely, a screamer descent. The elevation gain amounts to 2378 feet in the space of 3.7 miles, with a gradient of 20% in some places. Your legs and lungs better be in top condition and your bike equipped with a good granny gear to make it to the top; and your brakes will get a heck of a workout on the way down. The map below shows the way, but note that this ride stopped short of the top of the mountain. Access to the trail is from Martires street. Note: there is a fee of 50 pesos (in 2024) to use the trail, payable at a toll booth at the bottom of the road just outside Huayapam.
It is a steady and steep climb up the mountain from Huayapam to La Cumbre. Though not far as the crow flies, the uphill grind seems never ending. From near the top of the mountain there are panoramic views of the entire valley of Oaxaca.
San Andres Zautla is a small community situated 24 kilometers (14.9 miles) northwest of Oaxaca city. It was the destination for a Sunday group ride on 25 February 2024.
Sunday morning cyclists eager to hit the trail.Heading north and west through rural countryside.Free samples of mezcal lured bikers to Zautla’s anniversary celebration. Nearing Oaxaca at the end of the ride.
The first – and most welcome – rain of 2024 fell gently in Oaxaca for several hours in the afternoon and evening of Saturday, 17 February. It was still overcast the following morning but there were few puddles to impede the group of nine cyclists who set out from el centro at 8:20 am for a pleasant loop ride to the village of La Raya, located in the rolling hill country of the Zimatlan valley southwest of Oaxaca. The cloud cover burned off as the morning progressed, revealing blue sky and pushing the thermometer into the lower 20’s C. (mid 70’s F.) by afternoon. Bikers covered 57.9 kilometers (36.0 miles) on the ride, gaining and losing 462.7 meters (1518 feet) in elevation along the route. While the ride overall was rated moderate, there was one long, steep hill climb that was a big challenge to some in the group. As per our custom, the gang stopped for brunch at the mercado gastronomico in Zaachila on the journey home.
The citizens of Guelavia hosted a boisterous festival this fourth Sunday in January celebrating the community’s use of carrizo (a bamboo-like plant) in the making of baskets, hats and other merchandise. Several blocks in the town center were roped off and filled with displays and vendors selling food, while there was music and dancing in the zocalo in front of the municipal building. A dozen cyclists from Oaxaca happily joined in the celebration as part of their weekly ride. It was a picture-perfect day for an outing through the countryside of the Tlacolula valley, with mild temperatures in the upper 70’s Fahrenheit (about 24º C) and a refreshing breeze blowing gently through the trees. Riders covered 58.2 kilometers (36.2 miles) on the round-trip excursion, with a modest elevation gain and loss of 163 meters (535 feet) in elevation along the way.
There is an epic new trail near Oaxaca deserving of mention here. Under construction for two years, the Camino de Juarez is set to open in March 2024. In all likelihood, though, it will not be completed for another year or two, given the work yet to be accomplished. As envisioned, the trail will run from San Pablo Guelatao – the birthplace of renowned Oaxaca native, Benito Juarez – to the outskirts of the capital city. The trail commemorates the twelve-year-old orphan’s solo walk from his hometown to Oaxaca in 1818, leaving behind his years as an unschooled shepherd boy to embark on a lifetime of stellar achievements as a student, lawyer, state governor, supreme court justice and president and savior of Mexico during the war of the French Intervention. A contemporary of Abraham Lincoln in the U.S., Juarez can fairly be called the father of the modern state of Mexico.
The Camino de Juarez winds for 29 miles (46.5 kms) through the mountainous terrain of the Sierra Norte, starting at an elevation of 5790 feet (1765 meters) in Guelatao and concluding at 5020 feet (1530 meters) at the Juarez monument in Tlalixtac where highway 175 intersects with highway 190 (the Panamerican Highway).
The highest point on the trail is 9246 feet (2818 meters). There is an elevation gain of 7631 feet (2326 meters) running from Guelatao to Oaxaca, with an elevation loss of 8333 feet (2540 meters) along the way. The paved trail has some steep segments containing lots of steps. There are pedestrian overpasses in the several places where the trail crosses highway 175. The Camino de Juarez is amenable to hikers, backpackers, joggers and bicyclists.
As of January 2024 most of the bridges that will carry the Camino de Juarez over the highway have been completed. A few segments of the trail – like this one near Tlalixtac – are ready to go. However some access roads are still under construction. Good portions of the new trail have been graded and some partial pavement put in place. But even in these areas much work needs yet to be done. And in some places the trail is still nothing more than a narrow footpath.
