Category: MTBing

Items related to actual riding of mountain bikes.

Countryside, GPS, MTBing

Variations On A Theme

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Time and again the ride from Oaxaca to San Juan Teitipac is a favorite for the weekly Sunday morning outing. Yes, we have gone this route before – multiple times. But it is just so very pleasant no one ever tires of it, and there are sufficient combinations of country roads to get there and back to keep the scenery interesting. It helps that every Sunday the ladies of San Juan set up an outdoor comedor behind the monastery where hungry cyclists can get their fill of delicious, fresh-made tacos, tlayudas and other treats. Today’s crew consisted of three men and three women, varying in age from the mid 20’s to late 70’s, all evenly matched in biking ability. It was – as usual – a beautiful day to be in the saddle. The group pedaled a total of 59 kilometers (36.9 miles), gaining and losing a modest 231 meters (760 feet) in elevation on the circuit. A good time was had by all.

Countryside, MTBing, Photos, Uncategorized

Color Me Mud

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The first day of August was a particularly beautiful day – one that just begged for a long bike ride. So that is exactly what we did. Four friends met at Santo Domingo church at 8 am and set out on a long loop from Oaxaca to San Felipe Tejalapam, then over the hill to San Tomas Mazaltepec and back to Oaxaca – a ride of 59 kilometers (36 miles) with an elevation gain and loss of 512.7 meters (1682 feet). The highest point on the ride was 1855 meters (6088 feet). Recent rains left a number of puddles along the route, which contributed a lot of mud to encrust our bikes and soil our riding gear. Cleaning the bikes afterward required using a putty knife to pry off the bigger chunks of dried muck. That chore notwithstanding, it was a great ride.

The first day of August 2023 was a gorgeous day to be biking.
The road between Tejalapam and Mazalteped had a gradient of 15% in places,
requiring some strong pedaling – or hike-a-biking!

GPS, MTBing, Photos

Three Bars To La Cumbre

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The ecotourism camp and bike park at La Cumbre Ixtepeji is just 24 kilometers (15 miles) from Oaxaca, making it a favorite destination for both hikers and mountain bikers, given its close proximity to the city. Enduro riders usually shuttle to the park and then enjoy swooping along the many downhill-specific trails built there in recent years. But La Cumbre is a worthy destination in itself for anyone wanting to test their stamina making the 1161 meter (3808 foot) climb from Oaxaca. That is exactly what this ride was about. Using a combination of back roads and Hwy 175, going by way of El Studiante and Tierra Colrado on the climb up, it took 110 minutes to get from the Candiani neighborhood on the south side of town to the office at the entrance to La Cumbre. The exhilarating downhill ride back – all on the highway – took a mere 60 minutes. The display on my Trek “Rail” e-bike showed five bars at the outset, indicating a fully charged battery. Using the pedal-assist motor to help on the climb dropped the indicator three bars. That left two bars for the return journey – more than enough power, as the motor was shut off for the screamer descent to the floor of the Oaxaca valley. That downhill run pushed the speedometer to 67 kms (42 miles) per hour in some places before brakes were applied to make the next curve. Yee-haw! Total distance covered amounted to 53 kilometers (32.9 miles) on the round trip, which took 3.5 hours – counting a couple of rest stops and time for a cup of hot chocolate at La Cumbre.

Welcome to the La Cumbre mountain bike park!
The office at the entrance to La Cumbre where visitors register and pay an admission fee.
Some downhill riders get ready to unload their bikes.

Foothills, GPS, Hiking, MTBing

Weekday ride to Donaji mountain park

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When riding the foothills trail from San Felipe del Aqua to Huayapam a few weeks ago, one member of the group pointed out a forest road going higher into the mountains, which he said made for a nice ride. I decided to go that way today. Glad I did. It was a pleasant, if rather short, ride. There were great views looking out over the Oaxaca valley. And where the road ended there was a spider web of hiking trails, some continuing up the mountain, and others dropping down and (probably) ending at the entry gate to the Benito Juarez National park. We will have to plan an exploratory hike here one day to map the hiking trails and find out where they lead.

Today’s ride followed a logging road at a back entrance to the parklands above Donaji.
Beautiful mountain vista close to Oaxaca city.
A hiking trail continuing uphill where the logging road ends.
These roads and trails are in Benito Juarez National Park.
A great view of the Oaxaca valley from high on the hillside.
There is an abandoned mine high up the hill.
A substantial tunnel burrows into the mountain.
Lots of small bats make their home at the end of the tunnel.
Watch for the sign on the left side of the trail going uphill
or you may pass by the mine without seeing it.

Countryside, GPS, MTBing, Photos

To Dainzu And Back

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One of the most popular rides in the Valles Centrales around Oaxaca is the out & back excursion to the archeological site at Dainzu. While the ancient ruins of temple mount, ball court, palace structure and the jaguar tomb are a worthy destination in and of themselves, it is the ride through the countryside to get there which is the main attraction for cyclists on a Sunday morning. That was certainly the case on 4 December 2022 when eight riders set out from Santo Domingo church at 9 am. It was a bright day with just a few clouds decorating a blue sky. The temperature was mild – perfect for riding – but a blustery wind was blowing most of the morning. Once again our gps unit malfunctioned, so the map below is from a previous similar ride.

Cyclists of a different kind assembled for a ride to protest violence against women.
We took the paved bike path on the way to Tule.
Pavement is fine, but most of our riders prefer dirt lanes.
Nothing beats a Sunday ride in the country.
At Dainzu we found a dog hankering for a drink of water and a handout of food.
Smiling faces all around.