Hiking Divisadero, Mexico
The Copper Canyon National Park (Parque Nacional Barranca del Cobre) is a system of six canyons in the Sierra Tarahumara which lies in the southwestern part of the state of Chihuahua in Mexico, about 250 miles from El Paso, Texas.
The area is enormous (five of the inter-connected canyons and gorges are each deeper than the famed Grand Canyon of Arizona) and the landscape is truly spectacular which makes it a very attractive area for the hiker. This said, there are very few established trails in this area and the very steep and rugged terrain means that this is certainly not a suitable destination for the novice hiker, unless you are traveling with a guide.
Most people visiting the region tour the area using the world famous Chihuahua-Pacífico Railway, known locally as 'El Chepe'. The rail line starts at Ojinaga where the Rio Conchos meets the Rio Bravo del Norte and terminates at the west coast port town of Topolobampa. The railway, which took more than 60 years to construct and was only completed at the beginning of the 1960s, runs for a total of 588 miles and includes 99 tunnels, 39 bridges and a large number of exciting switchbacks as it drops some 7,000 feet in some 120 miles coming out of the sierras and down onto the coastal plain.
Many seasoned travelers have described this as the best train journey in the world beginning in transitional tropical forest and climbing some 8,000 feet into the Sierra Madre where it skirts the Copper Canyon before descending to the coastal plains.
For any traveler a stop along the way at Divisadero is a must as the views from this point along the route are simply stunning. Here the views out across the Urique, Copper and Tararecua Canyons are simply breathtaking.
For the hiker however one of the world's most challenging and rewarding hikes starts some 17 miles from Divisadero (as the crow flies) in the town of Cusárare. The hike, which will have you climbing and descending anything up to about 4,000 feet a day for about 6 days, takes you across the Copper Canyon and into the northern end of the Urique Canyon from where your hike will finish with a challenging trek from the floor of the Canyon to Divisadero, perched some 6,000 feet up on the rim of the canyon.
But hiking Divisadero, Mexico is just one of literally thousands of hiking adventures that await you in the Sierra Tarahumara.
The Sierra Tarahumara boasts some of the world's most beautiful scenery including miles of fragrant pine and Douglas fir covered highland which are home to mountain lions, pumas, black bears and Mexican wolves. In lower lying regions of the areas you will find huge mixed forests including oaks, alders, poplars, junipers, pines and the lovely Madrona trees with their smooth, red-colored bark. Moving on down, forest and woodland gives way to shrub land along the slopes of the six canyons of the area before tropical conditions return along the canyon floor with enormous fig and ceiba trees appearing wherever water is plentiful.
The lower lying areas are also home to a host of wildlife including several large cats (jaguar, jaguarundi and ocelot) as well as badgers, otters and much more. The area is also a must for birdwatchers with nearly 300 different species - 24 of which are endemic to this area.
The summer months in the Sierra Tarahumara can be uncomfortably hot and the best months for hiking are the fall months from September onwards, although this time of year can sometimes be a little wet, and the start of the year between January and March which is both dry and comfortable.
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