El Fuerte, Sinaloa, Mexico

When we arrived in El Fuerte, we stayed at an RV park, in our motorhome, for the first few days of our visit to this area.  We made arrangements with the owner of the RV Park to 'baby-sit' our sweet Tiki at his home while we took the train to Copper Canyon.  He also agreed to keep an eye on the coach for us as well.  When the weather was right, we left our coach and Tiki and took a taxi to the train.  It was a bit unnerving and very trusting to leave 'everything' we own in the care of someone we barely knew.  AND, you can imagine how we felt about leaving Tiki... However, everything turned out just great.

What you see above is everything we took, which was just what we could carry in our back packs. 
 

El Fuerte, Sinaloa, Mexico

Our clothes are what we refer to as 'technical clothes'.  They are light weight, wick away moisture and keep the sun off of us.  We have zip on legs for the shorts, and fleece jackets to keep us warm up in the mountains. 
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El Fuerte, Sinaloa, Mexico

This is the train station in El Fuerte.  There are two trains that leave from here to take you up to Barranca Del Cobra (Copper Canyon).  One train is called the Primera Express, it is usually faster, full of tourists and more expensive (approximately $46.00 CAD per person).  Therefore, we chose to take the other train, the Classe Economica, which makes more frequent stops, is slower, is full of locals and costs less, approximately $23.00 CAD.  We really enjoyed riding with the locals, and the train was very comfortable.  As it turned out, there was some work being done on the track and so neither train could travel very quickly.
 

El Fuerte, Sinaloa, Mexico

We arrived at the train station very early, as we have noticed in Mexico, things don't always run on schedule :)  Because we were early we were able to see the Primerica Express departing from the station.
 

El Fuerte, Sinaloa, Mexico

We sat in the shade on the sidewalk outside the train station.  While we waited for the train, we made friends with some of the other passengers.  We could hardly believe our eyes when this young man came riding up on his burrow.  Isn't this a great picture!  Look at how relaxed he looks as he chats with some of the other locals. 

The young boy, sitting on the sidewalk in front of us, and his sister were very shy until they started to trust us, then we could not get rid of them.  We had never seen anything like it, they were totally in awe of us, and wanted to be as close to us as they could get.  It was kind of cute at first...
 

El Fuerte, Sinaloa, Mexico

Here is our train coming into the station, Chihuahua Pacifico 'Class Economica'...
 

El Fuerte, Sinaloa, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Here's our two little friends again...  They wanted to sit on our laps, we said no.  So they sat behind us.  We didn't know they were in this picture until after.  They wanted to touch us and they begged for money...  They would not leave us alone, until we finally had to ignore them.  Which was harder to do than it would seem. 

Then, they got into the seat in front of us and just stared at us...  Then their Mom joined them and chatted with us for awhile.  Then SHE stared at us, doing the same thing.  And then, SHE started asking us for money.  It was all ok, but a bit disturbing.  Finally, after saying 'no pesos' and ignoring them for awhile, they all settled down. 

It's very interesting being around so many people who have so little.  Not only very little money, but possessions that we all consider so necessary to 'life'.  It's not uncommon to come across people begging for money.  And, there's a bit of a moral dilemma in deciding how to deal with each situation.  There are many ways to look at it, two of which are whether to give money or not to give money.  Giving money will certainly encourage them to ask for money again, something that may or may not be in their best interest.  Not giving money can seem cruel and unfair.  And without a doubt it's difficult to say 'no'.  Most times we say 'no pesos, lo siento' (no pesos, I'm sorry).  But sometimes when we see someone on the street, who is old or disabled, we DO give.  In addition, we have a 'Mexico Bag' where we collect things that we no longer need, instead of just throwing them away.  Items like towels, clothes, kitchen stuff, tools and knick knacks.  We also have a bag of used eyeglasses (given to us by friends for us to distribute) that we give away as we find people who need them.

 We understand that what we have is well beyond what many people in Mexico can ever dream of attaining.  To them, we seem wealthy beyond belief.  We try to help when we can, in ways that we feel will be in their best interest.  Yes, it's a judgment call.  But you have to decide on something...    

As you'll notice with the picture above, and several from on the train ride, they are a bit blurry.  That's because the train was so bumpy!  We used the photos anyway... Enjoy!
 

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

This is the Rio Fuerte and the train passes over it via the longest bridge on this stretch of track, 1637 feet.

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

This is the entrance to the first and the longest tunnel on this route, over 6000 feet!  There are 87 tunnels and 36 bridges on this 655 km's of track to Copper Canyon and on to Chihuahua.
 

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Hold on to your hat!

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

We have told you before that we get so accustomed to some things, that we forget to take pictures of them.  Well, here's a great example.  On the train, the security guard was carrying this semi-automatic rifle!  No one even gives it a second thought.  At least this gentleman was a 'man'.  Often times, they look like young boys.  Very disturbing at first, now we hardly even notice it.
 

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

This is a really amazing spot on the train ride.  And quite possibly our favourite.  As you can see by the #1, we are headed towards the mountain.  #2 shows where the track is heading back the other way along the base of the mountain, and finally #3 shows the track heading back in the first direction again and half way up the mountain.  Unbelievable the twists and turns and elevation that all happen in this one small space.  See the following pictures for different views of the same area and look closely for where the tracks are.
 

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train station / Convenience Store / Home...right beside the tracks...
 

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

See #1, #2 and #3 again...
 

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

This is the Rio Septentrion Gorge. The train snakes its way along the river, traversing dozens of bridges and chugging through more than 80 tunnels, a true marvel of engineering. By the time we reach our destination, we will have climbed from an elevation of 180 meters in El Fuerte to 2220 meters in Areponapuchi. Some say this is one of the most spectacular journeys by rail in all of the world and we would tend to agree.

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

This picture was taken with the flash, as it was absolutely black in this part of the train when we were inside this tunnel.  We got out of our seats and went to the area between the coaches sometimes to hear the noise and feel the warm breeze on our skin.  It was a lot of fun.
 

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

First, take notice of the repairs going on just outside of this tunnel.  We think there was a rock slide.  A section of the mountain, where the tunnel enters the mountain, broke away and slid down into the gorge.  The crew is 'scaling', where they remove and/or anchor loose rock to prevent it from falling away.  You can see a guy suspended up on the rock face above and to the right of the tunnel.  Second, look at how steep this mountain side is and how close the train travels to the edge :)  Yikes! 
 

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Train to Copper Canyon, Mexico

Very bUmPy!!  This gives you an idea of what the inside of the train looked like.  The seats were very comfortable with lots of leg room.  There was a really nice young family traveling just forward and to the left of us.  The young man had this little bag of tiny oranges and offered us some. Cindy politely took one out and he laughed and said no, take the whole bag.  He then showed us what to do with them...  They buy these oranges in these tall skinny plastic bags, add salt, squeeze the heck out of the oranges, with the skins on, and then, suck the juice out of the bag... hmmmm.... Thank goodness for Barry and his iron stomach, Cindy again politely had a small taste, and left Barry to work his way through the bag :)  The juice was quite 'tart', but tasty in it's own way.  The man seemed pleased with Barry. 

We think this may have been what gave Barry trouble in the days to come.  We are very careful about washing every vegetable and fruit that we eat with purified water before we eat them.  And we were so caught up in the moment that... well you get the idea.  Poor Barry, sometimes it just does not pay to be so nice :)
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

Well, we finally made it, we were probably on the train for five or six hours, instead of the three hours that we were told.  We found out later, the reason for this was because of the construction on the tracks.  Supposedly, the tracks were getting old and it was just not safe to go any faster... oh great!  Oh well, we survived.  They are supposed to be working on replacing the tracks over the next number of years.  It will be a huge ongoing project for them.
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

This is the tiny village where we have chosen to stay.  Just a few hundred people live here.  It is so small and adorable, and anyone we happen to see is very friendly.  There is literally no downtown.  There appears to be just the church and one store...very, very small.
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

We had decided that there was no way we could possibly see ALL of Copper Canyon.  It would take weeks.  And now that we had seen how slow the train was, we were certainly glad we only traveled to Areponapuchi instead of all the way to Creel.  We had decided to stay at this small, family run ranch, called Cabanas Diaz.  The Diaz family were just wonderful and made us feel right at home.
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

We stayed in the first cabin on the far left side of the picture.  It was so adorable...
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

Our cabin, although rustic, was very clean and there were no bugs, spiders or geckos crawling around.  It was also nice and cool at night, as we were up in the mountains.  We loved it here...  Note the sign on the wall near the lamp...
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

Ok, this is very important.  This sign was posted above one of the beds in the little cabin.  We have done a close up of it below.  Please take a moment to read all of the English words from top to bottom.  Smile and enjoy, we sure did.
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

Isn't that adorable.  If you truly cannot read it let us know.  We know what is says and we will write it out.  It just comes through so much sweeter if you read it right off of the sign.
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

At the end of the day you could sit outside here and watch the sun setting.  In the distance you can see the Diaz home, where we had all of our delicious meals, for $5 each.  Mrs. Diaz served delicious authentic Mexican food right out of her kitchen. 
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

We met this nice couple at one of our dinner meals.  We got chatting and found out that Magdalena and her husband live in Ottawa.  Cindy told her that her brother Shawn lives in Ottawa also. With a little more discussion it was discovered that Magdalena works at Cisco and you guessed it, Cindy's brother also works at Cisco.  What are the chances of that?  Then the conversation got even more unbelievable, when Cindy mentioned Shawn's name, well shock of all shocks,  Magdalena worked with Shawn in the past and knew him!

 Here we are, literally out in the middle of nowhere, so far off the beaten path, none of us could believe it!!  Magdalena said she would say "Hi" to Shawn when they got back to Ottawa :)
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

Near the base of the Diaz farm we saw these adobe bricks made from clay, straw and water.  The bricks have been made, removed from their forms and are drying in the sun...
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

This is Armando Diaz, fixing a horseshoe on one of his horses.  As it turned out, this is the horse that Cindy would ride the next day into Copper Canyon.  We indicated that we would like a 2 or 3 hour ride on horseback into the Canyon.  They indicated it would be closer to 3 or 4 hours.  It turned out to be about 5 hours.  Can you even begin to imagine how we felt after that :)  All of the sudden we were wishing for more padding in certain areas of our bodies :)
 

Areponapuchi, Chihuahua, Mexico

Cindy was pleased with her trusty stead...
 

Copper Canyon Horseback Tour, Mexico

Barry could hardly believe his eyes when they indicated that this large burrow would be his ride for the day!  As it turned out, the burrow had such stamina and endurance, he and Barry bonded quite nicely. 

And we were on our way...
 

Copper Canyon Horseback Tour, Mexico

Gosh, talk about stepping back in time.  We were going along this ridge when we saw these men working in the field below with a horse and plow.  Isn't this picture something else?  When was the last time you saw a plow like that!?
 

Copper Canyon Horseback Tour, Mexico

Ok, now you will start to see Copper Canyon.  We hope you can get some sort of sense of how magnificent it really was.  Also, please give credit to the wonderful animals that took us in and out of the canyon, trudging along terrain that was most times very narrow, very steep, very rough and very challenging for them.  These animals were something else.
 

Copper Canyon Horseback Tour, Mexico

This is one of the few pictures we have of Barry on his burrow...it was a remarkable animal.

We passed a number of locals coming up or down the trails with their burrows or donkeys.  It was an amazing trip.  Almost surreal that we were actually there and having this incredible experience.  You felt like bursting or letting out a whoop!!  It really was exhilarating.
 

Copper Canyon Horseback Tour, Mexico

If you look carefully ahead and to the left of Cindy you get a bit of a sense of how narrow the trail was here.  It was literally carved out of the side of the mountain and covered with rocks.

It was so narrow sometimes that your leg would scrape along the edge of the mountain and your other leg dropped off into oblivion.  Amazing...
 

Copper Canyon Horseback Tour, Mexico

Ok, just to get a sense of how high we were... see the white lines, those are the trails!!  We were working our way down and along these trails to get into the canyon.
 

Copper Canyon Horseback Tour, Mexico

Here's one of those times when a photo just cannot really capture what it's like to be there.  This trail is STEEP and it's full of loose rocks...

Copper Canyon Horseback Tour, Mexico

See how narrow the trail is?  It switches back down on the other side of those trees straight ahead.  And see the house way down the mountain...
 

Copper Canyon Horseback Tour, Mexico

Cindy looks so casual here, but she sometimes is literally lying right back on the horse as it is SO steep, and her palm is bruised and sore from leaning and clinging to the horn on the saddle.  Pictures just cannot even come close to showing how incredible it was...

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