Copper Canyon - Barranca del Cobre
Introduction
The entire canyon complex occupies most of northwestern Mexico. In total, this area is nearly four times larger than the Grand Canyon, and nearly 280 feet deeper. It took more than 60 million years of volcanic eruptions, erosion, and earthquakes to create this vast area of interconnected canyons. Elevations in the high country vary from 7,500 feet to 9,500 feet with several peaks of nearly 12,000 feet.The Chihuahua-Pacifico Railway begins at the border town of near Presidio, Texas. The end of the line is at Topolobampo, near Los Mochis.
The most scenic part of the rail route is the 406-mile stretch from Chihuahua, through the Copper Canyon, to Los Mochis.
Engineers from around the world, citing the rugged terrain, claimed this line could not be built. Construction began in the late 1800's and was completed nearly 100 years later in 1961. Before completion, workers built 37 bridges and dug 86 tunnels through the mountains. Laying rail from sea level to an altitude of 8,056 feet required some ingenious design to conquer the Sierra Madres.
It is not clear where the name came from, as there is no copper in the canyons. It has been said that the name comes from the color of the canyon walls during picturesque sunsets.
A Preview of El Fuerte
The quaint colonial town of EI Fuerte, still undiscovered by tourists, is accessible by paved road and by rail. Originally founded in 1564, and called San Juan de Carapoa, it was named EI Fuerte de Montes Claros by the Spanish Conquistador Francisco del Ibarra after the 17th-century fort was built by the Spaniards to protect against attacks by the local Mayo, Sinaloa, Zuaque, and Tehueco Indians. Located on the central EI Camino Real route, EI Fuerte was at one time the frontier outpost from which the Spanish set out to explore and settle New Mexico and California. For three centuries, it was also a major trading post for gold and silver miners from the nearby Sierras and the most important commercial and farming center of the area; it was chosen as Sinaloa's capital in 1824 and remained so for several years. There are intact colonial mansions in what is now a rather sleepy town of 25,000; one of the best is the Hotel Posada del Hidalgo. Most of EI Fuerte's historic houses are set off the cobblestone streets leading from the central plaza; a number of them have been converted into government offices.
The Copper Canyon
(Barranca Del Cobre)
The Most Dramatic Train Ride in The Hemisphere.
The Copper Canyon is Mexico's answer to the Grand Canyon. In fact, the Copper Canyon is four times larger than Arizona's own! If you love the unusual and want to go off the beaten path, this is the place for you. The Tarahumara Indians have lived in the area for hundreds of years. Semi-nomadic, many of them live on the high plateaus at the top in the summer, and move into caves and cabins at the bottom in the winter.The only way to go through the Canyon area is by train. The idea of building a rail line through this region was first conceived in 1872 by Alfred Owen, an idealistic American Socialist. Owen met with some initial success. Nearly 1,500 people came to join him in his utopian community at Topolobampo, southwest of Los Mochis, and in 1881 he got a concession from the government to build the railroad.
Construction on the flat stretches near Los Mochis and Chihuahua went well, but the Sierra Madre mountains got in the way of the dream, aided by an outbreak of typhoid, and growing disillusionment in the utopian community. In 1893, Owen abandoned the project. In 1900, American railroad magnate and spiritualist Edward Arthur Stillwell tried to complete the task. One of Stillwell's contractors on the west end was Pancho Villa, who ended up tearing down his own work during the Mexican revolution in order to impede the movement of government troops. The Mexican government took up the project; and finally after some 99 years and more than $100 million after it started, the Ferrocarril Chihuahua al Pacifico was dedicated in 1961.
The Copper Canyon provides scenic beauty, intriguing native cultures, a spectacular train and one of nature's true masterpieces.
The Tarahumara Community of "Wakajipare"
If one looks closely at the bottom of the canyon, you will see a very green area and, looking more closely, you will note some log cabins that belong to our Tarahumara neighbors. The name of this ranch which is almost hidden in the immensity of the Sierra in which it is located, is called Wakajipare, which signifies "Place of the Cattle". The "Wakasi" means "cow" and "jipare" means "the place of". Another name for this ranch is Bakajipare "place where the grass grows."This small settlement is composed of 12 Tarahumara families with some 35 or 40 persons, including adults and children. These Tarahumaras have Spanish names but they are pure Indians. Their principal occupation is agriculture and they grow corn, beans, potatoes, chile and squash, along with some fruit trees such as apple, apricot, peach, and pear. Their food products are all grown for their own consumption. They also raise sheep, goats and chickens. The men hunt such animals as squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits, quail and deer.
The climate of Wakajipare is very mild and it almost never snows in the winter. They never lack water because they have a stream, Wichoboravo, which flows year round. The name, Wichoboravo, means "spiny herb." the stream provides drinking water for the people and some water for their crops.
The community's religious center is at the Mission of San Alfonso and it is there where they celebrate all their indigenous and Christian ceremonies.
Tarahumara Indians
It is estimated that approximately 45,000 Tarahumara Indians live on the high mountains and in deep gorges, locally referred to as The Barrancas, of the Sierra Madre Occidental of Chihuahua. Because of isolation created by rough topography and because they have largely rejected assimilation into the Mexican culture, the Tarahumara remain one of the most primitive tribes in North America.Traditionally, they are seasonally nomadic, cultivating their crops on the highlands during the summer and moving to the canyon bottoms during the cooler months. As the Tarahumara are unsociable by nature, there are no villages. Some live on small, scattered farms; others live in caves.
Their main food consists of corn, "Pinole" (parched corn, ground and mixed with sugar), and is their regular diet. "Teshuino" (fermented corn) is their typical drink. A little farming is done during the summer and the meat they eat is always a product of their hunting.
They know the use of many herbs with therapeutic qualities that take care of their medical needs. "Peyote", which has narcotic effects, is considered to have supernatural qualities. For this reason, only the medicine men are allowed to use it.
Women give birth to their babies alone and in a standing position.
Another rare and in a way destructive custom, is that during the dry season they burn their fields and even large extensions of forest, believing that the smoke will make clouds and produce rain.
Their musical instruments are: a type of flute made of bamboo, drums made of rawhide, and the violin which they inherited from the Spaniards, later learning to hand carve it themselves, putting it together with a glue made from bulbs of certain lily plants and wild orchids.
Their favorite sport and entertainment is foot races ("raramuri" which means foot runner), an exercise at which they are experts. It is often the cause of great gatherings where they drink corn beer (tesquinada) and bet on their favorite runner. These races last sometimes up to 72 hours. The competitors kick a wooden ball a little larger than a baseball as they run. During the night, the runners are illuminated by torches.
Scientific studies have been made in order to determine the reason why these people are able to run such great distances and the only difference from an ordinary person that was noted is that their heart beats slower than normal.
Some Tarahumara, those who have become more civilized, have revealed themselves as skillful workers. Many of them worked in construction of the railroad, showing a great ability in the task of learning to operate the heavy machinery and equipment that was used.
Dedicated missionaries and more recently the Mexican Government have made efforts to generally improve the life of the Tarahumara primarily by providing medical and educational facilities.
The Tarahumara And Their Art: Nearly every adult Tarahumara is a craftsperson. They weave woolen blankets, though no rugs, of high quality. Their pottery, presently more functional than decorative, is firm and sturdy. With encouragement, some of their production could become an art form in the non-Indian market. Their baskets are lively and utilitarian. The women are folk artists par excellence with needle and embroidery thread. Their woven sashes and sewn blouses might in some circles be considered haute couture. Wood carvers have demonstrated their ingenuity, by shaping whimsical little figures out of pine bark to sell to tourists who arrive in Creel or Divisadero.
Canyon Facts
Comparison of depths
| Depth in: | ||
|---|---|---|
| Canyon Name | Meters | Feet |
| Urique Canyon | 1879 | 6136 |
| Sinforosa Canyon | 1830 | 6002 |
| Batopilas Canyon | 1800 | 5904 |
| Copper Canyon | 1760 | 5770 |
| Guaynopa Canyon | 1620 | 5313 |
| The Grand Canyon | 1425 | 4674 |
Rainfall and Temperature
The Canyon floor is considered to have a sub-tropical climate. It is normally hot/wet in summer and warm/dry in winter. Maximum summer temperatures reach 112 degrees F. while winter minimums may decrease to 10 degrees F. Rainfall amounts of 1 inch in spring month's compares to 7 inches per month in summer.In contrast, the Canyon rim is regarded as Alpine climate with warm/wet summers and cold/dry winters. Temperature extremes are 100 degrees F. to minus 9 degrees F. Rainfall amounts are about the same as the floor of the canyon except the summer rainy season may last longer.
Elevations
The elevation at Chihuahua is about 4600 feet, and the terminus at Topolobampo is at sea level. The maximum elevation on the line is 8,000 feet, which occurs near Ojitos, at KM post 583.The 300 miles of track has 36 major bridges, and 86 tunnels. Near the station of Pitorreal the line actually circles over itself on two levels and makes a complete loop. There are only two other places in North America where such an engineering feat has been achieved.
The last section of track, which took more than 20 years to complete, drops 7,000 feet in 122 miles
The Mystery of Barrancas del Cobre
(The following is a very short explanation
of the geological history of the Barrancas)
There are three categories of rocks: igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic. The igneous rocks are volcanic in origin, but not necessarily the result of erupting volcanoes. Some volcanic rocks cool very slowly many Kilometers below the earth's surface. Other cool at or very near the surface. Each setting results in a different kind of rock. Sedimentary rocks are the result of a slow and steady compaction of rock debris called sediments. These sediments have been worn away from mountains and layered on land surfaces or in bodies of water over millions of years. Metamorphic rocks are formed from an alteration of rocks that have been subjected to tremendous amounts of heat and pressure, again, over millions of years. The Barrancas are primarily the volcanic rock: tuff.
Volcanic eruptions and earthquake activities play major roles in transforming the landscape we see. Shake, Rattle and Roll demonstrated how this happens. The interior of the Earth and its surface, called the crust, is in constant motion. The crust is made of a series of puzzle-like pieces that interact in major and subtle collisions, some of which happen over millions of years. They collide to form mountains like the Sierra Madre or Lanit systems like the San Andreas. They pull apart to form rifts and ridges on the ocean floor, or result in violent volcanic eruptions of the type that formed the Barrancas. These processes are collectively called plate tectonics. Some of these processes happen suddenly and catastrophically. Others happen over millions of years.
To review 4.6 billion years of Earth's history, each of the four eras of geologic time is defined by life forms that dominated the Earth. The earliest and longest, the Precambrian, began at least 4.5 billion years ago when the Earth formed as a planet. It lasted for nearly 4 billion: years, or 90% of Earth's entire lifespan. Very simple organisms lived in the oceans during this time.
About 610 million years ago there was what geologists would call an explosion of life in the oceans. Many kinds, and large numbers, of marine plants and animals spread throughout Earth's oceans. This marked the beginning of the Paleozoic era. The dominance of sea life lasted until about 225 million years ago when the Paleozoic ended and the Mesozoic Era began. This was the Age of Reptiles, or the Age of Dinosaurs. With the death of the dinosaurs about 55 million years ago, the Mesozoic ended and mammals became the dominant life on Earth. This was the beginning of the Cenozoic Era. We live in the Cenozoic Era at the present time. Until mammals no longer dominate life on Earth, the Cenozoic Era will continue. No one knows what lies in the future for life on Earth.
The Barrancas are young, geologically speaking. They started to take shape only about 90 million years ago. Between 80 and 40 million years ago, major mountain ranges were forming along the entire west coast of North and South America because of plate tectonics. The granites of the Sierra Madre were forced into older sedimentary rocks. The granites carried with them the rich silver deposits of central Mexico that would take 90 million years to come close enough to the Earth's surface to be discovered and mined. Some volcanoes were erupting above these granites, but not nearly as violent as the ones to come. Between 28 and 18 million years ago, catastrophic volcanic eruptions completely buried northwest Mexico under thousands of meters of ash, dust, cinders, and lava flows. The ash and cinders were welded, or cemented, into the volcanic rock, tuff. After millions of years of eruptions and cooling, the landscape was a series of volcanic plateaus.
For the next 7 million years, the area that would become the Barrancas was rocked by violent earthquakes that moved huge blocks of rocks, breaking the volcanic plateaus into mountains that stepped down to the young Sea of Cortez. The Earth was literally pulled apart, a strip of land that would become the Baja peninsula slowly drifted away from mainland Mexico. Millions of years of erosion shaped the volcanic plateaus into spectacular canyons like the Barranca del Cobre. And finally, granites that had not seen the light of day for 90 million years began to reach the surface.
For the last 5 million years, the Sea of Cortez has been widening. With each shift of the land, earthquakes happen that rock the south west coast of North America along the San Andreas Fault System. The Barrancas continue to deepen as the volcanic tuff that makes up the canyons' walls slowly erodes to the sea.
The Barrancas are amazing, natural, geologic wonders of Mexico. They are the result of volcanic eruptions thousands of times greater than the eruption of Mt. St. Helen's in the United States in 1980. They are igneous rocks, unlike the sedimentary rocks of Arizona's Grand Canyon. The Barrancas are much younger, a mere 25 million years compared to the Grand Canyon's rocks, which are several hundred million years old. The Barrancas cover four times the area of the Grand Canyon, there are seven canyons, and the deepest part of the Barrancas is still nearly 1000 meters deeper than the deepest part of the Grand Canyon. Each is an awesome work of nature. But the Barrancas have a mystery that goes beyond the well-traveled and studied paths of the Grand Canyon.
We hope this very brief presentation has helped to explain some of the mysteries of the Barrancas and made your visit more enjoyable.
Los Mochis to Chihuahua
Railroad Log of Major Points of Interest
Note: This rail log counts the kilometers downward from the Pacific coast at Topolobampo to Chihuahua.
When using this log, watch for the kilometer posts, which are spaced one kilometer apart. Each tunnel is also numbered on the right hand side as the train enters.941.0 km Topolobampo. After seeing the large natural harbor at Topolobampo, Albert K. Owen's project to establish a utopian agricultural colony expanded to the dimensions of a dream. He visualized a great international seaport for commerce between the Pacific Basin and the United States. The seaport would be linked to the mid-western part of the United States by railroad across the rugged Sierra Madre Occidental of Mexico. The railroad would shorten by 400 miles the distance between Kansas City and the Pacific.
920.4 km Los Mochis, whose name means "Place of Turtles" in the Mayo Indian dialect, is about 20 miles to the west. Los Mochis was founded in 1903 by an American, Benjamin Johnson, who established large sugar plantations and a sugar mill. Today, more than 300,000 hectares (750,000 acres) are cultivated and crops include sugar cane, alfalfa, cotton, rice, and winter vegetables.
882.0 km San Blas (Sufragio) Station, Elevation: 105 feet. At San Blas, the Ferrocarril Chihuahua al Pacifico crosses the Ferrocarril Pacifico, which extends between Nogales and Guadalajara.
838.6 km EI Fuerte was established late in the sixteenth century, when the viceroy of New Spain (Mexico) ordered the construction of a fort to protect settlers from the attacks of rebellious Indians. Also located here is a fine Balderrama family hotel.
791 km Loreto Station, approximately two hours from Los Mochis.
781.0 km Bridge over the Rio Fuerte. This bridge is 1,637 feet, the longest on the railroad. Have your camera ready.
780 km Agua Caliente, village and railroad station.
763 km Los Posos village
758 km El Descanso Rail siding
754.0 km This bridge, spanning the Rio Chinipas, is the highest bridge on the railway at 355 feet above the river and 1,000 feet in length. On your right toward the south you will see a suspension bridge for foot traffic. It's called the "Chinipas Walking Bridge."
739.0 km Tunnels #79-82. These tunnels range between 124 to 780 feet in length.
736.0 km Santo Nino. A little railroad camp and siding. Most of the boxcars are ex-WWII troop cars which are now homes for the railroad workers.
722.4 km Tunnels #71-78. These range from 65 to 581 feet in length.
721.0 km Tunnels #66-70, ranging from 305 to 639 feet.
718.0 km To the left is one of the steepest cornfields in the world. Trees and vegetation have been burned off and corn planted on these slopes.
717.0 km Tunnels #64 (880 feet) and #65 (450 feet).
711.0 km Tunnels #53-63 The lengths of these tunnel~ range between 139 and 657 feet.
710.8 km Mina Plata Bridge (348 feet)
710.4 km Tunnel #52 (1,023 feet)
710.0 km Tunnel #51 (1,143 feet)
709.0 km Tunnel #50 (413 feet)
707.1 km As we approach Temoris (elev. 3,365 feet), the railway crosses the Santa Barbara Bridge (714 feet) which crosses the Rio Mina Plata, a tributary of the Septentrion River. Just below the junction of the Septentrion and Rio Chinipas, the river becomes the Rio Fuerte. Rivers are not named in the same manner as is used in the United States so this system is often confusing to us.
707.0 km The village of Temoris is located on a plateau high above the station. The village was founded in 1677 by two Jesuit missionaries who named it Santa Maria Magdalena de Temoris. Temoris was the name of a tribe of Indians who inhabited the region.
704.8 km Tunnel #49, known as the La Pera, is 3,074 feet in length.
704.0 km The commemorative marker built for the dedication of the railroad by President Lopez Mateos on November 24, 1961, is constructed of rails 22 feet long with letters 2 feet high. Here are views of the railroad descending by means of curves and loops. At one point, three levels of railroad are visible. Also in view is tunnel #49 and the spectacular twin waterfall.
703.0 km Tunnels #47 (115 feet) and #48 (623 feet).
701.0 km Tunnels #43 (384 feet), #44 (47~ feet), #45 (662 feet) and #46 (2,680 feet).
695.8 km Between kilometer posts 695.8 - 662.6, there are many bridges and tunnels; ranging in length from 220 to 1,102 feet.
668.1 km Bahuichivo. Get off here for Cerocahui, the Hotel Mission, and the Urique Canyon.
662.0 km Cuiteco, an interesting little village with a church and numerous old buildings. Cuiteco was originally an Indian village, but a mission was established here in 1684 by the noted Jesuit missionary, Padre Salvatierra. "Cuiteco" is derived from a Tarahumara word meaning "neck-shaped hill". The area is noted for the production of apples. Many orchards may be seen in the valley and on the slopes.
656.8 km From kilometer post 656.8 through 649, there are again many tunnels.
640.8 km Between kilometer posts 640.8-638.3 the tunnels are from 351 to 1,512 feet in length.
633.0 km Tunnel #16 (180 feet) and #15 (369 feet).
626.0 km Posada Barrancas Hotel. Fine accommodations by the Balderrama family.
623.0 km Tunnel #14 (377 feet).
622.0 km Divisadero overlooks a tributary of the Rio Urique in the Barranca del Cobre. You may also reach Divisadero by walking about an hour from Posada Barrancas. It is the first dramatic view of the canyon.
601 .8 km Pitorreal.
585.0 km El Late (The Loop) is an incredible turn where the rail actually crosses over itself.
583.0 km Highest point on the railroad - 8,071 feet.
575.0 km El Balcon view.
563.8 km Creel is a lumber town of about 5,000 people. It is nestled back in the mountains away from the edge of the canyon. Creel was named after Enrique Creel, Governor of Chihuahua who, with Arthur Stillwell in the late 1890's, promoted the original Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railroad. Life in Creel centers around the lumbering operations, the railroad, the Jesuit Hospital of Fr. Verplancken, which treats the Tarahumara Indians, and the tourists who come and go. You will be very interested in the "Mission Store." This store buys from the 1ndians all year long and resells to the town's visitors. The proceeds help offset the operating expenses of the 60-bed hospital.
650.1 km Bridge "La Mora," 445 feet in length.
555.0 km Bocoyna. The name means "pine-forest" in Tarahumara and was founded in 1702 by the Jesuit Missionaries with the name of Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe de Bocoyna.
531.0 km San Juanito is 8,000 feet above sea level and was established with the arrival of the railroad. It is the coldest town in Mexico.
534.0 km Bridge over Arroyo Ancho.
461.0 km Minaca, a small settlement whose name is a corruption of the Tarahumara word "muguyaca" which means mountain lion.
471.0 km Bridge over Rio San Pedro.
451.0 km La Junta Railroad Station, located 6,775 feet above sea level, is the round house for the railroad and is a major railroad junction. One track branches north from here to Ciudad Juarez. The river we will cross before La Junta is a tributary to the Rio Papigochic which joins the Rio Aros in Sonora and empties into the Gulf of California.
400.0 km Cuauhtemoc. The village grew with the arrival of the railroad in 1900 but the major growth took place with the arrival of the Mennonites in 1921-1922. In 1927 the name was changed in honor of the last Aiztec emperor (Cuauhtemoc).
346.3 km Tunnel #2 (367 feet).
349.0 km San Andres Station. This village was founded in 1696 by the Franciscan missionaries and named San Andres de Osaguiqui. In 1332 the name was changed to Riva Palacio in honor of General Vicente Palacios, a writer and hero of the war against the French.
319 km Cross highway, Village of General Trias. This village was founded by the Franciscan missionaries in 1668 and named Santa Isabel de Tarahumaras. In 1932 the village got its present name in honor of General Angel Trias. General Trias was a hero who successfully expelled the French from Mexico in 1862-1863.
268 km Chihuahua City - capital of the largest state in Mexico-Chihuahua.
The profile of the line:
