Tour-guiding update - 2006

Trek 2006

Let’s see … where did I leave off? Well, back in April I returned to guiding camping tours for Trek America. Same thing as I did last year, but always with the prospect of seeing new places. This year I was scheduled to start guiding tours in Mexico. So I started off in Mexico, but on an orientation trip and soon found myself circumnavigating the USA and Canada, again. Going clockwise from LA to NY, back to LA in ten weeks is always exhilarating, but the real adventure began as I headed south, guiding tours around Mexico and Central America.

In July I departed LA and headed south … pretty far south. Starting in Cancun, I made little counter-clockwise circles around the Yucatan, Guatemala, Honduras and Belize; balancing days among ruins with cities, and nights camping with hotels. While I may have dodged hurricanes and bullets, avoided illness and cruised across borders, I could never shake the stress of unpredictable speed bumps and having to constantly translate menus.

Though all the conditions were in my favor while in Central America, my heart was soon pulled back to the States. How could that happen in paradise? Well, somewhere along the way I crossed the path of a dear friend, Vanessa. We shared some time traveling together and racked up some impressive international phone bills.

A couple months later I found myself settled in perhaps one of the least expected places for me to be: Texas (Actually, I’m in Austin, which is the little blue island that keeps the rest of the state from drowning in a sea of red). Politics aside, there’s quite a bit of good happening here, especially on the music scene. But I’m mostly occupied by my allergies and wondering what I’m going to do next. Oh, and did I mention this is where Vanessa lives?

Yup, Austin. Everyone here loves to rave about it, and it’s on all the lists of cool/hip places to live, but it’s hard to see beyond the massive sprawl and speeding SUVs. There is a funky side, and plenty of outdoor activities. It kind of reminds me of Tucson, but without the mountains. As you can tell, I’m still adjusting.

I’ve been here for over a month, and have avoided getting full-time job so far by just doing handyman work for friends, and friends of friends, and so on. And Vanessa started managing the local hostel this year, which has about ten years of deferred maintenance, so that’s keeping me busy too, for now.

Meanwhile, I’m just taking a moment to enjoy being happy. I’ll deal with the rest of my life next year.

Happy trails,

George
(georgemcqueen@gmail.com, 520.548.1216)

Honduras

I've compiled a few more notes on Honduras and a few other places. Who knows? they might be helpful.

Antigua to Copan
I guess I was lucky because I got from Antigua to Copan pretty quickly: departed at 8:30 and arrived at 15:00. I was anticipating getting thoroughly lost in the urban disaster called Guatemala City, but was miraculously in and out in less than an hour. Actually, it wasnt quite a miracle: A close source (to remain unnamed at the moment) got some key landmarks to lookout for, which helped facilitate the process (see "Plan B" below). I hope this source doesnt mind me letting the secret out, though the directions are still not quite perfect:

"Plan A"
Look out for a sign saying Carretera Atlantico or Pueto Barrios as you hairpin down into Guate. That didn't work so I followed "Plan B" (which should be promoted to Plan A)

"Plan B"
Cruise into Guate and lookout for your first McDonalds on the right. There will be a turnoff almost immediately after on the right, don't take that one, take the second one on the right just under the overpass, which will clover-leaf you around and shoot you heading northeast. Somewhere along the way, some five miles or so, youre supposed to see a sign saying "centro" and "zona 6" if you see that, follow the route to "zona 6" . I must have totally missed the latter because I ended up in the centro. Just as I was about to declare myself lost, I unknowingly found myself on Carretera Atlantico and following signs to Puerto Barrios. If you should experience something like this, just follow the buses and big trucks going north or northeast in the Centro (only stop for directions at a gas station if you must.).

Before leaving the city I stopped at a mall that has a Burger King, Dominoes and some fried chicken place. A good place for restrooms and to take a breather after the chaos you just experienced in Guate. The rest is pretty simple, but the turnoff to Zacapa is not in, but a few minutes after the town of Rio Vado. Later, we turned off and stopped for lunch in Chiquimula at Comedor Delia, which had the friendliest service and the shadiest of bathrooms (literally) (warning: the fruit plates could easily feed three people).

Frontera El Florido
(Later in this email you'll see why I mention this border crossing in detail)
For tours going just to Copan, you can pretty much slip through and back without having to cancel stamps for Guatemala and get new ones for Honduras because its only five minutes further to Copan.

But if you decide to try something different (which I highly recommend) you'll want to cancel your Guatemalan passport entrys (same price as Mesilla) and pay for Honduran entries (though you probably could get around the latter because getting Honduran Immigration to stamp the passports is like asking a big favor. I guess its not necessary, the stamp that is. But they will stamp passports if you persist, which I did, for posterity). However, I'd suggest not canceling the van for Guatemala, yet import the van into Honduras (Just tell the Hondurans that you canceled the van at Guatemalan customs anyway, they won't check). Honduran Customs is a 100 yards beyond the immigration offices on the left, in a breezy little shack. The guys might shoot the shit with you because they're so bored, but the process is legitimate and they provide receipts (Honduras Customs). That done, you're free to explore more of Honduras (see "Omoa" below).

COPAN - LODGING
Hotel Marjenny
Jose Saul Pineda (owner)
651.4225
One block west, two blocks north of Copan Ruinas central park (up hill)
I was planning on checking in to Hotel Yuragua, but I ran into a dude named Jose Saul who owns a nice house with 15 bedrooms that will cost your pax half that of Yuragua, i.e. less than $8 per night. These people are good Jehova's witnesses, so they dont seem to be in to scamming others. They accomodated us perfectly. My pax loved the upstairs rooms because there was a terrace and an indoor/outdoor living room with hammocks. Parking is in the patio again, and no problem. Its kinda cool to unload the van directly onto the second floor.

COPAN - ACTIVIES
So if you stay two days in Copan, Hotel Yuragua has all kinds of activities: Horseback riding, El Rubi waterfall hike, Caving to Boqueron Cave, Agua Caliente hot springs, Tubing in Copan river, bird watching, cultural tours, et cetera.

COPAN - EATING
Churrasqueria Momo's
651.3692
One block directly south of the main church A churrasqueria is generally a palace of grilled flesh, which remains true for Momo's but they will also grill vegetables for your vegetarian pax. The view is excellent and so is the food. Cheap too! Delphina hooked me up with a comp (and even covered my beers, waters and limeade!).

Via Via Hostel/Restaurant/Cafe/Bar
three blocks west of main plaza (walking away from the church on the street to the left).
This place is pretty hip, and could be an even cheaper lodging option. If nothing else its a good place to have a beer to some downtempo electronica muzak.

COPAN to OMOA
So this would be the thing to do to add a little unexpected variety to the tour. But if one wanted a nicer beach, I'm told Tela is the place, an hour southeast of San Pedro. But going to Omoa saves from doubling back into Guatemala and allows pax to experience something almost undiscovered and really cool, and if presented properly can make them feel like part of a true adventure.

We only needed two and a half hours at the Copan ruins. I recommend hiring a guide for USD$30 because the ruins aren't as spectacular as Palenque, but have some amazing stelae that a guide must point out. Julio Melendez was very good and spoke good English with a thick accent. So we got there at 9:AM and were on our way a little after 11:AM.

Leaving the ruins we turned right and cruised the mountains, hills and countryside of Honduras; one of the most pleasant drives thus far because the roads are surprisingly very nice and there is little traffic. Just follow the signs to San Pedro de Sula.

We lunched it in El Cruce, which is a shit town that has little if nothing to offer besides shit gasoline and shit food. We were cruising through San Pedro by 14:30, which is easily done by staying left-ish (northeastish), following the runway scattered with multinational corporations that crashed in the least expected of places (Within ten minutes I counted two McDonalds, two Applebees, a TGI Fridays, two Subways, Burger King, KFC, Blockbuster, and the nicest Pizza Hut Ive ever seen).

Once you pass all that, follow the signs to Puerto Cortes, where you'll be in half an hour. Don't bother with Puerto Cortes, and follow the signs to La Frontera Guatemala, or Corinto, or even Omoa. Before you know it youll be in the sleepy Carribean town of Omoa.

OMOA
I went here on a whim, by recommendation, out of curiosity and because my pax wanted some beach. Again, doubling back from Copan didn't appeal and I heard the road goes through to Puerto Barrios, Guatemala, which it has for about 1 year, but hasnt made it on any maps. This makes the excursion all the more adventurous. Note: Omoa is a nice, cool place to chill. A little bit on the dirty side, but true to local color and pace, so I recommend it.

As you roll into Omoa, don't blink, cuz you'll want to take your first (hard) right and follow the signs to El Fuerte San Fernando, 1 km off the main road. Zig-zag passed the fort and in another .5 km youll be at the beach. Or stop at Roli's Place 100 meters beforehand and get accommodations.

OMOA - LODGING
Roli's Place
80 meters from the beach on left, look out for Swiss flag (evidently Roli is a Swiss ex-pat).
This is, or will soon be, a Honduran institution, probably be more and more popular as the town gets discovered once maps get published with the international road. When I arrived, the owners weren't there, but there was a sign on a door inviting visitors to accommodate themselves however and pay whenever. As it turns out a they employ some youths who take care of the place at their leisure and will take money equally at their leisure. Other backpackers came and went just as leisurely.

To replace some Hotel nights I cut out in Antigua and Copan, I told my pax that they have to pay for their own accommodations, which didnt bother them because they could camp for USD$2, hammock for $2, get a dormitory room for $4, get a double room with a fan for$8, or a double with AC for $12.

Roli's has a dozen free rusty bikes, a couple kayaks, kitchen, ping-pong, laundry, easy parking ... basically it has everything and will likely be a highlight. This place is funky, and all details are thought out ... like a giant rusted Swiss-Army-Knife-Carribean Hostel.

OMOA - ACTIVITIES
Omoa's beach isn't very grand, nor very clean, but the water is. You can take out Rolis kayaks if you like, or fish with the locals off the recently constructed pier.

Fortaleza San Fernando - For USD$2 you can tour this Spanish fort, which is said to be one-of-a-kind because it has rounded walls. Cool for 1/2 hour.

Rio Omoa - We spent a good 4 hours walking/hiking to and playing in "Los Chorros de Rio Omoa." ("Chorros" are waterfalls) They're easy enough to find. Basically go back to the main highway, cross it and continue straight until you run into the river. The lower chorros are nice, but dirty. A little ways up the river gets clean and a quarter mile upstream are some pristine falls and pools. Just follow the trail along the river til it ends in the river and walk up the river and you cant miss it. The water is refreshing and the setting is completely untouched. Seriously, it would have been nice to have borrowed/rented a machete to get through some of the tall grass and jungle. But we managed without, suffering minor cuts.

OMOA - EATING
There are a dozen restaurants and other forms of lodging along this small coast that must accommodate national tourists from San Pedro on weekend or holidays, but only a few are open during weekdays. I'd like to recommend some, but theyre pretty much all the same: fish and seafood. Furthermore, we all got some kind of stomach bug there (I was the first, with full on food poisoning) and six others later, but with milder more drawn out symptoms.

OMOA to RIO DULCE
This is a surprisingly quick drive. It's 40 miles to the border, where you can cancel the Van for Honduras and get passports stamped, if you want. Guatemalan immigration is another 12 miles north, where visa fee is just as arbitrary as Mesilla. There was no Customs office to be found, which is why I suggest not canceling the van in Copan.

Puerto Barrios is another 15 miles. In order to save some time, I set my pax up with a water taxi in Puerto Barrios to take them up to Rio Dulce, via Livingston and Hotsprings waterfalls. This was easy and cost about USD$20/pax. The thing that sucked was I had to miss the ride in order to drive to Rio Dulce and wait 2 1/2 hours in that skanky port town (a place where maritime traffic converges overland traffic is inevitably skanky, such is Rio Dulce).

Puerto Barrios
Cruising into Puerto Barrios youll soon realize where most of Guatemala's imports and exports go to and come from. If you want to give your pax a one-way ride to Rio Dulce, follow the signs to "Muelle Municipal" via Blvd/Calzado J.R. Barrios. Turn left when you see the signs declaring "Migracion" and "Check Immigration" which is also 12th Calle. This street ends at the municipal dock and there will be more than enough "taxis" to choose from. However, finding one who speaks English is tricky. I went with a dude named Elias Osorio with a boat named "Lily" working for Autotransmart; he seemed most professional and knowledgable, besides speaking English with a thick accent.

My pax were on their way by 11:30 (we got a late start in Omoa, 9:00) and were in Rio Dulce by 16:30 (Make sure the guide knows you're not staying in Rio Dulce, or he'll take his sweet-ass-time). They loved the trip up the coast the most, enjoyed Livingston, had a nice lunch at some random riverside restaurant that all the watertaxis seem to hit (discourage Elias from staying so long or stopping at all at some crap artisan craft school, no one wants to have that shit forced on them anyway), cruised up the river, saw the Castillo de San Felipe and met me at the Rio Bravo Restaurant Bar. My pax also wished they had their swimsuits to swim in the hot springs water falls.

The Rio Bravo Restaurant/Bar is down the first "street" on your right as you cross the bridge in Livingston. A good place to have a liquado an write endless emails like this one. My pax were happy they didn't have to see the river twice and we were in Finca Ixobel by 18:00.

By the way Finca Ixobel is one of the greatest places ever!

Additional Random notes: -Caesar is the man in Tikal, though a bit overboard with Americanisms in his speech.
Contact him via email at:
littlecaesarsadventures@yahoo.com

I added a night in San Ignacio, Belize and toured Barton Cave with Sandro of Maya Mystic Tours (David was nowhere to be found, but is still in business).
I recommend Sandro:
dalesandrorequena@yahoo.com
cell-55.1212 office-804.0055

Hicaco Tours is still highly recommended for us in Caye Caulker.
They have a new guide named Vito, full of experience, knowledge and quirky humor. Pax loved him. Contact him via Tage at: hicacotour@yahoo.com (I could tell Carlos, the other guide, was jealous of how good of a time we had and tried to usurp Vito for future tours. Carlos may be fine, but I recommend Vito)

Ivan thanks for recommending Maurice at Wish Willy, he hooked us up! Everyone should eat there at least one night.

Saludos,
Jorge

Guatemala

I´ve compiled some notes that you might find interesting if not helpful. Here´s another San Cristobal contact that might be added:
Posada Qhia
Calle Tonala #5
Barrio del Cerrillo
Chiapas, Mexico
967.678.0594 (Rodolfo)

This place makes an excellent inclement weather option. It´s a hostel, and has a very free spirited nature (as indicated by the rainbow flag hung atop the roof), is a cool place to hang out and just seconds from the main market or downtown. Breakfast is included, they have hot water (you have to turn on the pilot light yourself), laundry for 2 pesos per article, and parking is a couple blocks south on Navarro (a tricky place to get the van into, but good. I also talked to the transport guys across the street and they said we could park the vans there for the night for a nominal fee, but I´m not sure how secure that would be). The sleeping is dormitory style, but they have at least one private. San Cristobal to Panajachel is about 300 miles and is no problem to do in one day so long as your pax are aware that this just a driving day.

I left San Cris at 8:30 and rolled into Pana at 18:30. Probably at total of 6.5 hours of driving. Border crossing at C. Cuahtemoc was smooth enough. Dave´s notes are right on. You just have to keep in your mind you´re doing two separate things at once:

1) immigration for you and pax
2) importing van.

I say this because everything is right next to each other in Mesilla. The main street into Guatemala/Mesilla was closed for some market day and I had to take some crazy detour off and down to the right and back up through the market, which drew lot of looks from the locals and a heartfelt applause from my pax upon completion (if this happens, have a pax get out and lift the ropes holding the vendor´s tarps over the roof-rack, or else you´ll have some very mad little indians. No this didn´t happen, but almost!).

It was about 11:30 as I arrived at C. Cuahtemoc. As you pass the Pemex on the left, which is a bit outside the town, you´ll drive for a minute and just as you see Mexico´s customs and immigration buildings, there are a couple restaurants on the left (you can turn around before taking care of the border b.s. as per Dave´s instructions) and stop for lunch. "El Costeno" was excellent, and had something for eveyone, reasonable price and the owner used to live in the U.S. so he´s happy to help an Americano. This way their belly´s were full, bladders empty so they didn´t have a problem sitting in the van for the 45 mintues (total) it took to cross both borders. Change your pesos with the dude´s that approach the van. They gave me a rate that was a hell of a lot better that those in Panajachel.

PANAJACHEL
Arriving in Panajachel, you´ll turn a hard right as soon as the street gets busy, on to Avenida Santander. This will show your pax the main drag. Banks are at the beginning, shops/restaurants abound and money changers are at the travel agencies. It would be better to exchange dollars than pesos if they have to. If using ATM, use the BancaRed on Calle Principal where Av. Santander dead ends (almost on the corner of Av. Los Arboles and C. Principal) other machines only allow withdrawals up to 1,000Q.

The sky was pissing when I arrived, so I stumbled across Hotel Jere, which turned out to be the perfect place to pull out the "inclement weather" card. Cheap, clean, shared bedrooms (3-4/room), private baths, hot water, TV, parking (precarious, but existent), free internet and they´ll hook your group up with a tour the next morning for USD$10, or you can walk down to the lake and pay USD$8 on your own where it says "Barcotours Santa Fe" (Tour leaves at 8:30 returns at 3:30 visiting the villages of San Pedro, Santiago and San Antonio. It takes so long because the boat is very, very slow. But other tourists will be there too and there aren´t any fast boats, so at least you´ll all be in the same ... whatever)

Hotel Jere Av. Rancho Grande just north of C. 15 de Febrero
(basically your first left after driving down the long stretch of Santander, and then just to the left when you get to C. 15 de febrero)
502.776.22.781
www.hoteljere.com
jere_armando@hotmail.com

These people are laid back, helpul and eager to receive more tours. They also own a guatemala tour company as well. Believe it or not, the van does fit into their patio. The problem is you might have to move it to let others out. It turned out to be no problem, but the potential for one is present. Then again, they´re laid back, so no worries.

There are several other places to consider as well: one across the street, called Hospedaje Zulena (no parking) and one a block south, towards the lake called Casa Loma (parking)

PANA - BOAT OPTION 2
If you don´t do the full boat tour, you can get a regular boat for $20 quetzales and go to San Pedro where guides will offer you horseback rides and hikes to the top of San Pedro Volcano, which can´t be accessed without a guide. The people are nice there which might have something to do with the ubiquitious "Jesus te Ama" (Jesus loves you) graffitti that decorates the walls of the buildings/houses/shops/cars.

PANA - EATING
My peeps wanted pizza, the local favorite was unanmously Circus Bar, located on Av. Los Arboles on the right three buildings north of C. Principal. Not only does this place have good pizzas for 60-90Q, they have live music, poor service, and know how to deal with tour leaders. They gave me a 10 percent comission of what my group purchased, which ended up covering my meal. You can make a reservation at the bar, and let the bartender know you´re a guide. You may also have to mention it to your server. I just walked in with my group and it all worked out. The music was tops (at least on Saturday night)They had a dude playing solid flamenco for a while, then a Carlos Santana look/sound-alike afterwards. The hip bars are there or across the street on Arboles such as Aleph and Chersos that draw a younger teeny-bopper crowd.

El Patio is another good option on Santander. National tourists eat there and the food is good and economical. Leader comp. Try "pepian" it´s the local flavor!

CHICHICASTENANGO
In July the sun rises about 6:40 so you´re departing for the Sunday market in the dark. There are a couple of lookout points to stop at on the way to Solola that provide great clear shots of Lake Atitlan. I left Pana just before 6:30 and rolled in Chichi just after 7:30, including 3 photo stops. There´s an agricultural checkpoint on the way, but just tell them you don´t have any fruit and no problem. The road from then on is steep and windy, don´t even try and compete with the chicken busses (I saw the real reason why they´re called "chicken" busses: they have no problem running cars and people off the road.).

You´ll want to stay on the main drag when rolling into Chichi, Av. 7. There´s parking at the Texaco, which is a block south of where it´s labeled in the Lonely Planet. Busses park just south of that. As convenient as that looks, the lot fills up fast with Toyota pickups that are triple and cuadruple parked, so getting the van out could be a problem unless parked near to the road. Another option is to continue on Av. 7 turn left on C. 5 (yes it´s a two-lane road) and on the next block you´ll see a vacant lot that will later be filled with mini-busses. Park close to the gate so leaving by 10:45 won´t be a problem.

At 7:30 the market people will still be setting up. The comedor is just in front of the Santo Tomas Church. The food probably won´t appeal to pax so I found Restaurante Tziigum Tinamit on the northwest corner of C. 6 and Av. 5, just a block from the second parking option. This is an inexpensive restaurant that serves classic breakfasts, with clean bathrooms and will comp. the leader. If nothing else it´s a nice refuge from the hustle-bustle of the market, but has big windows so it still can be observed.

I met my group at 10:30 in front of the church and was on my way out of town before 11:00. It was good to stay til at least 10:00 so the pax can appreciate getting there early. Busloads of tourists arrive non-stop from 9:30 to 10:00.

CHICHICASTENANGO to ANTIGUA
The first 10 miles following the road to Guate have to be some of the worst ever. Fortunately it improves before Chimaltenango. The road to Antigua is outside of Chimaltenango, i.e. you have to go through Chimalte to, and there are only two signs within a short distance of each other. As of July the main road was under construction some 4 miles into it. So you take the detour and it somehow drops you off right into Antigua rather quickly. The volcano you have seen and see is Volcan del Agua and is directly to the south of Antigua.

Hotel Las Camelias Inn (recommended) C. 3 Oriente #19 Antigua, Guatemala
tel (502) 7832-5780, 7832-5176,
USA (978)764.1654, (978)764.1654
telefax 7832.5780
sales@camelaisinn.com
www.cameliasinn.com

This place is clean, professional, quaint and friendly. Rooms are cheap, all have ceiling fans, internet is free for tour leader, a nice breakfast is included for all guests, they have laundry service and the parking lot is next door. If I go back to Antigua, i won´t even think twice about booking this place.

Posada Don Che (not recommended)
7 Av. Norte, # 15 Antigua, Guatemala
Telefax: 7832-3895

As far as I´m conerned Posada Don Che is a genuine ripoff the price there is almost double that of las Camelias, and there´s no breakfast included. When I tried to get the owner to recognize that his prices are outragious, he got self rightious and I got nowhere. Don´t worry I didn´t burn that bridge, but I´ll never stay there agian. Las Camelias or something similar is the way to go. Anyway if for some reason you decide to use it, is not well marked but it is behind door #15. They have parking three blocks away, internet, t.v. laundry around the corner. Rina is very friendly, and helpful enough).

ANTIGUA - RESTAURANTES
El Viego Cafe (bakery too)
Av. 6 y C. 3 #12 7832.1576
This is a great place to mix up the menu, it´s more of a French theme, and the food is quite nice. Tour leader comp is no problem, they also have nice breakfasts. Not cheap, but economical.

ANTIGUA - ACTIVIES
Guatemala Ventures
Av. 1 Sur #15 7832.3383
www.guatemalaventures.com
Judith and Armando hooked me up with moutain bike tours and hiking tours at the last minute. The other place, Oldtown ...something..., might work for someone else who is more prepared, but their arrogant bastard americans as far as I´m concerned. With Guatemala ventures my pax paid $19 for a 5 hour countryside bike ride through towns, toured a macadamia nut farm, coffee plantations and were thoroulgy exhuausted (departed at 9 am). Other pax hiked around Picaya Volcano for 5 hours for $10, saw real lava up close and personal and had a non - english speaking guide (this was because it was a colectivo tour, generic and with the masses. Ventures can set up custom tours with english speakers as well). Note, in july it rains every afternoon so all activities should be done by 2pm. It´s not recommended to try to summit the volcanoes because the weather turns miserable very quickly, I´m told.

I´ll have more on the route to Copan via Guate, and my recommendations for Honduras in a couple days.

Saludos,
Jorge

Tikal, Guatemala

I had food poisoning a couple days ago. Pretty intense for a night, but I got over it by the morning (gotta love over-the-counter antibiotics). I have to admit, it's more intense when you're sick and still responsible for nine other people. Others got it too, but a day later. I guess my metabolisms still super fast. Anyway. I'm actually emailing from just outside Tikal in Guatemala. We're camping in front of a hotel and they have wireless internet that I've hacked into for a bit. Can't stay long, gotta get up at 4:30am to watch the jungle come alive from atop a Mayan pyramid ... I'm planning on coming home in late September. I'm getting burned out already.

Mexico - El Fuerte

Hello Colin,

Below is a description of El Fuerte and a disclaimer to explain (perhaps
even excuse) our actions.

See you in a few weeks.

Cordially,
Jorge

El Fuerte:

First, a disclaimer:
As mentioned before, our training group did not stop in El Fuerte. The decision to bypass El Fuerte was a group decision and no individual should be held responsible. This decision was in no way an oblique effort to undermine you as you've been more than generous with us; rather, the following reasons:

1) We decided there would be little we could investigate between 10PM and 7AM as we arrived in Los Mochis around 9PM and would have set off first thing the next morning.

2) Personal funds, if not already spent, were very low. Paying for our own accommodations was not an option, and finding an unlikely campground at night wasn't much of a consideration either.

3) Several tour leaders were already faced with minimal start-up time upon arrival in LA, so every hour we could spare saved us the unnecessary stress of rushing into our first trip. I still feel this was a sound decision.

EL FUERTE:
Having been there twice myself, I can safely say that El Fuerte is definitely a better gateway to the Copper Canyon than Los Mochis for several reasons. First, the train departs about two hours later (8:00 AM) and arrives two hours on the way back. Second, it makes up in lack of Los Mochis chaos in typical colonial charm. As former capital of the state of Sinaloa, El Fuerte was a hub for the Spanish silver mining industry, which is reflected in the centro's colonial architecture, as it is one of the northernmost cities of Mexico's "Camino Real;" and the Spanish fort from
which the town gets its name. The fort is now an inexpensive museum that provides nice sunset views of the town and the surrounding flat sub-tropic topography along the Rio Fuerte that cradles the city. Thirdly, it's easily navigated by foot and there are inexpensive hostels like "Casa Pascola" among others.

The one drawback is the train station is 7km outside of town, so a taxi or shuttle must be taken. This creates a bit of a challenge for a tour leader, for he/she would have to find a place to safely park the van. A resourceful tour leader should have no problem securing a fair taxi rate and a safe place to park the van. NOTE: Taxis have a bit of a monopoly on this small transit, so it would be wise to arrange the shuttle through the hostel/hotel.

ANOTHER NOTE: This city, just like the rest along this coast, is super HOT and HUMID in July and August. Hostels/hotels with air-conditioning (or very strong fans) would be recommendable. Lonely Planet recommends several places to sleep and several places to eat.

A quick history to indulge the trip-note reader: El Fuerte was founded in 1564 by the Spanish conquistador Don Francisco de Ibarra, the first explorer of the western Sierra Madre mountains. In 1610 a fort was built to ward off the fierce Zuaque and Tehueco Indians who were later subdued as the city flourished from the silver mines upstream. It is said that El Fuerte was the most important commercial and agricultural center of northern Mexico for some three hundred years. Later, El Fuerte became a major trading post for silver miners and gold seekers from the Urique, Batopilas and Rain of Gold mines in the nearby Sierra Madre.

In 1824, El Fuerte became the capital of what are now the states of Sonora, Sinaloa and the southern part of Arizona. Now the town sustains itself on agriculture and tourism. An afternoon among its 30,000 residents is rewarding enough.

I hope may be of some use helpful, though I'm sure tour leaders who've been
there have more pertinent information. -gm