Here we go again! We climb another volcano and not just any volcano: the Nevado de Toluca is the fourth highest peak in Mexico. We didn't go all the way up to the top, but high enough to set a new personal record of altitude! We also visit our first pre-Columbian city, the first of many in Mexico.
Tuesday, February 14th, 2023
We are confident when driving up towards the Nevado de Toluca on a dusty trail. Turn after turn, we get higher and higher. And suddenly: "We have a problem", says Rémi. Indeed, JP is suffering. Rémi accelerates as much as he can but the Jeep keeps going slower and slower until stalling. Silence. Uh-oh. Is JP suffering from altitude? It would be bad, because we are "only" 3,500 meters high. We calmly analyze the situation and we end up thinking it could be due to a bad quality gasoline! Sure enough, we tried yesterday to save some money by filling up in a cheap gas station. Big mistake! Fortunately, we have a 20 liters tank on the roof filled with "good" gasoline. Immediately, Rémi fills the tank to dilute the gasoline. We are quite nervous when we start the engine... It sputters then roars! We carefully drive a few meters until... the Jeep stalls again. We wait 10 minutes wondering if we should turn back now rather than take the chance to break down completely and call a tow truck up here... New try. The engine starts again. What a champ' this Jeep ! Remi accelerates to clear the engine. We finally reach the parking lot without any more trouble. This evening, we camp at 4,100 meters high.
Wednesday, February 15th
The night at altitude was restless, but we are in good shape this morning to hike the Nevado de Toluca. This volcano is the fourth highest peak in Mexico. Its highest peak is 4,645 meters high. The ascent is short but steep. The breath is short and the legs are heavy. We laboriously go up to the crest of the volcano. From up there, the wind is strong but we have a magnificent view on the crater's two lakes: the Laguna del Sol and the Laguna de la Luna. We go down in the crater to approach them. The landscape is very dry and swept by the wind.
Once at the bottom of the crater, we decide... to go back up and climb one of the volcano's peaks. The path is steep and the ascent is quite difficult. The sand and the rock slip under our shoes. We need several breaks in order to catch our breath. But we finally reach the summit! New record of altitude!
The view is breathtaking: on one side we can see the crater of the volcano with its two lakes while the valley is on the other side. We can even see the imposing cone of Popocatépetl on the horizon, one of the highest volcanoes in Mexico. We hope we can approach it in a few days. As always, the descent is much faster and much easier. We let ourselves slide to the bottom of the crater and we stop at the edge of the lake for some snacks. To go back to the Jeep, we still have to go up on the crest of the volcano then go down again on the other side of it. It's not finished yet!
We reach the Jeep exhausted. The wind calmed down so we are able to cook and eat here. The view is beautiful but a heavy fog of pollution settled in the valley. The city of Toluca below counts nearly 700 000 inhabitants! When it's time to turn on the Jeep, we cross our fingers! Luckily it starts without trouble and we go down quietly from the mountain. Everything seems to be back to normal! 😌 We spend the afternoon working in Toluca before going back to camp at the feet of the mountain. We find a calm and sunny place in a field. It's beautiful and warm, the perfect weather to take a shower. We eat and go to bed! The altitude and the hike exhausted us.
Thursday, February 16th
In the morning, the grass is covered with frost. Luckily the sun warms us at 9 pm and we have breakfast in t-shirt. Since we travel in Mexico, we haven't taken any paying highway yet. The secret? Not to be in a hurry! We go through small and big animated villages with markets, historical centers full of people and small congested streets. Many Mexicans smile at us and greet us. We love to observe the sides of the road when driving. It's always full of life. We capture scenes of the daily life, we observe the stalls, the passers-by, the exchanges. Outside villages, the road is often beautiful, sometimes quite bumpy. The GPS often makes us leave the road to take us on small dusty trails that it thinks faster... We go up mountains then we go down in valleys, we go through villages on hillside then we return in the mountain. And we stop here and there to take photos and fill our water tanks in a natural source.
We reach Taxco early in the afternoon. We've found a parking lot near the city center. To go there, the GPS takes us in the streets of the city. It's very steep and more and more narrow! Good that JP is small. We go deeper and deeper into the alleys, until a villager stops us. "El vehículo no va a passar!" It won't pass anymore! Damn. He helps us laboriously turn around in a very steep and very narrow alley. We then set out in the opposite direction. We take another way, but it's the same difficulty.
Cette fois-ci, on suit les minibus locaux. Si eux passent, on devrait passer aussi. On s’enfonce dans le centre ville, il y a un monde fou, beaucoup de circulation, des piétons et des stands de rue sur la chaussée. On se retrouve sur la place principale du village. Tout le monde nous regarde passer avec de gros yeux. On arrive tant bien que mal à trouver un stationnement et c’est avec soulagement qu’on laisse le Jeep pour découvrir Taxco à pied. On est affamés, alors on commence par trouver le mercado pour manger des spécialités locales à bas prix. Le centre ville est très mignon. Il y a plein de coccinelles ! Elles servent de taxi.
After a crêpe and an ice cream, we leave Taxco to go to the Grutas of Cacahuamilpa. It's extremely hot but the caves must be cold. We plan to go straight away until we found out about the price. There are excessively expensive so we give up. As we have already paid 50 $MEX for the parking lot, we decide to sleep here. In the evening, tourists leave the place, small restaurants close and we end up alone. Everything is calm, a stray dog keeps us company. The night is going to be good! Except that... Rémi is sick all night! 🤒
Friday, February 17th
At 8 am, big tourist's buses arrive and we feel it's time to go. We are going to visit our first pre-Columbian site. Xochicalco is an ancient Mesoamerican city. It was built in 650 AD following the fall of the empire of the immense and prosperous city of Teotihuacan, and abandoned in 900 AD. In 250 years of prosperity, the inhabitants built an imposing city, which became an important religious and administrative center of the time. At its peak, the city was home to approximately 20,000 inhabitants. Its fall seems to have been caused by a rebellion against the army and the higher classes who ruled the city. Temples and buildings seem to have been burned and luxurious objects such as pottery were found broken.
We visit the modern museum, which presents some beautiful pieces of perfectly restored pottery. We learn more about the traditions and the habits of the inhabitants of the time. Then we go to the site. There is the Great Pyramid in the Main Square, an observatory, the acropolis where the richest social classes lived, three ball fields, a ritual game practiced in Mesoamerica where the winners had the honor of being sacrificed to the Gods, at least here in Xochicalco. There is also the Pyramid of the Feathered Serpent, a richly decorated temple where religious ceremonies were held.
After this beautiful visit, we have lunch on the side of the road and we take the road. Tonight, we want to sleep near the Popocatépetl volcano. Well, that's what we wanted. But the police obviously decided otherwise...
2 commentaires
Sympa tout ça….
Pas facile de circuler dans ces petites ruelles en pente mais c”est très pittoresque.
Impressionnant cratère.
Bisous.
Mamie