Which destinations should I visit in Copper Canyon?
More Information
Please see below for the links to each destination we recommend that you visit on your trip here. We'll outline for you some basic information about each place and we'll provide a photo or two as well to help you get your bearings.
Copper Canyon Formation:
The Copper Canyon system began during the Tertiary Era, 40 million years ago. At that time the northwestern region of Mexico was going through an extreme period of volcanic activity that lasted for 15 million years. Thousands of volcanoes were erupting all over the region, covering everything with lava and ash. Those lava and ash deposits formed plateaus, some of which have a thickness of more than three kilometers. At the same time, fierce tectonic activity was predominant, which resulted in earthquakes that created gigantic geological faults. These faults left fractures in the plateaus. The fractures then filled up with rainwater and along with 'weathering' thus shaped the network of rivers in the mountain range, a. Their currents deepened the canyons and engraved the contours that we see today.
Flora, Fauna & Wildlife
There is an abundance of incomparable flora and fauna and a large number of rare species found only in this part of the world. The plateaus are covered with vast forests, which are mainly pine but also include some oak, madrone, alder, juniper and poplar. There are 15 species of pine and as many as 25 species of oak. The vegetation at the bottoms of the canyons is an array of semi-arid and semi-tropical, depending entirely on the humidity and microclimate. There are cactuses of all different sizes. Also all classes of shrubs and bushes, as well as larger trees such as poplars, willows, ceibas, fig trees and countless others.
There are 20 different varieties of amphibians, 87 species of reptiles and 50 types of freshwater fish. Some of the fish are edible such as the catfish, bluegill sunfish, sardine, black bass, rainbow trout, carp and the Alberca silverside.
For the best information on a per trip basis, go to our Trips page and select a trip you are interested in. Click on that particular trip and you'll be taken to a detailed page describing that itinerary, showing photos of that particular trips highlights and more.
Click on the links below to see each destination in photos and with brief summaries.
Los Mochis - The beginning of the train line, one hour outside of El Fuerte.
El Fuerte - A colonial town, just one hour from Los Mochis with great kayaking.
Cerocahui - A village in the upper sierra and gateway to Urique Canyon.
Urique - An old silver mining village at the bottom of Urique Canyon.
Divisadero - A great overlook of Urique/Tararecua/Copper Canyons
Basaseachi - The highest waterfall in Mexico, inside Candamena Canyon, off the train line.
Creel - A cute little alpine town of 10,000 and the gateway to the Copper Canyon.
Cusarare - Raramuri Ejido where the Sierra Lodge is located, just 1/2 hour from Creel.
Batopilas - The highlight of any Copper Canyon visit, located at the bottom of Batopilas Canyon.
Chihuahua - A great city to visit if you are into history and culture. Great museums here.
