Words by Dan & Lisa Goy, Owners Baja Amigos RV Caravan Tours
Everyone has heard about the Grand Canyon in Arizona, visited by almost five million tourists each year. The dimensions of this spectacular gorge are impressive, boasting over 446 km (277 mi) long, up to 29 km (18 mi) wide and reaches a depth of over a mile (6,093 feet or 1,857 meters) carved out by the Colorado River over millions of years. It has been a must-see RV destination for decades.
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Dan & Lisa Goy
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Dan & Lisa Goy
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Dan & Lisa Goy
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Dan & Lisa Goy
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Dan & Lisa Goy
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Dan & Lisa Goy
Far fewer tourists have heard about Mexico's Copper Canyon, which at its deepest point is 446 m (1,462 ft) deeper than the Grand Canyon. In fact, the canyon system is an enormous 249 km (155 mi) wide and 600 km (372 mi) long. Barrancas del Cobre (Spanish name) is a group of six distinct canyons in the Sierra Madre Occidental in the southwestern part of the state of Chihuahua in northwestern Mexico. Six rivers merge into the Rio Fuerte and empty into the Gulf of California. The walls of the canyon are a copper/green color, which is the origin of the name. Even conservative estimates place the size of the canyon system at least seven times larger than the Grand Canyon.
Long gone are the days where you could take your RV through the Copper Canyon, strapped onto a flat deck railcar. These days the RVs are left behind, and all tourists board "El Chepe" (Chihuahua-Pacific Railway) to Divisadero and Creel. The shortest route to stage this adventure with your RV is from the US is the El Paso, Texas - Juarez, Chihuahua, border crossing. Once across the border, you can do the 378 km (235 mi) on Hwy 45D to Chihuahua City on the same day unfortunately, the Gasolinera Del Fresno RV Park closed in 2008 so finding a secure location to park the RV may be a challenge.
We stage our RV tours from El Fuerte, Sinaloa at the Bugamvilla Hotel & RV Parking where the grounds are fenced and the owners live on site. The train station is a short and inexpensive taxi drive away with a Super Mini next door and a Tacqueria across the street that has fabulous "Papas Rellenas". We cross at Nogales, Arizona - Nogales, Sonora on Hwy 15D and stay at the Totonaka RV Park in San Carlos, and easy 418 km (260 mi). At $24 per night that includes 30 amp power, good Wi-Fi, a pool and pickleball you might consider staying for a couple of days. Many snowbirds spend the entire winter here.
From San Carlos, you jump back on Hwy 15D turning left on 1-14 at El Carrizo. In total this a 357 km (222 mi) drive, that should take you 6 hrs; the last hour from El Carrizo to your destination. We do suggest you make tour arrangements prior to arriving with a tour company, there are many. Then, you just need to sort out the length of your tour and what activities you are interested in. When we took the tour with a group of friends in March of 2016, Lisa stayed behind to look after the pets (she does not do heights). Our last visit in November of 2018 we both stayed behind as the Wagon-Masters. When the tour is finished you can return to San Carlos, check out Kino Bay and Rocky point or head south to Mazatlan and points south. Mazatlan is very doable in one (1) day. El Fuerte itself is also worth visiting, only a 10-minute drive from the Bugamvilla Hotel it has an interesting history and claims to be home of the legendary "Zorro".
Just the journey on the train up to the Copper Canyon is spectacular and worth the price of admission. The "Chihuahua al Pacifico" began construction in the late 19th century. The Mexican Revolution, lack of funding, and the overall difficulty of building a railroad over such terrain hindered its completion until 1961. The railroad comprises 652 km (405 mi) of rails with 39 bridges and 86 tunnels. The trip includes passing through towns, as well as the towering cliffs of the canyons. At its peak, the tracks reach an altitude of 2456 m (8,056 ft) above the Sea of Cortez. Actual canyon elevations run as high as 2896 m (9,500 ft) above sea level, while the surrounding mountains rise to over 3658 m (12,000 ft)! Along the railway, many Tarahumara (Rarámuri) lay out their food, crafts and other wares for sale. The scenery is simply stunning.
In 2016 our group spent 2 nights in a local hotel in Creel, which included some local entertainment, toured around to some of the major sites canyon vistas, took the cable cable car ride and were introduced to the Tarahumara community, traditional indigenous inhabitants of the Copper Canyon who are renowned for their long-distance running ability. Although the late March daytime highs in the sun reached 20C the nighttime lows dropped below 0C, brrrrrr. Aside from tourism, Creel is a logging and mining town, hence it looks little like a traditional Mexican small town and more like you might expect to see in the American or Canadian Rockies.
There are many other activities you can do, such as hiking, rock climbing, a trip to the bottom of the canyons and much more. The "Copper Canyon Tram" is a must, at the highest point, the gondolas are 450 m (1475 ft) above the ground – 50 meters shy of being half a kilometer off the earth! This eclipses the previous record of 436 meters held by Whistler's Peak to Peak. Another popular option is the "Zip Rider" a 2,530 m (8,300 ft) long zip line. Running almost 400 m (1,300 ft) above the ground from a canyon wall to a rocky outcrop in the middle of the canyon. It's the second longest zip line in the world and riders can reach speeds of up to 135 km/h (83 mi/h) along the way.
However you get there we strongly recommend experiencing what Mexico's Copper Canyon has to offer.