We started
preparing for Mexico in Dayton, Nevada. We knew since 11 years that the Mexican
authorities required a special Mexican liability insurance for flying in Mexico, in
addition to our Swiss liability insurance. This rule had not changed. Don Luschar gave us
the fax number of a company in Los Angeles that represents the Mexican insurance company
and the insurance contract was sent by fax within an hour of applying for it. The price
was US$ 89.10 for two weeks.
San Diego Montgomery had the usual coastal stratus cloud (1100 feet
overcast) the morning of our departure, so we filed an IFR flight plan to get on top in
the sunshine and also to simplify the transit through the busy class B San Diego TCA.
Somehow the IFR coordination with the Mexicans failed and after 10 minutes of waiting we
got an IFR clearance to 9000 feet with Tijuana as clearance limit, which was fine with us.
Montgomery airport was busy, busy, busy. Planes were arriving and departing without
interruption from the two parallel runways, and both the tower and ground controller were
very busy as many wanted IFR clearances to VFR on top. After getting our IFR clearance we
were number 7 for take-off, but finally it was our turn. What a contrast to Atiu in Cook
islands where we were the second private plane to arrive during the 20 years of existence
of the runway!!
At 2000 feet we were in the sun and shortly before being handed
over to Tijuana approach, we cancelled IFR while climbing to 9500 feet. The Tijuana
approach controller, whose name was Javier, was very friendly and chatty and unlike his
San Diego colleagues he obviously did not have too much to do. He immediately recognized
HB-DVN as being Swiss and asked how we had crossed the Atlantic and from where in
Switzerland we had started. He was obviously more knowledgeable than another Tijuana
approach controller we talked to 11 years ago, who first did not know where HB-XXX came
from and secondly after telling him did not know where Switzerland was so we had to
explain that as well!! Anyhow, we told Javier that we had started from Geneva, Switzerland
and that we had not crossed the Atlantic, but the Pacific and were on our way around the
world eastbound. Then came the usual exchange of range, autonomy and duration of the
Hawaii to California flight. He told us to bring greetings to a friend of his, an air
traffic controller in Geneva called Christophe Gilgen. We will certainly do that.
Then he asked us if we knew Jorge Cornish, who was the first
Mexican to fly around the world in his Rocket Mooney 5 years ago. We explained that we
knew him well and that we were going to see him in Mexico City. While this chat went on,
an Air Mexicana Boeing 737 was departing from Tijuana, and some talking in Spanish about
these fantastic Mooneys followed. I am sure that the 737 was not really going our way as
we were about 20 NM out and following a VOR radial direct to San Felipe, but the 737 crew
were curious and wanted to see this little Mooney thing coming all the way to Mexico from
Switzerland the long way around. Then all of a sudden the controller announced that
we had a 737 6 o'clock, range 2 miles and 500 feet below and that he was going to
overtake us. We saw the 737 passing under us shortly after 6 o'clock became 12 o'clock!! I
presume Air Mexicana pilots want a bit of fun too sometimes.
Our original plan was to break the journey between San Diego and
Los Mochis in Baja California, spending the night at a fly-in resort we had visited 10
years ago, called Punta Chivato. Don therefore recommended that we did customs and
immigration at San Felipe airport, north of Punta Chivato. Then we realized that
three nights wasn't enough to visit the Copper Canyon, so decided to fly straight to Los
Mochis. We still landed first at San Felipe and only realized when we arrived in Los
Mochis that we could have done customs there. However, everything went smoothly and
efficiently at the pleasant little airport of San Felipe where they process entry of
dozens of US planes daily. The processing fee for 'Internación de aeronaves'
(aircraft entrance) was US$ 52 and the landing fee was just US$ 8.
There was slight turbulence due to thermals as we crossed over the
mountains between Tijuana on the Pacific side and San Felipe.on the Sea of Cortes side of
Baja California. Otherwise it was just a 'tempęte de ciel bleu' as we say in
French. The blue skies were crystal clear, particularly after the smog and haze of
Los Angeles and San Diego. We landed in Los Mochis about half an hour before sunset
after a total flying time of 3 and a quarter hours.
Our clever taxi driver managed to persuade us to stay at the hotel
of his choice rather than ours by saying that it was at a more safe location in town.
We realized when he hung around the reception that he had only recommended it
because he would be rewarded with a commission. We laughed at ourselves for being so
dumb. We should be sufficiently seasoned travellers by now not to be fooled like this!
But it wasn't very important. We checked out our original choice -
Hotel Fenix - after an excellent dinner at El Farallón restaurant (not the one
recommended by the taxi driver!) and found it to be slightly better. We would
definitely stay there on our return from the Copper Canyon trip.
It was a very early start the next morning. The Copper Canyon
train departed at 6 a.m. so we needed to be at the station by about 5.30 a.m. to
purchase the tickets. It was recommended to take the first class Primera Express
rather than the economy class train so we needed to be sure of getting seats. We had
also been told that the first hour and a half is not very interesting until one reaches
the pretty colonial town of El Fuerte. There is a landing strip at El Fuerte and we
thought of landing there instead of Los Mochis until Don Luschar remembered that a
friend's plane had been stolen there. (There is no security at the airfield.)
The other option would have been to take the train all the way to Chihuahua and take an
airline back to Los Mochis, instead of returning by train, but single airfare was
expensive - at least US$ 250. The best base for visiting the canyon area was
Creel so we decided to end our train journey there.
So we dozed for the first hour or so until the restaurant car
opened for breakfast. The views soon started to become more interesting,
changing from sugar cane fields, to dry desert-like scenery with large cactuses, some of
them in flower. As we started the climb up through the canyons, the vegetation
gradually changed to pine trees. The Chihauhau - Pacifico railway is a marvellous piece of
engineering through inhospitable bu beautiful mountainous terrain. The train passes
through 86 tunnels and numerous bridges between El Fuerte and Creel. While the first bit
of the railway from Chihauhau to Creel was completed already in 1907, the railway was only
completed in 1963. It was originally designed to carry large amount of goods from the
Mexican Gulf to the Pacific, but the completion of the Panama canal reduced the interest
of the railway cargo shipments over land.
There was a 15-minute stop at Divisadero station, to allow
time to get out of the train and walk over to the viewpoint of the huge canyon, rivalling
with the Grand Canyon of the US.
Tip for prospective travellers: although most of the good views are
from the right of the carriage when heading inland, the best place of all to sit is in the
restaurant car or bar where the views are not obstructed by the backs of the other seats.
The train took an hour and a half longer than scheduled and we
arrived in Creel after about an 8-hour journey. (Apparently it always takes that
amount of time, so one wonders why they don't change the schedule!)
In Creel, we stayed in a cosy log-cabin style bedroom at the Hotel
Korachi which had a gas fire - at 2340 m. above sea level, it gets chilly at night.
Most backpackers stay at Casa Margarita which was a good place to meet fellow travellers
and find out what they thought of the various possibilities for excursions. In the
end, we decided to rent bikes (also from Casa Margarita) and cycled to the Valle de los
Monjes where the vertical rock formations gave rise to its traditional Tarahumara name of
Bisabírachi, or Valley of the Erect Penises. From there, we climbed to the Mirador
Rio Conches with a superb view over a vast distance that reminded me of westerns.
The Cusarare falls were much further away than we had gathered from
our guide book and there were a lot of hills on the way. It was mainly downhill, so
I knew it would be hopeless to try and cycle up the hill again later. We hitched a
ride back with a French guy and his Mexican wife whom we'd met in the train. Their
driver was happy to take us and our bicycles on board for an extra tip. Even so, we
had cycled over 40 kilometres in one day and I had a raw hide! |