Log 8 of Albion (and other travels)
12/14/02: New Orleans for the Holidays
1/28/02: Greetings from Mexico
This season, 2002-2003, we decided to forgo cruising Mexico and take an extended trip in the RV across the USA. From Oregon we traveled to Maine, down to Florida, took a cruise of the Western Caribbean, then drove back across the southern states to Tucson. Then we decided to drive the RV down to the boat in San Carlos and do some needed maintenance. The following are the emails sent back to family and friends about our travels.
9/8/02: On the Road Again
We are "on the road again" in the RV heading across the USA. We left Portland on August 31. We had a very busy summer around the Northwest, but didn't get by to see everybody as planned and for that, we apologize. This year, rather than heading back to Albion in Mexico, we are going to "see the USA". Our current location is Winton, Minnesota (far Northeast corner) visiting fellow cruisers Will and Joann Gallant of Tica. We came across on the northern route from Hood River to Coeur d'Alene, ID (320 mile day), Bozeman, MT (381 mile day), Miles City, MT (295 mile day), Jamestown, ND (375 mile day), Garrison, MN (282 mile day) and then to Winton (200 miles). It was a relatively quick trip, but we did have time to stop and tour the Lewis and Clark Caverns near Butte and Pompey's Pillar N.M. near Billings. The rest of the trip will be across to New England and down the East Coast, seeing the regular tourist attractions and the Civil War Monuments, to Florida where we will be taking a cruise of the Western Caribbean on our 28th anniversary in November. Then our loose plans will take us back across the Southern States to Tucson and down to Albion in San Carlos by January or February. There we will work on the boat for about a month and spend some time in the Sea of Cortez before heading back to the Northwest in May or June. Just before leaving, we had to purchase a new phone. Technology is great, but as far as our uses are concerned, it just took a giant step backward until sometime in the near future. We used to connect our old cell phone to the computer to send and receive e-mail almost daily. Now we will be e-mail challenged until technology catches up. Therefore, we will be checking e-mail only in city libraries or in RV parks that have modem/phone hookups. So if we don't answer your e-mail right away, have patience, we will get to it on an irregular basis. And in some places, like Winton, we don't even get an AT&T signal, so we can't even make or receive calls......we need patience too!
12/14/02: New Orleans for the Holidays
The last time we let everybody know where we were, we were in Minnesota visiting cruising friends on our way across the country back in September. We are presently in New Orleans and looking forward to the holidays. I will try to make this update brief, but let you know what we've
been up to. After visiting cruising friends Will and Joann in Minnesota we traveled on to Niagara Falls, but stopped to see the Shipwreck Museum and Soo Locks in Michigan. Also in Michigan, we got another new phone. The new one we got in Oregon just before leaving did not get a signal after we left. Molly's cheapo phone did, so we got another one just like her's with our old phone number. Isn't the latest technology great *&^%$. We moved on to the Boston area where we learned a lot about the American Revolution and it's characters by doing the Freedom Walk through town. We also saw the Cape Cod area and JFK's Museum in Hyannisport. Then went to a Seafood Festival at Gloucester where we had a clam appetizer and we both got horribly sick that night. Maine was beautiful, but we were just a 
little early for the fall colors. Acadia National Park on Mount Desert Island, however, was breathtaking. We had Maine lobster in Bar Harbor and enjoyed a drive down the coast. Our next big stop was in New York. A word of caution here.....if you have an RV, DO NOT drive on a "Parkway". They have low clearance. When we saw the 8'7" sign at the side of an overpass, we took the highest part of the overpass arch and somehow made it (our height is 11'10"). We were then waved and honked off the parkway by passing motorists and were off into some neighborhood where we didn't know which way to go to get to Long Beach and our RV park. New York by train and tour bus, however, was just wonderful. We saw all the sights and loved it. We were then off to Philadelphia, and Gettysburg where we became more familiar with the Civil War and it's battles, including Antietam, Maryland, the bloodiest one day battle in the War. Fredericksburg Virginia was the next major stop. From there we did a lot of driving around the state seeing Montpelier (Madison's home), 
Monticello (Jefferson's home), Shenandoah N.P. in the Blue Ridge Mtns, Baltimore, Annapolis, and Washington DC. We were also in Fredericksbury when the DC snipers were active and VERY nearby. As soon as we got our mail from home, we headed south. We stopped at Kitty Hawk and the Wright brothers monument, drove down to Cape Hatteras, and did several Civil War and Revolutionary War forts on the way south to the Orlando Florida area. We also took a tour of St Augustine FL, the oldest town in America. In the Orlando area, we spent a day at Cypress Gardens and drove over to Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center. Then it was on to Miami to pack and get ready for our 28th anniversary cruise of the Western 
Caribbean (Grand Cayman Is., Roatan Is. Honduras, Belize City Belize, and Cozumel Mexico). It was a great cruise with plenty to keep us busy, but relaxing too. We were lucky enough to get back before all the virus' started infecting the cruise ships. After getting back, we headed down to Key West to visit some cruising friends from Portland, still living on their boat there. Key West was wonderful, wished we could have spent more time there, although we did have our "cheeseburger in paradise" at Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville. Then it was on to the Everglades N.P. and Naples FL. Naples is a real nice area on the Florida's west coast. In the Tampa/St. Petersburg area, we
visited some more recently retired friends from the Portland area that I used to coordinate with. It was good seeing old friends and have them show you around their area. In Pensacola, we visited the Naval Air Museum. Wow....it's a must if you are in the neighborhood. In Biloxi, we went to a "Christmas On Ice" show at one of the casinos. We were going to head to Memphis, TN and Branson, MO, but it was getting cold and it started snowing up there. So we decided to throw out the anchor in New Orleans for the month of December and enjoy the holidays here. We have a Christmas Eve paddlewheeler cruise planned up the Mississippi to watch the levee bonfires, a 
real tradition here. We also have a city and cemetery tour planned and just a lot of driving around to learn the area and see some of the southern plantation mansions. It is still cool here with bouts of wind and rain coming through from the Gulf (Last night tornado warnings were up near the delta and winds gusts were up to 64 mph on Lake Pontchartrain). From here, we want to visit some classmates in the Houston area, and then on to a Blue Grass Festival in Bythe CA on Jan. 16-18 with some friends from Tucson. After that, I guess we have to get down to Albion in San Carlos Mexico and start some maintenance work. I hope that brings you up to date on our travels. It has just been great traveling the east coast and seeing these things for the first time. Sorry if this was too long for you, but it was difficult glossing over so much.
Brent & Molly, On the Road in New Orleans
been up to. After visiting cruising friends Will and Joann in Minnesota we traveled on to Niagara Falls, but stopped to see the Shipwreck Museum and Soo Locks in Michigan. Also in Michigan, we got another new phone. The new one we got in Oregon just before leaving did not get a signal after we left. Molly's cheapo phone did, so we got another one just like her's with our old phone number. Isn't the latest technology great *&^%$. We moved on to the Boston area where we learned a lot about the American Revolution and it's characters by doing the Freedom Walk through town. We also saw the Cape Cod area and JFK's Museum in Hyannisport. Then went to a Seafood Festival at Gloucester where we had a clam appetizer and we both got horribly sick that night. Maine was beautiful, but we were just a 
little early for the fall colors. Acadia National Park on Mount Desert Island, however, was breathtaking. We had Maine lobster in Bar Harbor and enjoyed a drive down the coast. Our next big stop was in New York. A word of caution here.....if you have an RV, DO NOT drive on a "Parkway". They have low clearance. When we saw the 8'7" sign at the side of an overpass, we took the highest part of the overpass arch and somehow made it (our height is 11'10"). We were then waved and honked off the parkway by passing motorists and were off into some neighborhood where we didn't know which way to go to get to Long Beach and our RV park. New York by train and tour bus, however, was just wonderful. We saw all the sights and loved it. We were then off to Philadelphia, and Gettysburg where we became more familiar with the Civil War and it's battles, including Antietam, Maryland, the bloodiest one day battle in the War. Fredericksburg Virginia was the next major stop. From there we did a lot of driving around the state seeing Montpelier (Madison's home), 
Monticello (Jefferson's home), Shenandoah N.P. in the Blue Ridge Mtns, Baltimore, Annapolis, and Washington DC. We were also in Fredericksbury when the DC snipers were active and VERY nearby. As soon as we got our mail from home, we headed south. We stopped at Kitty Hawk and the Wright brothers monument, drove down to Cape Hatteras, and did several Civil War and Revolutionary War forts on the way south to the Orlando Florida area. We also took a tour of St Augustine FL, the oldest town in America. In the Orlando area, we spent a day at Cypress Gardens and drove over to Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center. Then it was on to Miami to pack and get ready for our 28th anniversary cruise of the Western 
Caribbean (Grand Cayman Is., Roatan Is. Honduras, Belize City Belize, and Cozumel Mexico). It was a great cruise with plenty to keep us busy, but relaxing too. We were lucky enough to get back before all the virus' started infecting the cruise ships. After getting back, we headed down to Key West to visit some cruising friends from Portland, still living on their boat there. Key West was wonderful, wished we could have spent more time there, although we did have our "cheeseburger in paradise" at Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville. Then it was on to the Everglades N.P. and Naples FL. Naples is a real nice area on the Florida's west coast. In the Tampa/St. Petersburg area, we
visited some more recently retired friends from the Portland area that I used to coordinate with. It was good seeing old friends and have them show you around their area. In Pensacola, we visited the Naval Air Museum. Wow....it's a must if you are in the neighborhood. In Biloxi, we went to a "Christmas On Ice" show at one of the casinos. We were going to head to Memphis, TN and Branson, MO, but it was getting cold and it started snowing up there. So we decided to throw out the anchor in New Orleans for the month of December and enjoy the holidays here. We have a Christmas Eve paddlewheeler cruise planned up the Mississippi to watch the levee bonfires, a 
real tradition here. We also have a city and cemetery tour planned and just a lot of driving around to learn the area and see some of the southern plantation mansions. It is still cool here with bouts of wind and rain coming through from the Gulf (Last night tornado warnings were up near the delta and winds gusts were up to 64 mph on Lake Pontchartrain). From here, we want to visit some classmates in the Houston area, and then on to a Blue Grass Festival in Bythe CA on Jan. 16-18 with some friends from Tucson. After that, I guess we have to get down to Albion in San Carlos Mexico and start some maintenance work. I hope that brings you up to date on our travels. It has just been great traveling the east coast and seeing these things for the first time. Sorry if this was too long for you, but it was difficult glossing over so much.Brent & Molly, On the Road in New Orleans
1/28/02: Greetings from Mexico
Molly and I are now back in Mexico at San Carlos. The boat over-wintered just fine and we now have it in the work area for about a month or two of work. We are staying in an RV park rather than the boat work area, as planned, because it's a lot less dusty, less noisy, and much more shadier......and it has cable TV, internet connection, and swimming pool! We believe we can still receive messages on the cell phone, then call the caller back the next day when we check for messages. Haven't tried it here yet, but a test seemed to work. Our stay here will be short this year. Nada & Dorsey, our friends in Tucson, have asked us to house-sit (actually dog-sit in their house) while they take a Panama Canal Cruise for two weeks in late April. Therefore, we will not be putting the boat in the water this year and be back in the states (Arizona) in mid April and leaving there sometime in May. We are also planning some recreational travels during our stay
down here this year too. We want to do the train trip up the Copper Canyon (a must do that we haven't yet), take a trip to a small colonial village called Alamos, drive down to a coastal village we visited last year in the boat called Altata, and drive down to Mazatlan to visit our other cruising friends that arrived much earlier than we did, and sailed away to the southern, tropical, cruising grounds. So it won't be all work and no play!!! The weather here is in the upper 70's and low 80's right now, a warm spell. But later this season, it should be getting warmer. If it gets too warm, we will just bag it and do the rest when we come back in October or November. Our work plan is: -re-varnish the entire inside of the cabins-replace all the sewer hoses-put in all new hatch screens (in the cabin top hatches) -install new drinking water hoses-install a built-in hot/cold shower in the cockpit and, -sand the entire bottom, for painting when we get back this fall.....and I'm sure we will find other things that need fixing along the way too. Just thought I would give you a quick report on our where-abouts. We will probably be back in the Portland area about late May or early June like last year. See you then!
down here this year too. We want to do the train trip up the Copper Canyon (a must do that we haven't yet), take a trip to a small colonial village called Alamos, drive down to a coastal village we visited last year in the boat called Altata, and drive down to Mazatlan to visit our other cruising friends that arrived much earlier than we did, and sailed away to the southern, tropical, cruising grounds. So it won't be all work and no play!!! The weather here is in the upper 70's and low 80's right now, a warm spell. But later this season, it should be getting warmer. If it gets too warm, we will just bag it and do the rest when we come back in October or November. Our work plan is: -re-varnish the entire inside of the cabins-replace all the sewer hoses-put in all new hatch screens (in the cabin top hatches) -install new drinking water hoses-install a built-in hot/cold shower in the cockpit and, -sand the entire bottom, for painting when we get back this fall.....and I'm sure we will find other things that need fixing along the way too. Just thought I would give you a quick report on our where-abouts. We will probably be back in the Portland area about late May or early June like last year. See you then! March 12 - 18, 2003: Copper Canyon
After having breakfast in San Carlos, we headed south to El Fuerte about 7:30 am. We would be meeting three other couples driving up from Marina Mazatlan, Cathy and Dan on Perceptions, Horst and Bea on Seadater and Will and Joann on Tica. Cathy had made hotel reservations for us and, with the assistance of Sylvia at Marina Mazatlan, had secured some great group rates for us. Cost of the tolls from San Carlos to Los Mochis, where we left the toll roads, was 209 pesos (about $19 US). From Los Mochis, it is about a one hour drive inland to El Fuerte. We arrived in El Fuerte about 12:30 and only had the name of the hotel where we would be staying, but no address or directions. Molly finally gave in and let Brent stop and ask directions and we were close, just a couple blocks away. We drove up a steep rocky street and saw a van with the hotel name on it so we got out and looked for it, but then saw another steep rocky road with a sign pointing up the hill to the hotel.....we wondered what kind of a place we would find, but our concerns were relieved once we stepped inside. It was a quaint little place with a lovely open courtyar
d overlooking the river (obviously, the hotel name was "Rio Vista"). We had our choice of any of the available rooms; all were clean and comfortable. Our cost here was 350 pesos ($32 US). We made a selection, got checked in and spent some time chatting with another couple who were on a tour staying there. The one negative thing about El Fuerte is the bugs (no see-'ums, but you can)! You want lots of bug spray and even that didn't seem to deter most of them! We decided to walk back down to the town square to meet our friends when they arrived in town. As we were walking to the square, we were stopped by a local man who asked Brent his name. Brent was sure he was going to try to sell him something, but replied that his name was Brent. The man asked "Brent Olaf?" How could he possibly know his middle name?! Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out our passports.....they had apparently fallen out of Molly's backpack when we got out of the car the first time we looked for the hotel! The man had recognized Brent from his passport photo. Can you imagine, our passports were returned before we even missed them. Brent was so happy he hugged the guy and gave him a nice reward! The rest of our group arrived shortly after 2 pm and after relaxing for a bit with some cold drinks we walked into town to explore a bit. The only thing we found of real interest was the ice cream shop! Back at the hotel we enjoyed a happy hour before having dinner in the hotel dining room. Dinner was a tasty local fish, but turned out to be more expensive than we had been told earlier. When they started serving it, the question we all had was "Have we ordered yet"? It was the only thing on the menu! We opted for just coffee and toast the next morning for breakfast. There are two trains daily up and down the canyon. The first is the primero or first class and about an hour later is the economy class at about half the cost of the first. We had planned to take the second as we had heard there was little difference and it was more local people and a lot more fun. The hotel provided transportation to the station and we were able to leave our cars parked near the hotel. When we arrived at the station, the first train was still there so we decided that the economy would be really late and opted to take the primero instead. Primero class one way ticket was 430 pesos (about $40 US) per person The train was very full with several tour groups on board, but we managed to get eight seats together. It's an all day trip up the canyon with the scenery changing 
many times from the hot dessert cactus country to the high mountainous/canyon terrain full of pine and fir trees. The rail line was begun in the late 19th century, finally finished in 1961 and privatized in 1998, with 39 bridges, 87 tunnels (one over a mile long), a 360 degree loop over itself, and a maximum altitude of 8,056 ft. The Copper Canyon area is apparently about four times larger than the Grand Canyon and about 1000 feet deeper. It is a series of about seven canyons (four of which are deeper than the Grand Canyon). The train travels up the El Fuerte and Unrique river canyons and along the rim of the main Copper Canyon. On the trip to the bottom, to Batopilas, we traveled through four other canyons. The train makes several short stops along the way to Creel, but only the stop at Divisadero allows a few minutes to disembark to get a good look over the canyon rim and grab a quick bite to eat from the local Mexican fast food venders. The chili relenos and tacos were wonderful! Then it was back on the train and on to Creel. At the station, we were pleased to find that a bus from the hotel was there to meet us. But imagine our surprise when after boarding and getting all our bags aboard, we drove out of the parking lot and nearly just across the street to unload at our hotel. Casa Margarita can best be described as a "work in progress." It is both a hostel and hotel, mostly under construction or remodel or demolishment or something. However, the rooms we reserved were clean and comfortable. Our cost here was 250 pesos (about $23 US) per room which included breakfast and dinner. Meals were served in a loud communal dining room, but were tasty and adequate. Although, if you like your meals served hot, it is best to get there early. Here we could make all the arrangements for local tours as well as one down to the bottom of the canyon at Batopilas. The hotel also had accommodations there. Cathy and Bea negotiated some good group rates for a tour the next day of the surrounding area and an overnight trip to Batopilas the following day. Our tour on Friday was a custom combination of three of their tours covering just about everything in the local area. We visited a local mission, a couple of occupied Indian cave dwellings, stopped by a lake, hiked to a waterfall, drove back to Divisadero allowing more time to enjoy the local cuisine and have a few more views of the canyon rim than were allowed with the short train stop there the day before. It was a long day and finally by late in the afternoon we told our driver and guide, "no mas, no mas." It was time to head back to the hotel and rest. Saturday was our day to go to the bottom of the canyon....this was the reason we had come! Our driver, Luis, spoke little or no English, but our guide, Juan, did. He had been working for Casa Margarita for many years and had been involved with building their new hotel at the canyon bottom, so had made many trips up and down and knew the area well. It is about 78 miles down to Batopilas with half of it on paved roads. But once you leave the pavement and start 
descending into the canyon, you are in for a real ride. In one section, we counted 20 switchbacks. The scenery is spectacular and ever changing as you descend from approximately 7000 feet elevation in Creel to about 500 feet to the canyon floor in Batopilas. It took us six hours, but we did make a few stops along the way. After the long hot dusty trip, we were pleasantly surprised by our accommodations in Batopilas. The hotel had been completed for only about 18 months and just got electricity a couple months ago. The rooms were large and most furnished with lots of antique furniture and brass beds and white eyelet linens. Beautiful Mexican tiles decorated the bathrooms. The cost here was 400 pesos (less than $40 US) per room which included dinner and breakfast. We took a few minutes to refresh ourselves then headed into town with the guide to see the sites. Batopilas is a unique community situated right along the river. The narrow streets were never intended for automobile traffic and certainly not the larger van we were traveling in, so often we had to stop and back up to let oncoming traffic pass. It was one of the cleanest towns we have seen in Mexico, perhaps due to the signs we saw noting fines for littering. Juan showed us around the town noting the first car ever to arrive there...brought down in parts and reassembled there (the road to Batopilas was only completed about 1979) . There is a gold mining operation along the river and several abandoned silver mining tunnels. Juan had just returned from another tour the day before ours and a man in the group had wandered off from the rest and entered an abandoned tunnel without a light. He almost fell into a deep shaft, ended up smashing his face badly and had to be airlifted out. No one in our group was that curious! The Hacienda San Miguel (the original silver 
foundry) lies in brick ruins across the river from town. Back at the hotel we relaxed with some snacks before dinner. The hotel it seemed was out of beer....bad news to Horst and Dan. Batopilas is supposedly a "dry" town with no liquor sales, but Juan said he knew where to go. He took them to a local senora's house who promptly produced a supply of ale. She is located right next to the police station, but they ignore her sales as she is also their cook and if she's arrested, the cooking may suffer! Only in Mexico! Dinner was truly a treat. The antique dinning table was covered with a hand crocheted and embroidered cloth and matching napkins. The dinnerware was china and then when the waiter offered wine, he poured it in crystal goblets....something we seldom see in Mexico and certainly did not expect here in Batopilas. The meal was delicious as was breakfast the next 
morning. The tour of Batopilas is not complete without hiring a local guide (Juan and Luis are not permitted to take tourists beyond the city) to see the "lost cathedral" along with some mines and Indian cave dwellings. The local guide was Arturo who provided transportation in the back of his pickup, complete with two auto bench seats. After we paid him for the tour he was able to purchase some fuel to make it.....he stopped at the local fuel depot and got five liters to siphon into his tank. The road was bumpy and dusty...a real adventure. We had visited some of the cave dwellings the day before and while it is interesting, we all felt a bit uncomfortable tramping right up to their homes to have a look see as to the way they live. Time was also a factor so we opted just to make the trip to the nearby community of Stavo to the "lost cathedral" ....which apparently was never "lost" as it is situated on a branch of the Camino Real, Mexico's most well known historical thoroughfare, nor was it ever a cathedral which requires the presence of an archbishop. Exactly when and by whom it was built remains a mystery. It was probably built as a Jesuit mission in the 17th century, but abandoned for whatever reason.....it has been rebuilt several times since being "discovered" and taken over by 
Franciscans in the 18th century. After exploring the building and surrounding area we piled back in the truck and headed back to town. Soon we were all wondering and beginning to worry about the truck....the sounds coming from below did not sound good....finally Arturo stopped managed to convey his concerns about making it up the next hill....we got out and walked while he and Will tried to diagnose the problem....most likely axles, or wheel bearings or tie rods or something....whatever, it was not good. After walking a while, Arturo finally came along and told us to get back in....we went a while and then we got out and walked some more when he started becoming worried about the steering.....as the road is right along the riverbank, we all felt safer walking! Back in town Arturo assured us that Juan would be there soon to pick us up, but we all felt certain that Juan was expecting us to be returned to the hotel instead of meeting us in town. Oh well, we decided to wait anyway....the only local bar was soon to open and we figured we would have a cold beer while we waited and waited and waited. Finally Brent decided to hoof it to the hotel, but along the way he did run into Juan who had finally gotten the message that we were stranded in town. Back at the hotel, we had only enough time to pack our bags and load into the van for our trip back up the canyon. This trip was shorter in duration as we did not make as many stops as on the way down. The weather had changed and it was quite windy in the canyon and downright cold by the time we reached the top. We were supposed to have had reservations at the other Margarita hotel in town, but found some problems (no reservations!) and ended up staying back at Casa Margarita instead. The train the next day would not leave until about noon so we had some time to spend in town, but the weather was cold and rainy (almost snow) so we stayed at the hotel until almost time to catch the train. Again due to the time, we opted for the primero train as the later economy would put us back into El Fuerte quite late. The trip down the canyon is relaxing and still beautiful, but canyon scenery is best viewed on the trip up the canyon. It was a long day and we were tired and hungry by the time we arrived back in El Fuerte about 7 pm. There was some confusion with the transportation there to meet us....the taxi driver had difficulty convincing us that he was from the hotel, there to meet us, and was not expecting us to pay. Finally back at the hotel, we got our rooms and then walked into town for dinner. We had a great dinner at another hotel near the town square. All that was left the next morning was to say our good-byes to our friends and make the long drive back to San Carlos and complete our work on the boat. It was a great trip....a "must do."
d overlooking the river (obviously, the hotel name was "Rio Vista"). We had our choice of any of the available rooms; all were clean and comfortable. Our cost here was 350 pesos ($32 US). We made a selection, got checked in and spent some time chatting with another couple who were on a tour staying there. The one negative thing about El Fuerte is the bugs (no see-'ums, but you can)! You want lots of bug spray and even that didn't seem to deter most of them! We decided to walk back down to the town square to meet our friends when they arrived in town. As we were walking to the square, we were stopped by a local man who asked Brent his name. Brent was sure he was going to try to sell him something, but replied that his name was Brent. The man asked "Brent Olaf?" How could he possibly know his middle name?! Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out our passports.....they had apparently fallen out of Molly's backpack when we got out of the car the first time we looked for the hotel! The man had recognized Brent from his passport photo. Can you imagine, our passports were returned before we even missed them. Brent was so happy he hugged the guy and gave him a nice reward! The rest of our group arrived shortly after 2 pm and after relaxing for a bit with some cold drinks we walked into town to explore a bit. The only thing we found of real interest was the ice cream shop! Back at the hotel we enjoyed a happy hour before having dinner in the hotel dining room. Dinner was a tasty local fish, but turned out to be more expensive than we had been told earlier. When they started serving it, the question we all had was "Have we ordered yet"? It was the only thing on the menu! We opted for just coffee and toast the next morning for breakfast. There are two trains daily up and down the canyon. The first is the primero or first class and about an hour later is the economy class at about half the cost of the first. We had planned to take the second as we had heard there was little difference and it was more local people and a lot more fun. The hotel provided transportation to the station and we were able to leave our cars parked near the hotel. When we arrived at the station, the first train was still there so we decided that the economy would be really late and opted to take the primero instead. Primero class one way ticket was 430 pesos (about $40 US) per person The train was very full with several tour groups on board, but we managed to get eight seats together. It's an all day trip up the canyon with the scenery changing 
many times from the hot dessert cactus country to the high mountainous/canyon terrain full of pine and fir trees. The rail line was begun in the late 19th century, finally finished in 1961 and privatized in 1998, with 39 bridges, 87 tunnels (one over a mile long), a 360 degree loop over itself, and a maximum altitude of 8,056 ft. The Copper Canyon area is apparently about four times larger than the Grand Canyon and about 1000 feet deeper. It is a series of about seven canyons (four of which are deeper than the Grand Canyon). The train travels up the El Fuerte and Unrique river canyons and along the rim of the main Copper Canyon. On the trip to the bottom, to Batopilas, we traveled through four other canyons. The train makes several short stops along the way to Creel, but only the stop at Divisadero allows a few minutes to disembark to get a good look over the canyon rim and grab a quick bite to eat from the local Mexican fast food venders. The chili relenos and tacos were wonderful! Then it was back on the train and on to Creel. At the station, we were pleased to find that a bus from the hotel was there to meet us. But imagine our surprise when after boarding and getting all our bags aboard, we drove out of the parking lot and nearly just across the street to unload at our hotel. Casa Margarita can best be described as a "work in progress." It is both a hostel and hotel, mostly under construction or remodel or demolishment or something. However, the rooms we reserved were clean and comfortable. Our cost here was 250 pesos (about $23 US) per room which included breakfast and dinner. Meals were served in a loud communal dining room, but were tasty and adequate. Although, if you like your meals served hot, it is best to get there early. Here we could make all the arrangements for local tours as well as one down to the bottom of the canyon at Batopilas. The hotel also had accommodations there. Cathy and Bea negotiated some good group rates for a tour the next day of the surrounding area and an overnight trip to Batopilas the following day. Our tour on Friday was a custom combination of three of their tours covering just about everything in the local area. We visited a local mission, a couple of occupied Indian cave dwellings, stopped by a lake, hiked to a waterfall, drove back to Divisadero allowing more time to enjoy the local cuisine and have a few more views of the canyon rim than were allowed with the short train stop there the day before. It was a long day and finally by late in the afternoon we told our driver and guide, "no mas, no mas." It was time to head back to the hotel and rest. Saturday was our day to go to the bottom of the canyon....this was the reason we had come! Our driver, Luis, spoke little or no English, but our guide, Juan, did. He had been working for Casa Margarita for many years and had been involved with building their new hotel at the canyon bottom, so had made many trips up and down and knew the area well. It is about 78 miles down to Batopilas with half of it on paved roads. But once you leave the pavement and start 
descending into the canyon, you are in for a real ride. In one section, we counted 20 switchbacks. The scenery is spectacular and ever changing as you descend from approximately 7000 feet elevation in Creel to about 500 feet to the canyon floor in Batopilas. It took us six hours, but we did make a few stops along the way. After the long hot dusty trip, we were pleasantly surprised by our accommodations in Batopilas. The hotel had been completed for only about 18 months and just got electricity a couple months ago. The rooms were large and most furnished with lots of antique furniture and brass beds and white eyelet linens. Beautiful Mexican tiles decorated the bathrooms. The cost here was 400 pesos (less than $40 US) per room which included dinner and breakfast. We took a few minutes to refresh ourselves then headed into town with the guide to see the sites. Batopilas is a unique community situated right along the river. The narrow streets were never intended for automobile traffic and certainly not the larger van we were traveling in, so often we had to stop and back up to let oncoming traffic pass. It was one of the cleanest towns we have seen in Mexico, perhaps due to the signs we saw noting fines for littering. Juan showed us around the town noting the first car ever to arrive there...brought down in parts and reassembled there (the road to Batopilas was only completed about 1979) . There is a gold mining operation along the river and several abandoned silver mining tunnels. Juan had just returned from another tour the day before ours and a man in the group had wandered off from the rest and entered an abandoned tunnel without a light. He almost fell into a deep shaft, ended up smashing his face badly and had to be airlifted out. No one in our group was that curious! The Hacienda San Miguel (the original silver 
foundry) lies in brick ruins across the river from town. Back at the hotel we relaxed with some snacks before dinner. The hotel it seemed was out of beer....bad news to Horst and Dan. Batopilas is supposedly a "dry" town with no liquor sales, but Juan said he knew where to go. He took them to a local senora's house who promptly produced a supply of ale. She is located right next to the police station, but they ignore her sales as she is also their cook and if she's arrested, the cooking may suffer! Only in Mexico! Dinner was truly a treat. The antique dinning table was covered with a hand crocheted and embroidered cloth and matching napkins. The dinnerware was china and then when the waiter offered wine, he poured it in crystal goblets....something we seldom see in Mexico and certainly did not expect here in Batopilas. The meal was delicious as was breakfast the next 
morning. The tour of Batopilas is not complete without hiring a local guide (Juan and Luis are not permitted to take tourists beyond the city) to see the "lost cathedral" along with some mines and Indian cave dwellings. The local guide was Arturo who provided transportation in the back of his pickup, complete with two auto bench seats. After we paid him for the tour he was able to purchase some fuel to make it.....he stopped at the local fuel depot and got five liters to siphon into his tank. The road was bumpy and dusty...a real adventure. We had visited some of the cave dwellings the day before and while it is interesting, we all felt a bit uncomfortable tramping right up to their homes to have a look see as to the way they live. Time was also a factor so we opted just to make the trip to the nearby community of Stavo to the "lost cathedral" ....which apparently was never "lost" as it is situated on a branch of the Camino Real, Mexico's most well known historical thoroughfare, nor was it ever a cathedral which requires the presence of an archbishop. Exactly when and by whom it was built remains a mystery. It was probably built as a Jesuit mission in the 17th century, but abandoned for whatever reason.....it has been rebuilt several times since being "discovered" and taken over by 
Franciscans in the 18th century. After exploring the building and surrounding area we piled back in the truck and headed back to town. Soon we were all wondering and beginning to worry about the truck....the sounds coming from below did not sound good....finally Arturo stopped managed to convey his concerns about making it up the next hill....we got out and walked while he and Will tried to diagnose the problem....most likely axles, or wheel bearings or tie rods or something....whatever, it was not good. After walking a while, Arturo finally came along and told us to get back in....we went a while and then we got out and walked some more when he started becoming worried about the steering.....as the road is right along the riverbank, we all felt safer walking! Back in town Arturo assured us that Juan would be there soon to pick us up, but we all felt certain that Juan was expecting us to be returned to the hotel instead of meeting us in town. Oh well, we decided to wait anyway....the only local bar was soon to open and we figured we would have a cold beer while we waited and waited and waited. Finally Brent decided to hoof it to the hotel, but along the way he did run into Juan who had finally gotten the message that we were stranded in town. Back at the hotel, we had only enough time to pack our bags and load into the van for our trip back up the canyon. This trip was shorter in duration as we did not make as many stops as on the way down. The weather had changed and it was quite windy in the canyon and downright cold by the time we reached the top. We were supposed to have had reservations at the other Margarita hotel in town, but found some problems (no reservations!) and ended up staying back at Casa Margarita instead. The train the next day would not leave until about noon so we had some time to spend in town, but the weather was cold and rainy (almost snow) so we stayed at the hotel until almost time to catch the train. Again due to the time, we opted for the primero train as the later economy would put us back into El Fuerte quite late. The trip down the canyon is relaxing and still beautiful, but canyon scenery is best viewed on the trip up the canyon. It was a long day and we were tired and hungry by the time we arrived back in El Fuerte about 7 pm. There was some confusion with the transportation there to meet us....the taxi driver had difficulty convincing us that he was from the hotel, there to meet us, and was not expecting us to pay. Finally back at the hotel, we got our rooms and then walked into town for dinner. We had a great dinner at another hotel near the town square. All that was left the next morning was to say our good-byes to our friends and make the long drive back to San Carlos and complete our work on the boat. It was a great trip....a "must do."
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