Mexico

Here's a quick and belated post about my recent trip to Mexico.  This was my 8th (I think) trip to Potrero Chico and I still like the place.  While the climbing itself isn't world class (in my opinion), the people, the ease, the food, the cost, all combine for a great overall experience.  My friend Vinod from Houston, also a Potrero veteran, met me down there.

View from the doorway of my room in the morning.

Before I left I had several people make comments such as "You're going to Mexico now?  Are you nuts?"  The current drug-related violence is certainly a real issue in many areas of Mexico and I was cognizant of this while planning the trip.  After communicating with some people around Monterrey and the climbing areas, I was confident that Hidalgo (the small town nearby) and the Potrero itself would be safe.  I'm happy to report that all is well in this area.  I never felt anything was amiss, noticed nothing sketchy whatsoever, and, to put it bluntly, would go back anytime.  If you've never been, the easiest logistics is to fly into Monterrey and take a 45min shuttle to the Potrero.  The Monterrey airport isn't in the city proper so you're able to avoid urban areas in transit.

The drug violence in Mexico has mixed implications for climbers.  On the plus side, the crowds in the Potrero were greatly reduced.  There were many days that we saw no one on any of the long routes that are usually flooded with climbers.  The flipside to this is partner finding may be slightly more difficult (although not impossible) if traveling alone.  I feel the real victim of the drug wars are the local Mexican entrepreneurs who have worked to build a living off climbers.  They have built campgrounds, casitas, restaurants and now have much fewer paying guests through no fault of their own.  I see this having long-term implications as fewer people could lead to either higher prices or places going out of business. With higher prices and/or fewer facilities, less people will come.  I hope this doesn't occur as I really like the people who run the Posada and Checos Restaurant.

On a more positive note, we had a blast.  We mixed up a few multipitch routes with some single pitch cragging in lots of different sectors.  The weather was too warm (for me) to climb in the sun so we avoided the Outrage and Mileski/Pride walls and concentrated on the shadier walls.

Outrage Wall (lower right) baking in the sun.

 
My main goal for the trip was Big Blue, a single pitch tufa and pocket route that I had tried twice last trip.  I had quite an epic time with this route, falling off the last move 9 times before sticking it on the next to last day.  It had been a long time since I had really thrown myself at a project and clipping the chains really felt good!

"Borrowed" shot of Big Blue

Vinod and I also did some hiking and exploring, looking for new walls and routes.  We hiked to the back end of Los Lobos Canyon where a small wall with tufas and flowstone has only one route.  Several more good looking routes await someone willing to slog up to the back end of the canyon.

I also hiked into the back of the Potrero to check out some of the walls not visible from the main areas.  I was able to find a great looking wall with no routes and lots of potential.  The hike from the arroyo will probably take about 45min to an hour with a good trail.

View from the Arroyo.  The wall is several hundred feet tall.

The Main Wall.  Note the palm tree in the upper right for a sense of scale.

Closer view of the center right of the wall.  Tufas and pockets.

Far right of the main wall.

Left side of the main wall.  Big huecos, pockets, and tufa systems.

An evening view from the back of the Potrero.  Notice the Spires at the bottom of the photo for a sense of scale.  The Sense of Religion wall is on the right (Mota to Mileski and beyond) while the Outrage and Time Wave Zero are on the left.

As I came home with Pesos in my pocket, I guess I'll have to go back!