So, we managed to squeeze in one last adventure before it was time for Sage to head home.
Sage requested we head up to Ixtepeji, up in the Sierra de Juarez, as it’s a spot that ticks a number of his favourite boxes: good camping, floaty singletrack in the clouds, and most importantly, great fire-making potential.
Last time he was here in Oaxaca, we rode all the way up to Benito Juarez – I wrote a story for Bikepacking.com about that experience here. As time was a little short, on this occasion we hired a shuttle (it is, after all, more than a 1500m climb), though I also toyed with re-fitting the Bafang motor to the Jones HD/e, so we could do our own form of non-truck-shuttling’ with the Tow Whee. It’s definitely something I’d like to try – next time maybe!
Once we were up in the Centro ecoturístico La Cumbre Ixtepeji, a sprawling encampment in the midst of the forest, we swung on the swings, inspected various orchids, bromeliads, and mosses, sipped hot chocolate, and made the aforementioned fire (over which marshmallows were roasted, of course). Huesos found a pile of namesake bones, so it was an almost full-time job keeping him from slinking off, side-eye-and-hunched shoulders-style.
Riding-wise, we enjoyed one trail loop and one massive descent back down to Huayapam and Oaxaca. I was mindful of soaking up our time together and resisted the urge to stop for too much for photos – especially on the trails, so he could enjoy the sense of singletrack flow and that glorious feeling of being in the ‘now’ – but of course, I couldn’t resist gathering a few visual keepsakes here and there.
Emma and Huesos came too, making us quite the posse. I forgot my sleeping mattress so slept on Huesos’s foam cushion, and he snuggled up next to me and Sage. As sweet as it was, I can’t say it was the comfiest night.
The descent to Huayapam is a monster, and one which I documented in more detail here and here. Tyre pressure? Check. Brakes? Check. Helmet secure? Check. Cabin pressure? Check. And he was off. Partly because I was pulling the trailer, and partly because Sage now rides at a pace that sometimes gives me a knot in my stomach, there were absolutely zero chances of me keeping up with him. It is our third time riding this 1500m+ descent. It features on the Micro Vuelta and it’s one of our all-time favourites in Oaxaca. It’s a real tyres-scrunching-on-dirt and wind-whistling-through-your-helmet kind of plummet and Sage loves it. As he said, “It never gets old”.
Memelas, the fuel of Oaxacan cyclists. From the office at La Cumbre, we rode the six hilly kilometres to the Centro Ecoturístico to start the day.
Once we arrived and were settled in on the pineneedles, we unloaded the bikes and rode a meditative singletrack loop.
Kindling and coffee-making, campfire vibes.
Huesos awakes early, for his morning patrol around the perimeter of our tents.
And later in the day… having a frolic in the grass. Sage loves the rope swing here. I think he might get as high as 20ft into the air, and his peels of laughter echo through the forest in a smile-inducing way.
It takes just a moment to remove the whole Tailfin rack and pannier system and ride unladen, keeping the bike fun on trails… and easily loaded when it’s time to move on.
No sooner had we arrived in the high country, than Sage got to work building this shelter.
Other around camp activities, courtesy of our Mordecai notebooks. Apparently, the game of Exquisite Corpse was invented by the Surrealist artists of the early 20th century.
Sage was in charge of navigation (and tunes) on this trip.
A little bit of help from the Tow Whee here and there. And don’t forget, I have Oaxaca stickers for sale!
This boy eats dirt roads (and tacos) for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Distant Huesos and Sage blips.
Emma told Sage all about the plants that are found in this area, and he pressed an orchid we spotted on the ground into his notebook. Appropriately, the little claw-like ones belong to the Mexican Hand Tree!
Sage hitting warp speed for the final segment to Huayapam.
Two cool fellas.
In terms of bikes, this time I fitted the Tumbleweed Mini Pannier rack and the set of uber-stylish Buckhorn panniers I’m reviewing to the Jones LWB Spaceframe. Sage went with his Tailfin rack and a set of 10L panniers, the kind that clasps hold with bionic strength and precision. The Farfarer took up the slack, hauling food for Huesos and our tent, the Hyperlite Ultamid 2. Apart from the missing sleeping mat, it worked out pretty well!
The Big Rig: Jones LWB Spaceframe, Francis Cycles Farfarer, Buckhorn panniers, and Tumbleweed Mini Pannier Rack.
Sipping a gourd of post-ride, tasty tejate in Huayapam. Way better than any soft drink…
Is it obvious that I wore socks and shoes for a change?
The Route
We were dropped off at the entrance to Ixtepeji early, where we paid for our camping (100 pesos per person, which includes the access fee to the area). It’s chilly up in the high country, so we ducked into a restaurant for breakfast memelas, tacos, and hot chocolate. Once it warmed up a bit, we rode to the Centro ecoturístico La Cumbre Ixtepeji, which involves a pretty solid, steep climb.
There, we pitched the tent and Sage got to building a tree fort, then we enjoyed a short trail loop – there are just a few techy features he can’t ride on the loop below. The next day, we climbed out from the Centro Ecoturístico and made our way down to Huayapam, and home to Oaxaca.
There is a small fee to pay to ride the descent to Huayapam. You are supposed to do this in the office there beforehand but we paid it on the way down, after some community members asked us for our tickets. Aim to pop into the office first – its location is marked on the map.
