Activities in Northwest Mexico
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El Aventurero
Enjoy the canyon country on horseback with this Mexican-American joint enterprise, from two-hour jaunts near Creel (M$150 per person) to two-week treks far, wide and deep (M$21,000 to M$26,000). Tuition is available for beginners. Its stables are on the southeast edge of town.
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Trips
Most of Creel's hotels offer tours of the surrounding area, with trips to canyons, rivers, hot springs, waterfalls and other places. Trips range from a seven-hour tour to the bottom of the Barranca de Urique to an eight-hour excursion to Mennonite settlements in Cuauhtémoc, and overnight excursions to Batopilas, a wonderful canyon village, which descends from an altitude of 2338m at Creel to 495m, via a winding dirt road.
This is also prime riding country, and many of Creel's nearby attractions can be enjoyed from horseback; or you can rent a bicycle or scooter and venture out on your own. The whole area is a mountain bike playground and, depending on your skill and fitn…
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CEDO
CEDO, about 3km along Las Conchas, is a wonderful place to learn about the fascinating desert-meets-sea eco-system of Rocky Point. Dedicated to the conservation of the upper Gulf of California and surrounding Sonoran desert, CEDO offers free tours with a natural-history talk in English at 2pm Tuesday and 4pm Saturday, and its ‘Earthship’ visitor center has a good store. CEDO also runs a fascinating program of nature tours, some in collaboration with local cooperatives. These range from tidepool explorations, wetland bird walks and kayaking on nearby Morúa estuary to excursions to Isla San Jorge or El Pinacate Biosphere Reserve. Prices range from M$195/130 to around M$900/…
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Aguas Termales Rekowata
The Aguas Termales Rekowata are on San Ignacio ejido land but approached from the Divisadero road 7km south of Creel. It’s 11km southeast, unpaved, from the highway to the parking lot, then 3km down a cobblestone road to the warm and sometimes crowded bathing pools into which the springs are channeled, near the bottom of the Barranca de Tarárecua. Vans (M$70 one way) carry people up and down from the parking lot on busier days; otherwise it’s a beautiful walk down and a sweaty one back up.
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3Amigos
The Río Fuerte winds through subtropical countryside outside town and you can explore it with 3Amigos, a branch of an established Creel-based, active-tourism firm. River floats (M$300) and kayak trips (M$400 to M$600), with English-speaking guides, include a walk to the 2000-year-old petroglyphs at Cerro de la Máscara; 3Amigos also rents bikes, offers a free self-guided town walking-tour map, and can fix almost anything else you need in the Copper Canyon area.
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Sun n’ Fun
You can arrange things through an agency like Sun n’ Fun, where Isla San Jorge trips cost around M$1500 for divers and M$1100 for snorkelers or sightseers, and fishing charters up to seven hours run between M$650 and M$1300 per person. Sea-fishing, snorkeling, diving, kayaking and sunset cruises are all popular. Swimming with the sea lions at Isla San Jorge (Bird Island) is an outstanding trip and the water temperature stays above 21°C from May to October.
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3 Amigos
The 3 Amigos built its reputation on helping you ‘be your own guide in the Copper Canyon’ through its rentals of mountain bikes (per four hours/day M$90/150), scooters (per hour/day including fuel M$100/550) and trucks (double-cab Nissan pickup; per 24 hours M$1300), with free maps, travel information and in some cases lunch. This is a great option for independent souls. It also offers self-guided truck tour packages, guided trips and scenic flights.
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Umarike Expediciones
This internet-based outfitter offers guided mountain-bike adventure trips, rock-climbing and canyoning excursions and instruction. It rents out mountain bikes and camping gear, and offers maps and information for do-it-yourself trips.
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E
Tarahumara Tours
A group of local driver-guides offering many of the same trips as the hotels, from two hours to two days, often at better prices. Talk to them at their office on the plaza.
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Gary’s Dive Shop
Diving, snorkeling, gear rental, fishing, ocean nature tours and trips to Isla San Pedro Nolasco (Seal Island). There’s also an office at the Marinaterra Hotel.
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Homes & Gardens Tour
Meet outside Museo Costumbrista de Sonora for a two-hour tour of three foreign-owned colonial homes. Proceeds go to an Álamos educational charity.
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