Toniná is the reason to linger in Ocosingo. A few kilometres east of town, the ruins of this Maya city rise up a hillside in a stack of terraces, platforms and temples that climbs some seventy metres from the valley floor, one of the tallest built structures in the Maya world. In the seventh and eighth centuries Toniná was a fierce military power, and its carvings show bound captives, including, according to its inscriptions, a king of Palenque. It is far less visited than Palenque, and you may have it almost to yourself.
Ocosingo is a market town of about forty thousand people in a broad green valley in the highlands of Chiapas, on the road between San Cristóbal de las Casas and Palenque. It is a cattle town, known for its cheese, especially the round, waxed queso de bola, and its market is a good place to try local food. In January 1994, Ocosingo was one of the towns seized by the Zapatista rebels, and the fighting here was among the fiercest of the uprising. The region remains a stronghold of indigenous communities, many of them Tzeltal Maya.
For riders, the road through Ocosingo, Federal Highway 199, is a classic of the Chiapas highlands. It winds through mountains, valleys and forests, dropping from the cool pine-covered heights around San Cristóbal toward the hot, humid lowlands near Palenque. Along the way, it passes the turn-offs to the waterfalls of Agua Azul, a series of turquoise cascades, and Misol-Ha, a single tall waterfall falling into a pool. The road is full of curves, but also of topes, the speed bumps that appear without warning in every village, along with potholes, animals and slow trucks.
Ocosingo has fuel, food and basic hotels, and it is a sensible place to break the journey. Ride only in daylight, since the road is challenging and poorly lit, and ask locally about current conditions, as roadblocks by local communities or protests can occasionally close the road. The rainy season, from June to October, brings heavy downpours and landslides, while the dry months are cooler in the highlands and more pleasant for riding.