CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
A 321 km round trip from La Joya - roughly 6 h 20 in the saddle. On the way it passes Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town, Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal, Historic ensemble of the city of Sombreret and back through Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 2,400 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available.
Pipes of a giant church organ, frozen in stone: that is what the Spanish saw when they named the Sierra de Órganos, a range of rock formations in the north-west of the state of Zacatecas, near the border with Durango. The columns and pinnacles of volcanic rock rise from the high desert, carved by wind and water into strange shapes, and the area is a national park, protected for its geology and its landscape of grassland, oak and pine.
Read the complete Sierra de Órganos write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Sierra de Órganos is where the day begins. Next is Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town.
San Martín is a small farming town on the high plateau of western Zacatecas, a dozen or so kilometres from the old mining city of Sombrerete, and at its heart stands a colonial church dedicated to San Pantaleón Mártir. The building, with a sturdy stone facade, a bell tower and a cool, simple interior, is one of the sites listed as part of the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the colonial road that ran north from Mexico City through the silver country to New Mexico. Churches like this one marked the stopping places along the route, and they served the small communities of farmers, muleteers and miners who lived in this harsh, beautiful landscape.
Read the complete Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town comes up about 32 km into the recorded legs. Next is Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal.
Chalchihuites is a small town in the far west of Zacatecas, on the edge of the Sierra Madre Occidental, and it lies on a stretch of the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the Royal Road of the Interior Land. Its architectural ensemble, with a parish church and colonial houses around a plaza, is part of the UNESCO listing of the Camino Real. The name comes from the Nahuatl word for jade or greenstone, chalchihuitl, a reference to the turquoise-like stones found in the area, which were prized by the peoples of Mesoamerica.
Read the complete Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
about 109 km into the recorded legs you reach Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal. Next is Historic ensemble of the city of Sombreret.
Sombrerete is a silver town in the northwest of Zacatecas, founded in the 1550s when Spanish prospectors found rich veins of ore in the hills. The name comes from a hill nearby shaped like a small hat. In the colonial era, Sombrerete's mines produced enormous wealth, and the town grew into an important stop on the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the royal road linking Mexico City with the far north. That wealth built a remarkable collection of churches, convents and mansions, many in the pinkish local stone, and the historic ensemble is part of the UNESCO listing of the Camino Real. The Franciscan convent, the church of Santo Domingo, and the chapel of the Tercera Orden, with its unusual oval plan, are among the highlights. The town has a slightly faded, unhurried atmosphere, far from the tourist crowds of the more famous colonial cities.
Read the complete Historic ensemble of the city of Sombreret write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Historic ensemble of the city of Sombreret, about halfway. Next is back through Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
back through Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal sits at 139 km, about halfway. Next is back through Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
back through Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town comes up about 288 km into the recorded legs. Next is Sierra de Órganos.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Sierra de Órganos write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Sierra de Órganos closes the day.
Sierra de Órganos → Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town → Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal is 77 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal → Historic ensemble of the city of Sombreret is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Historic ensemble of the city of Sombreret → back through Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Architectonic ensemble of the Town of Chal → back through Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town is 77 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Temple of San Pantaleón Mártir in the Town → Sierra de Órganos is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.