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CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE

Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic and Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalc

Plan this ride

Recorded distance
243 km
Riding-time estimate
4 h 03
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis

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.

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Why this ride

From Hueyapan it runs 243 km to Hueyapan; allow about 4 h 03 of riding. The stops in between: Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th, Ancient Convent of the Nativity, Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalc and back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 2,650 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. The line favours views over speed.

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

  1. 1. Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic

    Hueyapan sits high on the southern flank of Popocatépetl, in the far northeast of Morelos, where pine forest and orchards climb toward the volcano and the air is noticeably thinner than in the valleys below. In the sixteenth century, Dominican friars built a convent here dedicated to Santo Domingo, with a simple church, a cloister and a walled atrium where the indigenous population gathered for worship. It is one of the fourteen sites in the UNESCO listing of the Earliest Sixteenth-Century Monasteries on the Slopes of Popocatépetl, and while it is more modest than some of its neighbours, its setting is one of the most dramatic.

    Read the complete Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic is where the day begins. Next is Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th.

  2. 2. Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th

    In the 1530s and 1540s, Augustinian friars arrived in the valleys below Popocatépetl to convert the local population, and they built churches that look half like cathedrals and half like castles. The convent of San Juan Bautista in Yecapixtla is one of the finest: a tall, fortress-like church with crenellated walls, a striking Gothic rose window over the entrance and a vast atrium where the indigenous congregation gathered for open-air services. It is part of the UNESCO listing of the Earliest Sixteenth-Century Monasteries on the Slopes of Popocatépetl, a group of fourteen convents across Morelos and Puebla.

    Read the complete Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th comes up about 24 km into the recorded legs. Next is Ancient Convent of the Nativity.

  3. 3. Ancient Convent of the Nativity

    Tepoztlán sits at the foot of a wall of jagged volcanic cliffs in northern Morelos, and on the highest ridge above town, a small Aztec pyramid, the Tepozteco, dedicated to the god of pulque, clings to the rock. Down in the town, the Dominican convent of the Nativity, built in the mid-sixteenth century, is one of the monasteries on the slopes of Popocatépetl listed by UNESCO in 1994. Its massive church, with a facade carved with angels, the sun and the moon, and a large atrium, is impressive, and the cloister has remains of colourful mural paintings. Part of the convent houses a museum.

    Read the complete Ancient Convent of the Nativity write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    about 59 km into the recorded legs you reach Ancient Convent of the Nativity. Next is Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalc.

  4. 4. Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalc

    Xochicalco sits on a terraced hilltop south-west of Cuernavaca, and from the top you understand immediately why someone built a city here: the view runs over the valleys of Morelos in every direction, to the lakes, the hills and, on a clear day, the snowy shoulders of Popocatépetl far to the east. The city rose after the fall of Teotihuacan, flourishing roughly between AD 650 and 900, a time of upheaval when fortified hilltop centres grew strong by controlling trade. It was protected by moats, walls and ramparts, and its people mixed influences from the Maya, the Gulf Coast and central Mexico in a way that makes it unique.

    Read the complete Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalc write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalc, about halfway. Next is back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity.

  5. 5. back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Ancient Convent of the Nativity write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity sits at 134 km, about halfway. Next is back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th.

  6. 6. back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th comes up about 218 km into the recorded legs. Next is Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic.

  7. 7. Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic closes the day.

Leg by leg

Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic to Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th

Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic → Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th to Ancient Convent of the Nativity

Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th → Ancient Convent of the Nativity is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

Ancient Convent of the Nativity to Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalc

Ancient Convent of the Nativity → Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalc is 56 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalc to back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity

Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalc → back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity is 64 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity to back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th

back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity → back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th to Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic

back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th → Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

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