Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic and Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
93 km
Riding-time estimate
1 h 34
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.
93 km from Oaxtepec to Oaxtepec, about 1 h 34 of riding. It goes by way of Ancient Convent of the Nativity, Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio and back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 2,550 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. The line favours views over speed.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic
Oaxtepec sits at roughly thirteen hundred metres on the warm southern side of the volcanic highlands of Morelos, where the air is noticeably softer than in Mexico City, an hour or two north. The Dominican convent here is one of the sixteenth-century monasteries on the slopes of Popocatépetl that UNESCO listed in 1994, a group built by the first friars after the conquest, with fortress-like walls, a large atrium for open-air preaching and thick buttresses against the earthquakes that have always visited this region.
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 Ancient Convent of the Nativity.
2. 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.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Ancient Convent of the Nativity comes up about 19 km into the recorded legs. Next is Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio.
3. Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio
The Franciscans arrived in Cuernavaca in the 1520s, just a few years after the Spanish conquest, and the fortress like convent they built here, dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin, is now the city's cathedral. Its massive church, with walls thick enough for defence and an open chapel for preaching to crowds of indigenous converts, is one of the earliest sixteenth century monasteries on the slopes of Popocatépetl listed as a World Heritage Site in 1994. Inside, murals uncovered in the twentieth century show the martyrdom of Christian missionaries in Japan in 1597, a striking reminder of how far the Franciscan world reached; one of the martyrs, Felipe de Jesús, was born in Mexico City.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic to Ancient Convent of the Nativity
Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic → Ancient Convent of the Nativity is 19 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Ancient Convent of the Nativity to Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio
Ancient Convent of the Nativity → Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio to back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity
Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio → back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity to Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic
back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity → Temple and Former Convent of Saint Dominic is 23 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.