Temple and Former Convent of Saint Michael and Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
309 km
Riding-time estimate
5 h 13
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.
From Huejotzingo it runs 309 km to Huejotzingo; allow about 5 h 13 of riding. The stops in between: Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th, Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio and back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 2,800 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Temple and Former Convent of Saint Michael
Behind a crenellated wall in the middle of Huejotzingo lies one of the earliest Christian buildings in the Americas: the Franciscan convent of San Miguel Arcángel, built in the decades after the Spanish conquest on the lower slopes of the volcanoes west of Puebla. The friars arrived here within a few years of the fall of Tenochtitlan, and the church, convent and walled atrium they raised are a textbook example of how the missionaries worked, with great open courtyards where crowds of indigenous converts could gather for teaching and mass. Huejotzingo is part of the UNESCO site of the Earliest Sixteenth-Century Monasteries on the Slopes of Popocatépetl, listed in 1994.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Temple and Former Convent of Saint Michael is where the day begins. Next is Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th.
2. Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th
Tetela del Volcán lives in the shadow of Popocatépetl. The town sits at about two thousand metres on the southern slope of the volcano in the state of Morelos, and the snow-capped cone, often trailing a plume of steam and ash, looms over everything. In the middle of town stands the sixteenth-century church and former convent of San Juan Bautista, founded by Dominican friars in the decades after the Spanish conquest. Its cloister has some remarkable murals, painted in muted reds and blacks, showing saints and friars of the order. It is one of the fourteen monasteries on the slopes of Popocatépetl that were added to the World Heritage list in 1994 as a group.
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 76 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
about 154 km into the recorded legs you reach Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio. Next is back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th.
4. back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Temple and Former Convent of Saint Michael. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Temple and Former Convent of Saint Michael to Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th
Temple and Former Convent of Saint Michael → Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th is 76 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th to Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio
Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th → Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio is 78 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio to back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th
Temple and Former Convent of the Assomptio → back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th is 78 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th to Temple and Former Convent of Saint Michael
back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th → Temple and Former Convent of Saint Michael is 77 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.