Temple and Former Convent of the Immaculat and Temple and Former Convent of Saint Mathhew
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
190 km
Riding-time estimate
3 h 30
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.
A 190 km round trip from Temoac - roughly 3 h 30 in the saddle. On the way it passes Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S, Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th, Temple and Former Convent of Saint Mathhew and back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 2,650 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Temple and Former Convent of the Immaculat
Zacualpan de Amilpas is a small town on the lower slopes of Popocatépetl in the state of Morelos, and its centre is dominated by a sixteenth-century convent built by Augustinian friars in the first decades after the Spanish conquest. The church and former convent of the Immaculate Conception belong to the group of early monasteries on the slopes of Popocatépetl that UNESCO listed in 1994, a chain of fortified religious houses that served as the base for the evangelisation of central Mexico.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Temple and Former Convent of the Immaculat is where the day begins. Next is Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S.
2. Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S
Popocatépetl is one of the highest volcanoes in North America, at about 5,400 metres, and it still smokes. From Mexico City on a clear winter day you can see the plume, and on the south side, in the state of Morelos, the foothills are dotted with the monasteries that the first Spanish friars built in the sixteenth century. They arrived in waves, Franciscans in 1524, Dominicans in 1526 and Augustinians in 1533, and in a few decades they converted and taught the people of the valleys, building fortress-like convents with open-air chapels, huge atria for crowds, and cloisters decorated with painted scenes. Eleven of them became a World Heritage group in 1994.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S comes up about 39 km into the recorded legs. Next is Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th.
3. 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
about 66 km into the recorded legs you reach Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th. Next is Temple and Former Convent of Saint Mathhew.
4. Temple and Former Convent of Saint Mathhew
In the green valleys south of Mexico City, on the slopes below Popocatépetl, sixteenth-century friars built a chain of fortress-like monasteries, and the church and former convent of San Mateo at Atlatlahucan is one of them. The Augustinians arrived in the 1530s, after the Spanish conquest, and set about converting the local Nahua population, building enormous, thick-walled churches with open-air chapels where crowds could attend mass in the courtyard. The group of fourteen early monasteries on the slopes of the volcano was listed by UNESCO in 1994, and the architecture is a rare sight: plain, defensive on the outside, but inside the cloister are murals painted in black and white by indigenous artists under the friars' direction.
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 sits at 105 km, about halfway. Next is back through Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S.
6. back through Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S comes up about 151 km into the recorded legs. Next is Temple and Former Convent of the Immaculat.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Temple and Former Convent of the Immaculat closes the day.
Leg by leg
Temple and Former Convent of the Immaculat to Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S
Temple and Former Convent of the Immaculat → Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S to Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th
Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S → Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th is 27 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 Saint Mathhew
Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th → Temple and Former Convent of Saint Mathhew is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Temple and Former Convent of Saint Mathhew to back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th
Temple and Former Convent of Saint Mathhew → back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th is 28 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 back through Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S
back through Temple and Former Convent of Saint John th → back through Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S to Temple and Former Convent of the Immaculat
back through Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the S → Temple and Former Convent of the Immaculat is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.