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Hierve el Agua Access Improved as of March, 2011 March 27, 2011 08:18AM | Registered: 14 years ago Posts: 11 |
As of the third week of March, 2011, access to Hierve el Agua has improved dramatically, almost to pre-dispute levels. You can get right to San Lorenzo Albarradas using the brand new highway, with a bit of ingenuity and circumventing a couple of little blockades. You get a preview of what the new highway will be like once finished and opened to the coast.
There is no longer a manned toll gate at the San Lorenzo cemetery. The only glitch is that there is still a chain up at the approach to the site, at San Isidro Roaguia, meaning that you must leave your car and either walk the 15 minutes, or try to get a pickup or taxi to take you for a small fee. On the return it's pretty easy to convince a resident or even the police to take you back to your car for a bit of money.
If tour companies or drivers say that there is no access to the site, they are wrong. Worse case scenario is the Xaaga back route up the mountain. But it's worth using the new highway to San Lorenzo, or if you're reluctant, then the old highway 190 to the San Lorenzo cut-off. For those who are unfamiliar with the roads up there, it's perhaps easiest to go via Xaaga, but for others with a bit more adventure, give the new highway a try - at your own risk because of continuing landslides (once the rainy season approaches), and having to cross a couple of man-made barriers otherwise precluding using the new highway.
Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast
[www.oaxacadream.com]
There is no longer a manned toll gate at the San Lorenzo cemetery. The only glitch is that there is still a chain up at the approach to the site, at San Isidro Roaguia, meaning that you must leave your car and either walk the 15 minutes, or try to get a pickup or taxi to take you for a small fee. On the return it's pretty easy to convince a resident or even the police to take you back to your car for a bit of money.
If tour companies or drivers say that there is no access to the site, they are wrong. Worse case scenario is the Xaaga back route up the mountain. But it's worth using the new highway to San Lorenzo, or if you're reluctant, then the old highway 190 to the San Lorenzo cut-off. For those who are unfamiliar with the roads up there, it's perhaps easiest to go via Xaaga, but for others with a bit more adventure, give the new highway a try - at your own risk because of continuing landslides (once the rainy season approaches), and having to cross a couple of man-made barriers otherwise precluding using the new highway.
Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast
[www.oaxacadream.com]
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Re: Hierve el Agua Access Improved as of March, 2011 May 18, 2011 11:44AM | Registered: 14 years ago Posts: 63 |
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Re: Hierve el Agua Access Improved as of March, 2011 June 13, 2011 08:34AM | Registered: 14 years ago Posts: 11 |
Well, things are forever changing at Hierve el Agua. As of June, 2011, there is once again a toll booth as you leave San Lorenzo Albarradas, the final leg on the trip to Hierve el Agua using the "good" route. It's only 10 pesos, but prospective visitors should be aware so they're not taken by surprise. On the other hand, you no longer have to walk in the last half mile or so. The blockade just outside the site has been removed, and it's clear sailing (driving) right up to the gateway at Hierve el Agua. Yes, the usual 20 pesos per person fee still applies.
There's one other new development which is noteworthy. Based on a conversation I had with a representative of a private developer up there in June, it appears that there may be a joint effort between the private developer, and the state and federal governments, to complete the new construction and make the site functional as a resort. Those who have been following developments will recall that there is a series of new, fancy restaurant installations around a new, large swimming pool, completed about two years ago. The project was then abandonned.
Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast
[www.oaxacadream.com]
There's one other new development which is noteworthy. Based on a conversation I had with a representative of a private developer up there in June, it appears that there may be a joint effort between the private developer, and the state and federal governments, to complete the new construction and make the site functional as a resort. Those who have been following developments will recall that there is a series of new, fancy restaurant installations around a new, large swimming pool, completed about two years ago. The project was then abandonned.
Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast
[www.oaxacadream.com]
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