Bikepacking Routes

Looping out from Oaxaca's city centre to the mountainside settlement of San Pablo Quatro Venados, this dirt road overnighter uses a community-run eco-centre as its midway point, where camping, adobe-brick cabañas, and local fare are available. Bookended by the Zapotec archeological sites of Monte Alban and Atzompa and fluctuating between 1500m on the valley floor and 2800m in the Sierra Madre Sur, it's a dirt road route rich in history and biodiversity...

Complementing a growing body of shorter routes in the area, Meandros en Mitla is a three-day ramble through Oaxaca's Valles Centralles, connecting a series of dirt roads and trails between Oaxaca de Juárez and Hierve el Agua, a natural, waterfall-like rock pool formation with far-reaching views of the Sierra Norte. The route links some of the state's renowned culinary delights with Zapotec archeological sites, traditional markets, pottery workshops, and naturally dyed textiles, along with the world's stoutest tree...

Excursiones en Etla is a historical and cultural ramble complete with low-traffic rural terracerías, cross country mountain bike trails, delicious Oaxacan fare, a fabulous art centre, a brewery, traditional pottery workshops, and a Zapotec archeological site. If you're travelling from overseas and basing yourself in Oaxaca de Juárez, pair it with one of the longer routes on the site for an insight into the Etla Valley. Or, if you live in Mexico and are new to bikepacking, enjoy it as a standalone weekend ride with varied terrain, as well time on and off the saddle...