Thursday, January 1, 2009

Grutas Cacahuamilpa

On New Years Eve Day Norma was trying to get over a chest and sinus cold so Hector and his 14 year old daughter, Charlotte, decided to take me on a little sightseeing trip to the very impressive but little known (outside of Mexico) Cacahuamilpa Caverns in the neighbouring State of Guerrero.

These caves are the result of an underground river changing course many millions of years ago in the Cretaceous and Jurassic Periods. Left dry but with constant minor infiltration of surface water, huge stalactites, stalagmites and columns formed. The part of these caverns open to the public extend over two kilometres into the mountain, accessed by a concrete walking path. these caves are much larger, higher and wider than anything I have ever seen! The ceilings of some of the chambers are over eighty metres high. One of these Chambers was the scene of a Pavariotti & Bocelli Concert that would have been amazing to see and hear.

Less than half of the cavern is open to the public with the rest being reserved for scientific study. These caverns were discovered in the early 1800’s and were declared a National Park in 1936. Constant improvements have been made since then.

It was a long two kilometre walk into the cavern and an equally long walk back that felt like uphill both ways. On the way in there was a Zip Line set up that was 100 meters long and 50 meters high! As soon as Charlotte saw it, she wanted to try it. She was a little nervous as they were buckling her into her harness but, being the tough girl that she is, she gritted her teeth and went for it. While she was preparing, her dad and I rushed over to the landing area to get some photos.

It was a wonderful day for me and once again I thank our Mexican friends for their hospitality in showing us some of their beautiful country, parts that I would be unlikely to discover on my own. The photos do not do the Caverns justice. Slow shutter speeds resulted in blurred photos and washed out colours.

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