A lush jungle and an incredible view
In the shadow of Tequila Volcano

By John Pint

The gargantuan canyons west of Guadalajara, carved by the Santiago River, shelter lush valleys where semi-tropical vegetation flourishes all year round. The soil was enriched 65 million years ago by ash fall from nearby Tequila Volcano and on top of that, countless springs in the area pour forth an abundance of clean, cool water, even at the height of the dry season. The Santa Rosa Valley, located 40 kilometers northwest of Guadalajara, not only produces mangoes and papayas, it’s also a major source of electricity, thanks to a 61 megawatt dam on the Santiago River.

Until recently, a visit to this picturesque valley required a bone-jarring ride over a long cobblestone road connecting Amatitán to the dam. Recently, however, the road has been asphalted, suddenly turning isolated Santa Rosa Valley into a potential tourist attraction.

The tequila manufacturers must have known about the new road far in advance of everyone else, because they have already built a splendid mirador (lookout point) above the valley, complete with half a dozen giant, bilingual tablets reminding us that the blue tequila agave originated in this very barranca and describing the relationship of the valley to the earliest days of tequila distilling. It seems that the oldest known distilleries in this part of Mexico were located somewhere between Amatitán and the mirador, literally carved into a sheer canyon wall to take full advantage of gravity in the production of tequila. The process began at the highest elevation where the agave heads were baked in traditional pit ovens dug into the rock. On a lower level, a horse-driven mill crushed the cooked agave and the juice flowed through small channels to 40 fermentation wells carved into the rock. From there, the fermented juices flowed down to the distillation area.

After reading all about tequila and soaking up the gorgeous view from the mirador, you have several choices. One could be to drive 2.5 kilometers down to the village of Chome, park and take a stroll along the cobblestone road leading to Balneario La Mata. You’ll start off surrounded by a sea of blue agaves stretching off to the distant canyon walls. Then, suddenly you find yourself engulfed in a matrix of lush green foliage, a kind of tunnel into a jungle world that is at its very best in the rainy season. After 1.7 kilometers you arrive at the balneario where you can take a cool dip in the wonderful spring water that makes this valley such a paradise.

A second choice is to drive 8.7 kilometers down the newly paved road to a point overlooking the huge lake created by the dam, some 404 million cubic meters of badly contaminated water. To reach this spot, keep an eye out for a sign saying Subestación. This gets you onto a good quality cobblestone road. After only 1.6 kilometers, the road forks. Here you can park and walk uphill less than 200 meters to what could be called Lakeview Point. If the Santiago weren’t so horribly polluted, this beautiful lake could surely be turned into an outstanding recreational area.

A third choice would be to stick to the paved road from the mirador and go all the way down (about 10 kilometers) to a bridge crossing the river. From here it’s an eye-and-ear-popping drive up a spectacular canyon road leading to the really isolated town of El Salvador, but that’s another tale for another day.

How to Get There

Drive west out of town toward Nogales. When you reach the town of Amatitán, turn right just before the first overhead footbridge across the highway. This road is now signposted “El Salvador” and takes you straight to the mirador, nine kilometers to the north. Driving time from Guadalajara’s Periférico to the mirador is only about 45 minutes.