La Huasteca Potosina

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Ciudad Valles, Taninul and Xilitla, San Luis Potosí – the Huasteca
Posted by SurfMexico Editor

September 8, 2000 – Taninul Resort near Ciudad Valles to Xilitla, San Luis Potosí (the Huasteca) – continued from the Matamoros, Tamps. to Cd. Valles article.

After a hot and humid night, we awoke early in Taninul resort and took a walk around the gardens and interior of the hotel. The grounds were riddled in pebbled pathways and lined with mangrove-type trees and flowers. We visited the parrot cave next to the sulphur springs pool by day–the birds were much less in evidence in the daylight than they had been the evening before at dusk.

Taninul hotel grounds also host the Lariab Museum of Huastecan History. The museum consists of a series of small rooms displaying a good collection of ancient artifacts, as well as an outdoor area with several large steles (unfortunately undergoing deterioration because of the weather and exposure), a replica of a small living hut of the area, and a small zoo housing two wild cats and a crocodile pool. The largest cat (shown in the photo) spent its time while we were there rubbing against the wire mesh fence and emitting a deep and contented-sounding purr.

Leaving Taninul just after 11 a.m., we returned to Cd. Valles to resume our trip south on Highway 85. Again we passed through large and lushly irrigated fields and thick growth along the roadside. The hills rolled and we crossed numerous bridges over both small streams and larger rivers. Citrus orchards were will very frequent, and there were several other mineral hot springs and resorts along the route.

We turned off Highway 85 onto the road to the village of Tancanhuitz (also called Cd. Santos). The paved but narrow and windy road took us up above the valley. Tancanhuitz was a bustling little town stretched along the river, about one block wide and a couple of kilometers long. The locals sported colorful dress and most of the men carried woven straw shoulder bags.

From Tancanhuitz we took another side road up to the town of Huehuetlan, high up on the crest of a nearby mountain with tremendous views of the surrounding valleys. The town, when we visited it, with its church and wide esplanade, was very quiet, but the town is supposed to be a center of several important and colorful festivals during the year.

Returning to Highway 85, we carried on through La Escalera, where we stopped at a roadside stand selling pottery and fruit (including peaches!) The family running the stand was fascinated by the digital camera and its instant playback but disappointed that we weren’t able to leave them a copy of their photo. If anyone’s going that way, let us know so we can send it to them!

A short way down the highway to the south we came to Huichihuayan, and the Nacimiento del Rio Huichihuayan (birth of the Huichihuayan River). Here, the river bubbles cold and clear out of a small cave, forming a brilliant, turquoise-blue pool which a number of people were enjoying despite its temperature. There are camp shelters nearby, and children sell chongos (a milk-based sweet flavored with cinnamon) to the hungry.

Past Huichihuayan we turned onto Highway 120, leading even higher into the jungly mountains toward the town of Xilitla. Just before reaching the town is the turnoff marked “Las Pozas y Esculturas”. This is the fascinating realm created by Britain´s Edward James, who, in the 40s, decided to make Xilitla his home and constructed a fantastic garden in the jungle surrounding the falls and pools of Las Pozas, where amazing structures arise unexpectedly from the thick undergrowth, stairways and doors lead you to nowhere, and paths turn back upon themselves and then lose you completely. We spent a couple of fascinating hours wandering, exploring, being shocked, amused and astounded by this man´s unique vision.

We left Las Pozas as the sun was making its way behind the mountains, and proceeded into the town of Xilitla, high on the hill opposite. Xilitla has a wonderful view of the mountain called La Silleta, which from the town’s angle, looked to us like a great thumb sticking up into the sky, giving the thumbs-up to the whole area.

After winding around town a few minutes, we found ourselves at our final destination for the night: El Castillo, a house designed and built for Edward James by his architect, Plutarco Gastelum, now run as a very enjoyable and unusual guest house offering 7 distinct bedrooms with private baths, pool, lovely dining room, game room and library.

Tomorrow we´ll be continuing south through Tamuzanchale and on to Veracruz, the ruins at El Tajín and the Emerald Coast.