Barranca del Cobre

Travel Tip no. 1 (in an occasional series)

If you find yourself sitting near the rear of a coach with a stinking chemical toilet, for 12 hours or so, a dab of camphor lip-balm under the nose will help to mask the offensive odour.

So this is our progress to date. We last left you in La Paz, which was the first really warm place we managed to get to, and a great place to spend a couple of days chilling out on white sand/turquoise ocean beaches. But if your eyesight is good enough, you should be able to see how far we have managed to come since then.

Taking a detour from our urge to travel South, we headed over to the mainland and took the famous Copper Canyon railway to Creel. This was something special - 20 canyons carved by 6 rivers, collectively dwarfing the Grand one. And they built a railway over the top of it - now largely used by tourists like us, and running to a very approximate timetable.

The most awesome view was probably our first glimpse of the hidden depths. We had departed at 6am, on a scratch of sleep, and the journey so far was interesting if not stunning. Giant cacti, numerous shacks and savannah-style landscapes. Suddenly, the rocky wall to our right fell away, revealing a glorious shimmering lake several hundred metres below, surrounded by greenery. Two flocks of bird chose that moment to take flight over the water, conjuring a breathtaking hidden world beneath us. So we took a picture of it.

Unfortunately, the windows were both dirty and reflective, and you cant capture that kind of thing. Still, you get the idea. We passed another 5 or 6 hours enjoying this kind of splendour, before stopping in the mountain town of Creel.

Creel is a popular stop-off for travellers, and we had a lovely time staying in a Cabana and cooking our evening meals on a wood-fired oven. Baked potatos and onions, with cream cheese and salad. Yum.

Since then we have mostly been travelling - had a cup of coffee in Chihuahua and then overnighted to the mining town of Zacetacas, which is where we now find ourselves. Next stop Mexico city.

Thanks for all your comments and good wishes. We are missing home, and are occasionally weary of Quesedillas and Cervezas. But we are also having a wonderful time. We still feel a little like tourists doing tourist things, but as we travel south and hit the likes of Guatemala (hopefully by riverboat) and Ecuador, this should start to feel more like the adventure we came here for. The graduation from the safety of Seattle, to the US-dominated Baja California, and now to the heart of Mexico has been tangible, and welcome.