Batopilas

Batopilas is an old gold and silver mining town with some 19th century architecture. The town is long and narrow as it follows the Rio Batopilas for about 3 miles. With a population of 5000 in its heyday, now it has about 1500 people, consisting of Mexican, Tarahumara, and Mestizos. At its peak (~1890) the mines were the wealthiest in the world paying around US$1 million in dividends per year. The hydroelectric facility was installed making this one of the first places to have electricity in North America. It was in use until 2 years ago. The original aquaduct still provides the local water supply. It was hot during the day, high 90's and cool at night, so for me the weather was perfect and the river water above the town was really nice to swim in. There was a dark side to the town that I will mention, afterall the purpose of this blog is to inform my family and friends about my travels. This is harvest season here.....marijuana harvest.....the Tarahumara Indians have been forced to grow marijuana on their lands by the Narcotraficantes....soooo....there was new money in town...(none of which the Tarahumaras got) which meant lots of brand new pickup trucks....cocaine and alcohol use was rampant. The first night we spent outside of town at a hacienda and heard gunshots (pistols and semi-automatics). Though as tourists we were really not in much danger, it was not a particularly pleasant place to be. We decided to move on down the road.