Oaxaca

[LeeLau]

We're spending a few days in Oaxaca before a bike trip with @oaxacabikeexpeditions .

The city, the food, the people, it's variety, culture and beauty are everything we hoped it would be.

Explicit mentions for the staff at the Hotel Victoria, tours by Oaxaca Dreams (Eloy and Luis), Oaxaca by Locals (Fanny and Carlos), Continental Istmo (Zenon and Israel). All of them educated us, inspired curiosity and wonder, showed us the depth of the region's history/culture and, a good time

[LeeLau]

I made a Google maps album of places to eat, pastry shops, Gelato shops, ice cream places etc in Oaxaca. Courtesy of local boy Sharon's friend Pablo.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Zaop3agLKNnLGeu57

Some notes

Ok lunch - 120 pesos at rest
Dinner- 220 pesos at rest.

Maybe 25% less at street food

High end lunch 300 pesos
Dinner 600 pesos

So prices are 30- 50% of Canada prices.

Groceries cheaper. Local mercado wet market you eat 50% of Ok restaurant. And wet market is close to Centro so can walk everywhere

Pastelaria not as good as Peru. As good as Guatemala which is as good as Honduras. Get fresh baked goods in the morning is best

Buy polystyrene cooler from Oxxo. Buy ice from stores and buy 10 ltr water. Saves lots of money. Beer is cheaper than Coke. Fruit juices is cheapest

Oh and local IPAs are expensive. But Sharon is happy!!!!!

[rideit]

Is your toe-fungus happy when Sharon is happy?

Asking for a friend. (Looks fabulous, can’t wait to trade notes on trails!)

[LeeLau]

Is your toe-fungus happy when Sharon is happy?

Asking for a friend. (Looks fabulous, can’t wait to trade notes on trails!)

We've just ridden the 1st day which is the harder blue trails.

The outfit is very professional. OBE is punctual with staff being good at handling groups.

They have a lead and tail both with radios and first aid and stuff to fix bikes. Good at telling guests what is coming up without being overbearing. Also fast and able to lead me into little gap jumps and also assess people's skill level. Alexis and Jorge Ivan were the guides for the 1st day.

Trails are well built. Some are purpose built. Some are takeovers or maintenance of hiking or animal trails. We rode the shorter higher elevation trails from approx 3000 - 2700m in thr Parque Ixtepeji area NE of Oaxaca proper which are maintained by Locals (including OBE) with permission of the communes. To me, it feels good to support trailbuilders.

Trails are on Trailforks. They are reachable via rougher (but 2WD) vehicles. We shuttled with another Alexis as dedicated driver and also a photographer. They are narrow, true singletrack carpeted with pine needles. This is the tail end of the rainy season so these higher trails have tackiness, little dust and have good traction. The guides progressed us from fast benchcut, then trails with smaller to bigger jumps then to some with steeps and roots.

[climberevan]

Most excellent. Thanks for the report!

[criscam]

Nice! That area was prob my favorite on a recent trip down there. Although i couldn't muster the courage to hit that gap.

[MakersTeleMark]

Simply awesome. Great idea with the google map.

[zion zig zag]

Simply awesome. Great idea with the google map.

I have a google map with recommendations shared to me by the folks at TSN (OBE competition) if anyone is interested.

Curious where you ride the next few days and your thoughts of dropping down into different elevation zones.

[MakersTeleMark]

I have a google map with recommendations shared to me by the folks at TSN (OBE competition) if anyone is interested.

Curious where you ride the next few days and your thoughts of dropping down into different elevation zones.

Post it up!

[zion zig zag]

Post it up!

https://maps.app.goo.gl/VSCPpV27o2jDhMhi8?g_st=iw

[raisingarizona13]

Rad. I want to live my last years there.

[Dromond]

Did you stay in the same place the whole time, or stay in a specific spot for the riding days?

[LeeLau]

https://maps.app.goo.gl/VSCPpV27o2jDhMhi8?g_st=iw

That's a good list. We went to Alfonsinas, also Ancestral Cochina in Xochimilco..

Mine is really light on bars and drinking as I don't drink bit heavier on ice cream and bakeries.

Dromond. We're staying at Hotel Victoria the whole time. OBE price for big big double room is $ 65/night and pretty nice even by Us/Can standards. That includes breakfast ( decent breakfast is $10). The breakfast is buffet style and has incredible variety. The best of any hotel I've stayed at. Every day I've tried something different and they keep rotating. It's so big I don't eat lunch till 2.

Has a pool which is nice to retreat in midday heat.

Location is good. 20mins walk to Centro if able-bodied. 10 mins to Xochimilco. There are places closer to Centro and tons of Airbnb. $50 will get you an OK (clean, but not luxury) place.

You can save money elsewhere. Example. Water is 25 pesos for small 250ml bottle. We paid 32 pesos for a big 10l bottle and have used one a week and keep refilling water bottles.

Polystyrene cooler from OXXO (like a 7-11) for 25 pesos. Bag of ice also 25 pesos and lasts 2 days and beer/pop is much cheaper from shops than buying at bars/hotels.

A big loaf of Pan Cazuela is 50 pesos and is perfect for mid-day food and cheaper than lunch but I admit to usually splurging on lunch and big juice for 200 pesos even after the food.

Admittedly much of this is moot because with OBE you get lunch and dinner with your day

[raisingarizona13]

Eggs and enchiladas Lee? I gotta get down there.

[LeeLau]

Oaxaca day 2 with Oaxaca Bike Expeditions

Longer laps in Parque Ixtepeji with 2550m descending. Some laps of 1000m+ descending a variety of bio geo climactic zones. Amazing that we spend so much time above 2500m where, in BC, Canada we would be standing on a glacier. Instead we're on pine needled loamy forest trail.

Again we had the pleasure and privilege of being shown around by Alexis and Chicquis, both of which build and maintain trails in the region

If you had to twist my arm I'd say that I appreciate the quality of the higher trails which are shorter and spend more time in the subalpine. They're routed with such attention and brakeless, chainless, pumpable fun, it's inspirational. The longer trails with more vertical are also really fun but many other regions and countries have them. The higher elevation Oaxacan trails are rivalled only by BC singletrack in quality imo

[rideit]

Have you had Chilaquiles?
I’m eating here tomorrow!

[LeeLau]

Have you had Chilaquiles?
I’m eating here tomorrow!

Yes! Three varieties at the Hotel. Verde, Rojas, con queso

[zion zig zag]

I recognize your guide from his GG bike. We ran into him a few weeks ago with a group. Looks like a large (mixed) group? I even see a hard tail bike, are the skill sets wildly disparate? Is there much waiting with a group that large or does the tail guide enable everyone to set a decent pace?

[LeeLau]

I recognize your guide from his GG bike. We ran into him a few weeks ago with a group. Looks like a large (mixed) group? I even see a hard tail bike, are the skill sets wildly disparate? Is there much waiting with a group that large or does the tail guide enable everyone to set a decent pace?

The guide is Alvaro Cabrella aka Chiquis! He does a lot of trailwork and is a good rider. When we went down LLano Careta he told me to take the direct steep lines and was yelling encouragement plus showing me the 'secret' lines. We bonded over trailbuilding!

The guy with a hardtail is my friend who's bike packing so he brought just his hardtail and is riding two days with us. Usd 150/ day to join each day with OBE includes snacks, your ( big) lunch, and all transport and beer. He's actually a former pro roadie and strong af so by no means the slowest rider.

Our group could all ride but there is diverse skillset in that some of us are used to 1000m+ continuous dh and some aren't. With that we would do a few stops so it would be less exhausting for less experienced riders. With lead and tail guide not an issue.

With that said I discouraged friends who were more xc and less steeps experience from coming on our group. There are OBE groups who are more chill (ie they do more of the higher elevators lower angle trails) but that isn't our group.

[LeeLau]

Chiquis says hi! Some more food pics

[garyfromterrace]

That's some solid shoulder season work Lee! Looks amazing, thanks for posting.

[LeeLau]

Oaxaca Bike Expedition Day 3. Mil Rios aka Sendero Schki Bvag. Just the one run on this half day as we first took care of (i) bike maintenance, and (ii) jugo mandarina.

Then off the Mil Rios which is less often ridden but which has been in the Trans Sierra Noete enduro. 1200m downhill approximate with an easy 130m of climbing. Fast, fast, fast. Tons of cheap air. Berms, lips, rootballs, rock ledges to send as speed. Then some rocky, pumpable, jank downhill followed by a shady canyon ride out to the road. Very acceptable

[bennymac]

Drooling

[LeeLau]

Best "normal" place we've eaten in Oaxaca courtesy of Oaxaca Bike Expeditions where dinner is included. Fast, good, massive and not bad price.

Tlayudas Combinado is massive and 165 pesos ie $12 Cad. Three different fresh salsa and huge glass of fresh lemonade

[LeeLau]

WeareOne 152 bike at Oaxaca