Mexico’s Magic Circle: Meet the Temperate Forest Ecosystem
Mexico has five big ecosystems and they just happen to converge inside what I call the “Magic Circle” around Guadalajara, an area that many people refer to as Western Mexico.
I live in a mile-high oak and pine forest just outside Guadalajara, which puts me in the Temperate Forest Ecosystem. The many foreigners living around Lake Chapala reside in the Arid and Semi-arid Scrubland Ecosystem with flora, fauna, and weather conditions quite different from mine. Communities located northeast of Guadalajara reside in the Grasslands, consisting of mostly flat prairie land while people located along the Pacific Coast are in two other very different, Tropical Ecosystems.
This means the inhabitants of Guadalajara can reach any one of Mexico’s ecosystems after only a few hours of driving.
It also means that people interested in moving to Western Mexico can literally pick the climate of their choice to live in.
Here I will focus on just one of these ecosystems: the Temperate Forest zone which—in Western Mexico—stretches from northern Jalisco to Michoacán, skirting the Lake Chapala area.
The altitude in this area ranges from 2,000 to 3,400 meters (6,500-11,000 feet), which automatically assures you of cool nights (but sunny days) throughout most of the year, with never a need for air conditioning.
Living in the Temperate Forest Ecosystem
I look out the window and see nothing but tall stately pines and oak trees. Beautiful squirrels with big movie-star eyes frolic in the branches all day long. Through the window, I hear Pavarotti, the blue mockingbird that comes to visit (and eat fruit) several times a day. Pavarotti has an ever-changing repertoire of around seven short “songs” including such sounds as a cat's meow and a car alarm. More elegant is the enchanting song of the clarín (brown-backed solitaire) which to me sounds like three flutes being played simultaneously. Less elegant—to say the least—is the cry of a red-headed acorn woodpecker: “Pirata! Pirata! Pirata!” It shouts, telling its friends it has found the plate of peanuts hanging from a guava tree outside my door.
I step outside. Underfoot there is not grass, but a carpet of pine needles. The air is clean and cool. Yes, it's midday in mid-August and I'm wearing a sweater. The rest of the world is sweltering from heat and humidity, but not me, for my forest is a little over a mile high. I take a deep breath, “Ahhhh ¡Viva el Bosque Templado! Long live the Temperate Forest!”
Possums, foxes, and gooey mangos
The Temperate Forest is home to white-tailed deer, ringtails, peccaries, and even a few pumas, but the only wild animals residing in my backyard are tlacuaches (possums). As for the front yard, it was regularly visited for years by three gray foxes who came—in utter silence—every night after sunset to devour a plate of fruit put there by my wife. Their favorite treat, we soon learned, was a gooey, overripe mango. The next morning all we would find was the stone, spotlessly clean.
Sweet Water Ranch
If you don’t live in this area but want to get a feel for the Temperate Forest Ecosystem, I suggest you pay a visit to Rancho Ecoturistico Agua Dulce, a recreational area and campground inside Jalisco’s Bosque la Primavera, the huge pine and oak forest located immediately west of Guadalajara, home to 742 species of plants, 200 of birds and 59 species of mammals.
Agua Dulce means sweet water and is named for a river born inside the campsite. Its water is cool and delicious to drink and the shallow pool where it bubbles to the surface is a favorite place for children to frolic.
In the center of the Rancho you have a tall watchtower giving you an excellent view of the surrounding forest.
From Agua Dulce, you can wander through the woods where you will come upon huge, bizarrely shaped rocks known as goblins, which were formed 95,000 years ago when what is now the Primavera forest exploded in a Yellowstone-type volcanic eruption.
If you wander far enough, you will come to a very different river, el Río Salado whose water—in contrast to that of Agua Dulce—is warm and highly mineralized. Big rocks in the Salty River create swirling water and foam. Sit for a soak in this natural Jacuzzi and I guarantee you will soon forget all your worldly problems.
Hiking in the crater of Tequila Volcano
Tequila Volcano is relatively easy to visit if you have a high-clearance vehicle. An 18-kilometer drive takes you from one ecosystem to another as you climb to 2642 meters (8668 feet) where you can park and hike into one of the most beautiful craters on earth.
Hissing fumaroles and a stunning view
Ceboruco Volcano is located in Nayarit along the highway to Puerto Vallarta. The road to the top is pleasant and well-maintained and you are likely to see a few roadrunners along the way. At last you will come to a flat, grassy place—perfect for camping—with great hissing fumaroles. At the peak, there is a scenic trail where you can appreciate the bizarre beauty of green meadows meeting stark walls of rough lava, as you hike to one of seven dramatic craters.
And the view from the top of Ceboruco Volcano: simply stunning!
Yes we have snow… if you come on the right day
El Nevado de Colima is Jalisco’s highest peak at 4,237 meters (13,900 feet) and if you are lucky, you may find it covered with snow, as the name implies. Apart from magnificent views, you can wander about in gloriously beautiful forests with the tallest trees you could ever wish for.
Tequila and raicilla
This area is, of course, Tequila territory. Besides the popular tours to the town of Tequila itself, you can go exploring the hidden valleys of Amatitán, where you will find the ruins of the first tabernas, with brewing tanks carved into living rock . If you are adventurous, head into the hills north of Atenguillo to watch people making raicilla the ancient way. Here you can try your hand at pounding juicy agave piñas in a trough carved from a huge tree trunk!
Making raicilla the traditional way
The Guachimontones
Almost as popular as a tequila tour is a visit to the Guachimontones. This is a local name for the circular pyramids built all over West Mexico 2,000 years ago. Not just mounds, these are touted as the world’s only monuments in the form of concentric circles based on mathematical formulas. “Birdmen” probably flew from ropes tied to poles atop the pyramids while crowds danced around them, arm in arm.
Hunt for haciendas
Most of West Mexico’s Temperate Forest area was agriculturally productive in colonial times. This means that if you wander into the tiniest pueblito, you will almost always find the remains of a hacienda. Sometimes it may have been transformed into a cultural center, sometimes restored to its former glory. The “Hacienda Hunters” of Ajijic have been visiting these fascinating old buildings for years and still have not run out of new ones to explore. One of my favorites is Hacienda el Carmen, built in the 16th century by Carmelite monks and today transformed into the most beautiful boutique hotel spa you could ever hope to see. It’s located just an hour and a half from Guadalajara.
Mines: gold silver and obsidian
Everywhere in these hills are mines. The most widespread are obsidian mines: even today, Jalisco ranks fourth for obsidian deposits, worldwide. The obsidian comes in around 20 colors, with rainbow the most popular. Usually, where there are obsidian mines, there are also ancient workshops where you can find discarded blades and tools by the bushel.
As for gold and silver mines, a fascinating site to visit is the “ghost town” of El Amparo which produced 138,597 kilograms of silver between 1924 and 1931, plus impressive quantities of gold, lead, and copper.
Guachinango is another mining town noted for its shimmering, sparkling, white church, covered with hundreds of thousands of pieces of broken porcelain plates and saucers.
Magic towns
And then, of course, there are the mountain towns, surrounded by pine trees, with narrow, winding streets that simply exude charm. Many of them are now designated Pueblos Mágicos (Magical Towns). Mazamitla, San Sebastian del Oeste and Tapalpa are among the very best, all of them truly deserving of their magical status.
Communities near Guadalajara
If the Temperate Forest sounds like the environment you’d like to call home, you may want to investigate communities just outside Guadalajara, like Ciudad Bugambilias, Rancho Contento, or Pinar de la Venta. You will need a working knowledge of Spanish to live there but that will also serve you well as you explore the many attractions of the Magic Circle around Guadalajara.
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