El Granadillo, Las Brisas Cascada

While on route to deliver school supplies – http://tinyurl.com/5k6wkx  – a few days ago, we decided to take “the path less traveled” and visit a waterfall less advertized and NEVER visited by our season guide.  We traveled on a dirt/gravel road through several villages up the mountains above Huatulco for about an hour and one half before we saw the above sign very close to our goal.

We soon arrived at a rope across the road where a small girl, to whom we had previously given school school supplies, charged us each 50 pesos (excluding our guide and his son) to pass and go down a fairly steep, well graded mountain switchback road until we reached a parking area with a shelter house and restrooms.  The same girl wanted to sell us coffee as we were leaving.  I think someone should hire her to run their business! 

We left the car secured and traveled briefly down through a path in a cornfield to reach the area of a mountain stream.  See next photo of my spouse and the son’s guide, Miguel, working their way through the cornfield.

At first, when we got into the mountain ravine and began to follow it up stream, it didn’t seem like we were going to see very much.  Oh, we saw a small stream and some water coming from springs along the mountain side, but that was about it.  But then we saw a mountain pool that we could look right down to the bottom of because it was so clear.

More photos are just a click away —

El Refugio — Coffee Farm Retreat

We traveled to Pluma Hidalgo in the mountains above “old” Santa Marie Huatulco yesterday and discovered a hotel on a coffee farm that is modest in price and offers a retreat from the world.  We met the current owner of the farm, Medardo Rodriguez Pérez, who told us the land has been in the family since 1725.

Silversard, Medardo Rodriguez Pérez, and MsSardo

The Hotel, named “El Refugio,” is place for people to spend three days to two weeks in contemplation, bird watching, hiking, and study.  It could also be used as a “conference” site for a modest group of people serious about generating results in a short period of time.  The hotel has 25 nice rooms with modern private bathrooms, a spacious conference room, a large restaurant, and a deck with a wonderful view of the mountains above Old Santa Marie Huatulco.  If you find yourself in some trouble generating the solutions you need for yourself, your family, or your company, there is even a chapel for you to use as a “first or last” resort

Chapel on the Grounds

More photos are just a click away —

Pluma Hidalgo — Day Tripping

Pluma Hidalgo, an organic coffee growing community, is a nice “day trip” through Old Santa Maria Huatulco, across a bridge, and up the mountains. The road is excellent as seen in the above photo.

On route, one can stop in Old Santa Maria Huatulco and visit their church building, cemetery, and museum. Then leaving town, you travel past beautiful scenery, including a waterfall or two, until you arrive at the mountain top village of Pluma Hidalgo. The next photo shows the community perched on top of a mountain and engulfed in rain clouds. It was the only time it has ever rained while we were “in Huatulco” and we had to go into the clouds to get wet!

If you want to see what we found in Pluma Hidalgo, go to “Huatulco Photo +” page on this Blog and check out our new page. But, I will tell you in advance . . . we could not find one coffee bean in the entire village. You can also get to Pluma Hidalgo by clicking here — http://huatulcoparadise.wordpress.com/pluma-hildago-day-trip/ If you have a few photos to illustrate a day trip, e-mail to me please with a brief description or descriptively labeled files to – Silversard@Genuine-Tourist.com/