Madera (Chihuahua)

Madera (known also as Ciudad Madera) is a small town in the Northern Mexico state of Chihuahua. With a highland location in the Sierra Madre Occidental mountain range, the town's elevation of 2,112 meters gives it a pleasantly cool climate where dense pine forests thrive. These forests have been the source of the town's economic reliance on the lumber industry. A number of archaeological sites nearby contains remnants of the Anasazi (Mogollon culture).

Understand
Madera is a young town by Mexican standards, having been founded in 1906 to harvest lumber from area forests. During the Mexican Revolution it was occasionally used as an outpost by Pancho Villa's Division del Norte.

In September 1965, the town was the site of an armed insurrection by a leftist guerrilla group called Grupo Popular Guerrillero. The Mexican Army moved in quickly with paratroopers and regular army units. They moved to control strategic points and were able to put down the nascent rebellion.

By bus
From Chihuahua, Rápidos Cuauhtémoc operates five buses per day directly to Ciudad Madera. The 4-hour trip (280 km) costs M$600 and up.

Get around
The town is fairly compact and easily walkable, but it's a remote town and many natural attractions are some distance away via mountainous roads. Taxis are available in town and can be called by hotel staff. A taxi sitio is next to the Plaza Principal on Calle Primera.

See







 * Cuarenta Casas is another archaeological site about 40 km north of town. It is an old Anasazi (Mogollon culture) settlement with spectacular dwellings built into the cliff face with most of the home occupying caves in the rock wall. The site is thought to have been used as a military outpost for the protection of trade routes between Paquime and indigenous settlements in modern-day Arizona and New Mexico.

Do

 * Cavalcade: Madera is the starting point of the Cabalgata Binacional Villista in which Mexican horsemen recreate a historical ride across northern Chihuahua then cross the U.S.-Mexico border and ride to the Pancho Villa State Park in New Mexico, where they are joined by horsemen from the United States. The annual event occurs in March or April.

Go next

 * Chihuahua
 * Basaseachic Falls National Park
 * Paquime
 * Cumbres de Majalca National Park