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Pictures of Paricutin, Mexico
 

Paricutin is a famous volcano that popped up in a farmer's field in 1943 and continued to grow until 1952 to form a large cinder cone. Collateral flowing lava covered the valley and inundated adjacent villages of San Salvador and San Juan. The flow was slow enough so no one was hurt but a lot of property was destroyed. The trip to the summit of the volcano has become a popular daytrip from Uruapan.

The town that services this attraction way up on the main road is called Angahuan. This Purepeche village has a very different feel than other Mexican towns. Here horses are as numerous as cars. When I arrived shortly after 8 AM on a Saturday, women were sweeping the cobblestone streets with home-made stick brooms.

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You can see Paricutin in the distance from the road as you arrive. Here is it below the skyline as you enter the Village of Angahuan. It is really a lot further away than it looks. This is the viewing area from Los Cabañas tourist complex where there are bunks and cabins. There were 3 bus loads of kids when I got here at 8:30 AM. It is a relatively easy walk to the partially buried (approx 50 feet of lava) Templo San Juan. I was surprised to find lots of people around the church. A tent restaurant is nearby where you can buy drinks and food.

This is the point where you leave the horse trail an proceed across a very difficult lava field trail for at least an hour before you start climbing the cone. Footing is treacherous at best. This is one of several lava ridges you have to scale before you get to the base of the cone. When I got to the cone, it was far too steep for me so I made the very difficult retreat. The square with the church in Angahuan. Horsemen will talk to you all along your walk to and from the visitors' complex. My amigo here happily engaged me in conversation.



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