Years ago my friend Roy Sánchez told me about a wonderful place to camp and hike, hidden away deep in the misty mountains of San Sebastián del Oeste. “It’s called “Potrero de Mulas,” he said, “and the only hangup is that you have to cross 20 rivers to get there.”
Well, the name of the place (Mule Pasture) was not exactly enticing and the twenty river crossings suggested “high-clearance vehicle” to me, so Potrero de Mulas stayed on my back burner until last weekend when Roy invited me to join his family on a visit to this hidden jewel.
Behind his Land Cruiser, Roy pulls a little trailer which I can only describe as a Magician’s Trunk on Wheels. Out of it Roy can pull sleeping accommodations for six, a kitchen, fridge, table, chairs, stove, toilet, shower ... you name it. Along with this magic, I enjoyed the company of an adventurous Mexican family including, of course, a Grandma and a bouncing new baby quite happy to spend endless hours just playing with his toes.
Starting out in Guadalajara, we drove past Ameca, through Mascota and reached a little place called La Estancia after five hours. Here there’s a turnoff for San Sebastián, but we turned the opposite way onto a brecha heading west. Within a few moments, we crossed our first little stream. “Are there really 20 stream crossings?” I asked.
“Let’s count them!” replied the whole family in unison and would you believe it, during the next hour we counted not 20, but 30 streams, many of which were surely through the very same winding river,but we could never be sure. Suddenly we went through a gate and drove to the edge of a truly picturesque lagoon bordered by several beautiful cabins. We had arrived at the Mules’ Pasture.
To my surprise, the altitude was only 800 meters, far lower than San Sebastián. Indeed, it looked like we had arrived in the middle of a lush jungle. Here we met the caretaker, Enrique López, who told me that the Mules’ Pasture is quite large: 2,700 hectares. “Nine years ago,” said López, “the owner of this land, Engineer Alejandro Lovera, decided to build cabins alongside the lake and dedicate himself to conservation projects such as reforestation and the reintroduction of animals like white-tailed deer, peccaries, jaguars and pumas.”
We then drove off to a campsite called La Lagartija Azul (The Blue Lizard), where we found a clearing surrounded by low hills and tall trees. Inside the clearing were two wide, wooden platforms for pitching tents and a charming bathroom with a shower and clean toilets. To our surprise, there was also plenty of hot water!
Near the campsite there are fenced-in areas where you just might spot deer or jaguars and where you can’t help make friends with several peccaries which were obviously delighted to be with people. The Potrero has several UMAs, wildlife management permits aimed at giving a good home to animals which were previously someone else’s exotic pets.
Next to this camping area I found the trail head for a “Little Trek” called El Sendero del Arroyo de los Helechos. This Fern-Gully Walk is a 9.3-kilometer round trip but the trail starts out at 800 meters altitude and then takes you to a peak 1,500 meters above sea level where you’ll find yourself “above the clouds” and able to view Puerto Vallarta off in the distance. Such an extreme change of altitude, says a park sign, “requires great physical and mental effort, but your fatigue will be rewarded by the euphoria and personal satisfaction of having reached your goal.”
If that sounds like more than you want to chew, there’s also a much easier Interpretive Trail only 2.5 kilometers long, which takes you through a cloud forest (or mountain rain forest) and features five stations with signs explaining what you are seeing.
The Potrero seems to be a fine place for bird watching. Biologists have spotted over 70 kinds of birds there, including the Russet-crowned Motmot, the Lilac-crowned Amazon and the Orange-fronted Parakeet, of which I saw a large flock raising a wild and joyous ruckus.
At Potrero de Mulas you can rent a cabin for four with kitchenette for 1200 pesos or a six-person cabin for 1700. They also have a hostel or you can rent a platform, where ten people can pitch their tents, for 500 pesos. For more information, see Potrerodemulas.com.mx.
How to get there
Take Highway 15 west from Guadalajara toward Nogales. After 18 kilometers get onto Highway 70 and go past Ameca and Mascota toward Puerto Vallarta. About 35 kilometers northwest of Mascota, 20 meters before the turnoff for San Sebastián, turn left (at N20 46.247 W104 54.570) onto Calle Amapa in La Estancia. Follow this dirt road west for 11.3 kilometers, crossing over 30 small streams until you arrive at Potrero de Mulas (N20 45.045 W104 58.609). You’ll find a step by step route to this place on Wikiloc.com under Mascota to Potrero de Mulas. Driving time from Guadalajara: about six hours.