Barranca de Huentitan

Guadalajara ends abruptly in the north, and where it ends the ground falls away six hundred metres into the Barranca de Huentitan - a section of the great Rio Santiago canyon system that puts wild country within a bus ride of a metropolis of five million. From the Mirador Independencia, the view runs along cliffs of layered volcanic rock to the river below and the Cerro del Chiquihuitillo opposite. The classic outing is the trail: a stone-paved path, laid partly in colonial times, switchbacking down through thorn forest and cactus to the old hydro works and the river, roughly seven kilometres round trip, taken by tapatios at dawn as the city's hardest free workout - the descent is easy, the ascent is a stair-climber that gains six hundred metres in full sun. Wildlife is high-desert scrub - hawks, lizards, the odd coati - and dawn is the hour for it. The zoo and the Selva Mágica park sit on the rim nearby, and the canyon continues east toward the Oblatos falls.

What you actually see

• The rim view - six hundred metres down from the mirador.
• The stone trail - the old paved switchbacks to the river.
• The Rio Santiago - the canyon floor and the old hydro works.
• The scrub forest - cactus, thorn trees and hawks.

When to go

November to April, starting at dawn - the return climb in midday heat is genuinely punishing and rescues do happen. Weekends bring runners and families to the upper sections.

Honest expectations

The climb back is the whole story: budget double your descent time, carry two litres of water per person, and turn back early if in doubt. The river below is polluted - this is a hiking canyon, not a swimming one. Go in company.

Nearby

The zoo, the Barranca de Oblatos falls and Guadalajara's centre are all on the same axis south.