Spotlight on Mexico’s Chihuahua State

The director of a tour operator in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua says the famed Grand Canyon of the southwestern United States doesn’t measure up against northern Mexico’s Copper Canyon.

In fact, the Copper Canyon is “four times larger than the Grand Canyon,” Juan Rodriguez told a Thursday Toronto gathering.

Train trips along the canyon that cross some 86 bridges are offered and Rodriguez suggested a four-night itinerary that he said would showcase both dramatic scenery and area culture, including area Indians who “are very nomadic” and are great runners, sometimes competing in 100-mile running races in the United States.

“It’s not just a trip to see the canyon. There’s a lot to do,” Rodriguez said of the trip, adding stops allow for the likes of zip-lining – including a zipline that the Guinness Book of World Records has declared the longest zipline in the world – and mountain biking.

The trip reaches heights of some 2,200 metres.

Rodriguez said the train matches Amtrak standards and has bar and dining cars, along with a bilingual staff.

Pictured are Susana Moreno of the Mexico Tourism Board, Rodriguez, Bonnie Eccles of Moreno Travel and Ethel Hansen Davey of Uniglobe.