The Meseta de Cacaxtla, in the Mexican state of Sinaloa, lies just north of the Tropic of Cancer and the bustling coastal resort city of Mazatlan. With ocean beaches, fresh water streams and ponds, estuaries and tropical deciduous forest, it is a prime birder's destination. A road provides access to a protected beach, Playa las Labradas, where a small museum has been constructed next to the petroglyph beach.
La Meseta de Cacaxtla Natural Reserve
Declared a natural reserve in 2000, La Meseta de Cacaxtla consists of more than 125,000 acres of tropical deciduous forest and brush. This is one of the largest protected areas in Mexico, and is a broadly diversified ecosystem, with shoreline, estuaries, tidepools, fresh water streams and ponds. More than 200 species of resident, endemic and migratory birds can be found here, making it a first class birding site.
The primary road through the Meseta leads to a museum and a short trail to Playa las Labradas, a rocky beach that is open to the public and covered with thousand year old petroglyphs.
Playa las Labradas Petroglyph Beach and Museum
The museum, founded in 2007, is a small thatched-roof building with some of the finer examples of the Toltec petroglyphs. A series of large illustrated displays provide interpretive information in both Spanish and English. The displays explain that, although the rock carvings are thought to have ceremonial and religious significance, there is no consensus about their use or meaning. A caretaker is on site, and a small fee (10 pesos, or about 75 cents US) is charged for entry to the museum.
The Mexican state of Sinaloa has many sites with similar examples of unexplained prehispanic art, and natives from many diverse cultures are known to have created petroglyphs. These petroglyphs (from Greek: petro, rock and glyph, engraving) were made with stone chisels and hammers. There are approximately 300 volcanic rock petroglyphs on the Playa las Labradas beach, and some of them are in excellent condition, considering that they are thought to be between 1,000 and 2,000 years old. Many of them, however, have been weathered and worn due to the salt water environment and pedestrian traffic.
There are several tours out of Mazatlan that visit the petroglyphs at Cacaxtla. Prices range between $30-$50 US per person, but tourists with an automobile can easily visit the site. The drive from Mazatlan is less than an hour, and the area is safe to visit without a guide.
Getting to La Meseta de Cacaxtla and Playa las Labradas from Mazatlan
The entrance to La Meseta Natural Preserve is about 30 miles from Mazatlan's northern section, the Cerritos beach area. Driving north on the Mazatlan/Culiacan Maxpista toll road (Highway 15), look for the Kilometer 50 sign, which is about 16 miles north of the Marmol toll booth. Just past the Kilometer 50 sign, turn left at the "Retorno" (return) sign, the only opportunity to cross the median.
Caution should be exercised crossing the median, since the speed limit for oncoming traffic is 110 Kilometers per hour (66 miles per hour). A wide shoulder is on the opposite side of the traffic lanes, with a five-foot tall brass spiral sculpture, signifying the petroglyphs. There is a dirt road at the north end of this shoulder which leads west into the preserve. In about a mile the road enters and passes through the small village of Chicayota, turning north (right) and paralleling railroad tracks on the left.
Just 2 tenths of a mile past the village, the road turns west again and crosses a stream bed below the railroad tracks. Follow the right fork of the road two and a half miles to the museum parking area, where a short trail also leads to the petroglyph-covered beach.
Las Barras de Piaxtla Near the Cacaxtla Petroglyphs
A small fishing village, Barras de Piaxtla, is only 5 miles north of the petroglyph beach. The village is also within the boundaries of La Meseta Natural Reserve, and is particularly good for birding. Excellent accommodations can be found here, at La Rosa de las Barras, a lodge with a beach house and 4 air-conditioned casitas. Las Barras is the village where petroglyph tour groups stop for lunch, at El Mirador restaurant.
Playa las Labradas is an Easy Self-Guided Day Tour from Mazatlan
Although guided tours are available to the petroglyph beach from Mazatlan, it is a safe and easy day trip for tourists with an automobile. Excellent birding within La Meseta de Cacaxtla, both on the road to the petroglyph beach and 5 miles north at Las Barras is another reason to visit the area with your own car.
Bob Bowers - A lifelong naturalist and amateur ornithologist, Bob's avocation is studying, photographing and writing about birds.
Join the Conversation