CONFESSIONS OF A SADDLE TRAMP
( OR CONFESIONES DE SADDLE TRAMP )
the caballos , then hike our way through a waterfall of loose rock of every shape and size to a small hollow capped in crystals . A cave inaccessible by any other route – legally at least . A miniature version of the famous Cueva de Cristal in Naica . Across the river , cars slowly wind their way along Park Route 12 as travelers visit Boquillas Canyon on the US side .
How long have you been riding ? I asked our guide , Chalo . My whole life , he says . We lean against the limestone walls and slide to a seat for a short break , feasting on the warmth around us . Paying respects to the place itself . To the hardworking horses and burros kneedeep in tourists , the restaurants keeping us full , and the shifting sands working their way through rock and scrub to muddy this incredible river . But mostly to the people of Boquillas — proud of their town and their way .
And it ’ s a common theme here , not just in Boquillas del Carmen but throughout the region . An area where people once passed freely across the river , family and land on either side . Full of ranches , wax mines and impassible trails . The caballos , burros and vaqueros mingling with ranchers and homesteaders along the Big Bend , building a life where only a fourlegged hooved animal could have gone before .
Returning to town , we weave our
18 Cenizo Spring 2023