While we were delayed an additional week in Mazatlan, we connected with our friend Jerry, a local Eco Taxi driver we met last spring, for an inland tour. Jerry was born and raised in Mazatlan and is a certified tour guide. Jerry picked us up at the marina at 8:30am for a full day excursion into the foothills North East of Mazatlan between the ocean and the Sierra Madre mountain range. We visited the towns of El Quelite and La Noria, both entry points into the Sierra Madres, as well as a small tequila distillery, Los Osuna.
As we drove away from the ocean towards El Quelite, Jerry told us about the history of the area and how the French military came to the mountains to take control of the mining operation of gold, silver and iron ore. The Mexican army mounted an attacked and forced the French army to scatter into the hills to hide. The Laureanos, a group of Mexican “banditos” would hijack the wagon trains, steal the gold and silver and distribute it to the poor. As we listened to the history, we drove across the Tropic of Cancer through fields of grasses, cactus and corn until we reached El Quelite about an hour later. A small special town with a very big draw, El Meson De Los Laureanos – our breakfast stop.
We arrived in El Quelite and parked on the street just before the restaurant. Jerry tells us that locals come from all over the area to have a meal at El Meson De Los Laureanos, some driving as far as Culiacán further to the north. The restaurant is expansive with two levels of open air seating divided into sections by pillars, steps, turns, and plants with walls of framed artwork, murals, metal decor, historical photos, sculptures, flowers, hanging plants and bright paint. Every seat is cozy and welcoming, it was hard to choose. We arrived around 9:30am and picked a table on the ground level in a small courtyard. When we sat down we were served clay cups of Mexican Coffee – a concoction of coffee, cloves, cinnamon, orange peel and brown sugar. Then came two trays of baskets and clay dishes that included tortilla chips, fresh pico de gallo, roasted salsa, chili sauce, chorreadas (cream, flour and sugar pancakes), wedges of queso fresco cheese, a bowl each of milk skins, curd cheese and jocoque (a fermented milk with a consistency between cheese and yogurt) and individual fruit bowls each with one piece of papaya, cantaloupe and watermelon. This was all before we ordered breakfast and the Mexican coffee alone was enough to fill you up. We ordered a breakfast of nopales (nopal, or prickly pear cactus) with refried beans and eggs with chilorio (chorizo seasonings on tender, stewed pork) with chiliquiles (tortilla chips cooked in salsa). It was delicious. We were blown away by the incredible food, generous offering and this special place. As we sat and digested watching the roosters walk about the restaurant and stop to beg at tables, another round of bowls arrived. This time some sweets to round off the meal. We were served three bowls one each of rice pudding, a thick pineapple pudding and a sweet corn tamale with a finer masa grain. The total bill was $18 USD for the two of us.
We walked around the restaurant after breakfast and up to the second level, when we were ready to leave Jerry lead us out of the side entrance. As he opened the door a horse popped right into the doorway and before taking another step Lorin was hoisted up into one of the saddles. They say horses can sense when a rider is nervous, this was 100% the vibe from Lorin – check the photo – and the handler decided it was best to hang onto the reins. Although she’s an animal lover, a surprise horse mounting from a complete stranger smoking marajuana was a hard sell on a ride. Jim hopped up on another horse, we grabbed a quick picture and dismounted before tipping and getting on our way.
With a full belly, Jerry took us to Los Osuna tequila distillery. We walked around the small operation while Jerry showed us the process from the fields to roasting the agave heart to distilling and finally production. We met a woman who was hand labeling the bottles and stopped to chat under a tree that was over 350 years old. We finished with a tasting at the bar and bought a bottle to bring home. As we headed back to the car we stopped to talk with the owner and farmer who was visiting with the Mayor of La Noria, the town just down the road and our next stop.
A few miles down the road we drove under a freshly painted arch welcoming us to La Noria. La Noria was even sleepier than El Quelite and we only saw a few people and one shop that was open, a shoe maker. We walked through the shoe maker’s shop where a younger man was weaving sandals from leather strips. We went through the shop to the back of the property where Jerry showed us several smaller abandoned buildings and a wall with bullet holes. This area, Jerry tells us, is where the Mexican army brought French soldiers to execute them and burn the bodies in the dirt space just behind where we were standing. So much history here in the back of this sandal shop. We talked with the owner for a bit who tried to buy Jim’s hat right off his head and he encouraged us to tell people about La Noria to help bring more visitors to the town. As we drove out of La Noria we stopped to talk with a couple making chicharróns (fried pork rind) in front of their house and saw two men butchering a pig in their garage. It was a very special personal tour and full day excursion.
The boat is ready is to go! We confirmed all is well with a final sea trial, finished some laundry, topped off provisions and will head out in the morning.
SV Solitude 