Backpack and Snorkel Travel Guide for Day 4: Discovering Hierve El Agua and a Mezcal producer - Oaxaca Purple Travel Guide
Today, we will explore the frozen waterfall of Hierve El Agua and visit a Mezcal producer. We provide detailed information and the best things to see and we show lots of photos so you know what you can expect.
Here at Backpack and Snorkel Travel Guides, we typically promote self-guided walking tours.
But we realize that not everybody likes to walk by themselves in a foreign city. So, just in case that you rather go with ab guide: NO PROBLEM! Please see the free GuruWalk and paid Viator tours below.
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Table of contents
Decide if you go by yourself or join a guided tour
You can absolutely do this tour on your own, or like we did, join a guided tour. If you do this on your own, then you will need to speak Spanish if you want to understand how Mezcal is made as Mezcal producers are small family-owned companies where the whole family contributes to the business and most likely nobody will speak a significant amount of English.
If you join a guided tour, then the process will be explained to you and you will not need to drive after tasting some Mezcals. Because of these reasons, we decided to join a guided tour.
There are many companies offering tours to Hierve El Agua. Some of them only give you 90 min at the site. This is not enough if you plan to hike down the falls.
Some tours will combine Hierve El Agua with destinations that we have already seen or that we will see tomorrow, e.g. Mitla, El Tule, or Teotitlan de Valle.
The tour we selected was operated by ‘Oaxaca by Locals’ (office_map, reviews, website) and we loved it. The tour leaves at 9am from their office which is a few minutes’ walk from Templo de Santo Domingo de Guzmán and, at the time of writing, it cost $45 per person.
The destinations are:
1 = Oaxaca by Locals office (depart at 9am)
2 = Panaderia Artesal Yazmin (stop for approx. 15 - 30 min)
3 = Hierve El Agua (stop for approx. 3h)
4 = El Rey de Matatlan (stop for 1h – 1.5h)
Panaderia Artesal Yazmin
This bakery is popular for making a large variety of different types of Oaxacan bread. On the guided tour, you will learn about their process and be able to taste some of the different breads. They also make tamales and hot Oaxacan chocolate, which we recommend you try.
There are restrooms in the back, which sometimes run out of toilet paper. So, you want to bring your own.
Hierve El Agua
You can drive to Hierve El Agua on your own, or like we did, join a guided tour.
Some websites say that the drive to Hierve El Agua is difficult and dangerous, and that you need to leave first thing early in the morning. None of this is true.
The drive to Hierve El Agua is mostly on good quality paved roads. About 2.5 miles (4km) before you reach your destination, the road turns into a compacted dirt road with some potholes. The local township makes you pay a 20 Peso toll (cash only), at the time of writing, to drive on their road.
If you go on your own, then you need to stop by the blue house at the entrance of Hierve El Agua to buy your admission tickets – 50 Pesos per person, cash only, at the time of writing. Parking costs extra – it was 80 or 100 Pesos.
If you want to be the first person there to take photos of Hierve El Agua without anyone there, well, yes then you have to leave first thing in the morning. Is it really worth getting up early to be the first? We do not think it is, but judge yourself by the photos we took between 11am and 1pm.
Hierve El Agua are limestone deposits (travertine) over an existing cliff. The limestone has been deposited from warm freshwater springs over thousands of years. The water is over-saturated on minerals like calcium carbonate and the minerals start crystallizing when the water flows down the hill, cools down and starts evaporating.
This is basically the same process that forms stalagmites in caves.
Even though people may call Hierve El Agua the ‘frozen waterfalls’, the name means ‘the water boils’. The reason for the name is that the water in some of the springs seems to bubble up, as if it were boiling.
You can enter the natural pools and swim in them, just keep in mind:
- The water in these pools can be cold. It is not warm or hot as some websites claim. The water will be warmer in the afternoon after the sun has warmed it up for several hours.
- The water is not treated and the natural springs only supply a little new water every day, meaning the water may not be too hygienic.
- There are changing cabins.
- The edges can be slippery and the rocks are hard and the mineral crystals make for some sharp edges, so be careful.
- There are restrooms up the hill and you will need to pay 10 Pesos per visit.
To get to the pools, either stay left behind the blue house and walk through the area with the restrooms and the souvenir and food vendors and then downhill, or stay right and walk towards the path that leads you down to the base of the hill. The path will split before you go down the hill. Just stay left at the Y and you will get to the pools. The second way is longer.
Some people like to hike down to the base of the falls. To get to the trail, stay right at the blue house and keep walking. The dusty road will lead into the trail that will then bring you to a Y (split). At the Y, you can go left to get to the natural pools or stay right to go down to the base of the hill. Please be advised that:
- You can hire a Spanish speaking guide for your trip who will provide you with a lot of background information. None of the guides, however, speak English.
- You do not need a guide; the path is clearly marked.
- Many people just hike down and then back up. You can, however, hike the entire loop if you have 3h or more in Hierve El Agua.
- Hierve El Agua is at 5,725 ft (1745 m) above sea level and there are many steps down and up. With the heat and nearly constant sunshine, it is very important that you wear a hat and take plenty of water with you.
El Rey de Matatlan
While Tequila is made from agave and often mass produced, Mezcal is also made from agaves, but its complicated production process limits it to hand-produced batches in small family-owned Mezcal facilities.
El Rey de Matatlan is one of the better known, older, and bigger Mezcal producers. It is family-owned, and now in its third generation. While the grandparents of the current owners started producing Mezcal in the 1950s, the family started larger scale operations in 1980.
If you come here on a guided tour, then the tour guide will show you different agave plants that are used for Mezcal production and will then explain the production process on the exhibited equipment to you. You will not be able to get into the production facility.
After the demonstration, there will be two Mezcal tastings.
First, you will be able to taste five different straight Mezcals:
- Joven: unaged Mezcal
- Abocado Con Gusano: enriched with maguey worms
- Anejo: 1 year aged
- Gran Preserva: 8 years aged
- Coyote Verde: 8 years aged and filtered
Afterwards, you will be able to taste different Cremas, flavored Mezcals. Flavors may include: mango, tangerine, coconut, caramel, pistachio (my personal favorite), coffee, Jamaica, cherry, etc.
If you are lucky, then your tour guide may also offer some fried chapulines and maguey worms for you to try.
This concludes Day 4 of your Oaxaca tour.
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