best way to get to El Rosario

[Coralee Popp]

It sounds like travel to El Rosario can be a challenge. Do you have any advice for approaches to getting there? Is it best to fly into Mexico city and take a bus to the sanctuary? Also, are there other sites in the vicinity not to be missed? Thank you

[Teresa]

I'm just going thru old post and came across this one. Are there tours to see the monarcha there? Is there and advice on who to contact to do this? I've always wanted to go since I started this 4 years ago. Someday I will. I'd love to go down and look for tags

[ButterflyLady_IL]

After tagging for awhile now- I'm also ready to head to Mexico.
What is the best method to get there?
Passport Required? Must I learn Spanish? Are there guides willing to take me up the mountain?
Maybe I'm not really ready yet- but might be yet this winter if I can get good information to plan a trip.
All the recovered butterflies I've had were recovered in El Rosario- maybe it's my turn to head there.

[Jim]

Anyone can visit the monarch overwintering sites near Angangueo, Michoacán Mexico. Transportation from Mexico City to Angangueo (approximately 80 miles) is available. Many prefer to rent a car in Mexico City and spend the night in Angangueo to get an early morning start. From Angangueo, a local bus can be taken to the monarch colonies at El Rosario or Sierra Chincua. Another possibility is to take a tour.

The following organizations have led tours in the past and may do so again. Monarch Watch does not endorse any of these organizations; the information was simply collected for your convenience. More tours can be found using Google ( http://www.google.com ) and entering words like monarch, butterfly, tours, Mexico in the search box. Tour dates and designs do vary.

Latino Travels Mexico -- http://www.latinotoursmexico.com/tourpa ... terfly.htm

Monarchs & a Buddhist Retreat -- http://www.earthfoot.org/places/mx016.htm

Natural Habitat Adventures (click the "tropics" link) -- http://www.nathab.com/app/cda/nha_cda.php

Riding World.com -- http://www.ridingworld.com/mexico/

Rocamar Tours -- http://www.rocamar.com.mx/monarchs.htm

Rockport Tours -- http://www.yourtravelclub.com/Mexico/mo ... rflies.htm

S&S Tours -- http://www.biztravel.com/TRAVEL/SIT/sit_pages/4066.html

Teocalli Tours -- http://www.tours-in-mexico.com/rosario.htm

If you decide to go on your own, there are two hotels in Angangueo that we recommend. The first is the Hotel Don Bruno. This hotel has a beautiful garden in the center as you enter. To conact the Don Bruno, call 011-52-715-600-26 (also a fax number) and ask for Sheela or Engracea. The second hotel in Angangueo is the hotel Margarita. You can contact them by calling 011-52-715-601-49 and asking for Simon. If you would like to stay in a beautiful resort and don't mind a forty-minute drive to Angangueo, we recommend staying in the San Cayetano. This hotel is run by Pablo and Lisette Span. Their property is in a beautiful secluded area in Zitácuaro. You can contact Pablo or Lisette at 011-52-715-3-19-26.

Be aware that the overwintering sites do not open to the public until November 18th and close around March 15th. Once you arrive at the sanctuary, expect to pay an entrance fee of about 15 pesos (about $1.50 U.S.), to hike up a long mountain trail. At elevations above 10,000 feet, you might find yourself making frequent stops to catch your breath! At Sierra Chincua, horses are available to ride up the mountain slopes, which makes it more accessible for those who are unable to make the hike. The trip is well worth the effort. The monarchs roosting in the mountains and flying overhead will take your breath away.

Here are some traveling hints to help you prepare for the trip:

* A passport is not required for U.S. citizens, but can make things easier. At last check a birth certificate would suffice but be sure to confirm this before making your trip.

* Wear layers of clothing. The temperature in the early morning hours can dip into the 30s and daylight temperatures can reach into the 60s. Solar radiation is intense, so remember to pack sunscreen and a hat to use during the day. Mexican hotels are not heated, so you should consider bringing a warm set of pajamas as well.

* Bring comfortable hiking shoes. The hike to the overwintering sites can be long and steep. Also, you must be able to comfortably walk several miles to see the butterflies.

* The road to the overwintering sites can be dusty and the transportation is usually open air, so you may want to bring along a handkerchief or dusk mask.

* Pack the appropriate film for low light conditions because the monarchs will be under the forest canopy. Photographing them can be quite difficult and you will be asked not to use a flash, so be prepared.

* If you have a heart condition or a medical problem that interferes with your breathing (like asthma), make sure that you talk to your doctor before making the trip. You will be at elevations of 10,000 feet or more and breathing becomes difficult when you are not used to the lower level of oxygen at these heights. Again, you will need to be able to walk several miles comfortably.

* Vaccinations are not required to enter Mexico but The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends immunizations against yellow fever and hepatitis. Contact the CDC for current health information, especially if you will be visiting other areas of Mexico.

* Traveler's diarrhea is a very real possibility, but it can be prevented. Bottled water is available throughout the country. With food you should boil it, peel it, cook it or forget it. Avoid all undercooked meat and mayonnaise or creamed mixtures. Kaopectate or Immodium can help relieve symptoms and you can also talk to your doctor for other recommendations.

* The exchange rate is around 10 Mexican pesos to 1 American dollar. You will find the best rates at the Casas de Cambio in the airport and scattered throughout Mexico City and Zitácuaro. You will not be able to exchange your money at the overwintering sites.

Hope this helps!

[ButterflyLady_IL]

Thanks Jim,
I appreciate the links to websites, enough of them were good that I was able to gain good information concerning a possible trip. There are certainly lots of tour groups visiting the sites.

I have a few more questions:
Can anyone recover tagged butterflies? (like me, if I make it down there)
Can a tag # be recorded and submitted to Monarch Watch, or must the butterfly with tag attached be submitted?
When is Monarch Watch headed down to the overwintering sites?
Thanks for all your help thus far.

[Paul Cherubini]

I've been going to El Rosario almost every year since 1990. I avoid flying into Mexico City like the plague since it's extremely confusing and complicated to drive around in that huge city plus I think the chances of getting into a car wreck are high. It's also a long, confusing, traffic congested, 5 hour drive drom Mexico City to El Rosario. However, flying into Mexico City is fine for the first time visitor who is traveling with a tour group rather than alone.

Instead I fly into Morelia, Michoacan which has a small, uncrowded, unconfusing airport in a rural farm country setting. I rent a car from Hertz at the airport and it is only about a 2 1/2 hour drive from Morelia to El Rosario. Half of that drive is on a modern uncrowded freeway.

I also avoid staying overnight in Angangeo. It's very cold there at night because it's about 8,500 feet above sea level. Instead I stay at the nearby city of Zitacuaro (elevation about 5,500 feet) where it is much warmer and there is a neat inexpensive clean and comfortable motel which I think is called the Motel Jorge or something like that. Zitacuaro is also a much more modern city than the small town of Angangeo with stores like Walmart (which has an ATM machine where you can withdraw cash in the form of Mexican pesos from your American bank checking account) and some American restaurants like Pizza Hut. Zitacuaro is nestled inbetween the El Rosario and Cerro Pelon monarch sanctuaries. From Zitacuaro it is about a 1 hour drive to El Rosario and the Chincua sanctuaries and only about a 20 minute drive to the Cerro Pelon sanctuary and about a 2 hour drive to the Herrada sanctuary. At all the sanctuaries (except El Rosario) it is necessary to rent and ride a horse to the actual butterfly cluster spots (although athletic types may hike up if they want to)