Copper Canyon Slide Show

Mexico’s Copper Canyon is a land of expansive vistas, crumbling mule trails and endlessly convoluted mountain scenery. Comprised of six monumental canyons and a labyrinthine network of some 200 gorges, you can’t do much better for sheer size, scope and geological grandeur. Homeland of the indigenous Raramuri, also known as the Tarahumara people, the Copper Canyon is a tough, sparsely populated region infrequently punctuated by obscure settlements and lost-in-time mining towns. Everywhere else, nature reigns. Crashing waterfalls, pine-scented forests, serene lakes and surreal rock formations are among the sublime works forged by the sun, wind and water. The region is penetrated by a single railway line and Mexico’s last surviving passenger train, nick-named El Chepe, which traverses the daunting mountains in a spectacular feat of engineering. It is surely one of the world’s greatest train journeys.