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TZISCAO |
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Near the entrance to the Parque Nacional Lagos de Montebello, the
paved Frontier Highway turns off to the right. Still inside the park
boundaries, it passes the village of TZISCAO , a tiny settlement on the
shore of Laguna Tziscao. On the lake's edge here is the Hotel and
Restaurant Tziscao (US$10-15), with simple, very good-value rooms in the
same building as the restaurant and wooden cabins in the grounds. Boats
are available to paddle on your own or you can hire a guide to take you
round the lake. To follow the footpath around the lake, go back to the
junction beyond the church and turn right. Along the way you pass Laguna
Internacional , where the border is marked by a white obelisk at either
end of the lake. Entering Guatemala here is not recommended. Beyond
Tziscao, the Frontier Highway (served by buses from Comitán) winds
through mountains with some spectacular views and precipitous drops, but
the jungle has now all been cut down and burnt and the area is becoming
heavily settled.
The largest settlement along the road is Las Maravillas de Tenejapa , a
pretty village with a restaurant but no accommodation, about two and a
half hours from Tziscao. Beyond here the road climbs a steep limestone
ridge and passes through an impressive tunnel before dropping down to
the village of Ixcán , at the confluence of the Incan and Jataté rivers;
downstream of here they form the Río Lacatún. A new tourism project here,
Estación Ixcán , enables you to visit the southern Montes Azules
Biosphere Reserve , the largest remaining tract of rainforest in
Chiapas. The brainchild of US-based Conservation International, it aims
to promote conservation by developing economic alternatives to cutting
down the forest. The Estación is beautifully located on the far bank of
the Río Jataté, above some rapids in the turquoise river. Accommodation
(US$40-60) is in screened, shared-bath rooms (some with balcony) in a
large thatched building and there's also limited space for camping (US$5-10).
Meals are taken in the unscreened dining room overlooking the river -
and you'll be swatting insects as you eat. Local guides can take you
along the impressive, jungle-lined rivers and show you the forest
wildlife. Though you could just turn up in Ixcán and find a boat to take
you downstream from the village (ask for Don Oscar, who heads the
tourism committee), it's best to book ahead by calling the office in
Tuxtla (tel & fax 9/613-9776, cimextg@prodigy.net.mx ).
Beyond Ixcán the highway crosses the Río Ixcán on a new bridge high
above the river and continues to Benemérito (3hr), for Bonampak,
Yaxchilán and Palenque (a further four hours). Be aware that this route
traverses the "conflict zone" where the Zapatistas, paramilitaries and
the Mexican army have been engaged in guerrilla conflict: even now you
may well be stopped by any of them and forbidden to proceed.
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