Camino Real de Tierra Adentro Chihuahua Section

The Camino Real de Tierra Adentro served as New Spain’s main artery for moving silver from the mines of Zacatecas and Durango to Mexico City, and this Chihuahua section preserves 200 kilometers of the original route. The path winds through oak and pine forests in the Sierra Madre foothills, crossing the Río Florido multiple times and passing through ghost towns like Parral, where Pancho Villa was assassinated in 1923. Stone markers dating to the 1600s still mark distances between colonial watering holes, and you’ll find remnants of Spanish missions built to protect silver trains from Apache raids.

This route requires high-clearance vehicles for numerous ford crossings and rocky sections, but it’s manageable for stock 4WD trucks. Carry extra fuel and water—services are sparse between Santa Bárbara and Hidalgo del Parral. Best traveled October through April when temperatures are mild and river levels low. The reward is a genuine historical experience tracing one of North America’s most significant trade routes, with excellent camping along the Río Florido and side trips to abandoned silver workings in the mountains.