Ixtlán de Juárez

Ixtlán de Juárez is the main town of this part of the Sierra Norte, on Highway 175 just past Guelatao, and the one where you find the bank, the market and the bus connections. It is a Zapotec town, and about half of its people speak an indigenous language. Its name in Nahuatl is usually translated as "place of fibers."

On a rise above the central plaza stands the Baroque church of Santo Tomás Apóstol, with a carved stone facade and gilded altarpieces inside. Benito Juárez, born in neighboring Guelatao, was baptized here on March 22, 1806, the day after his birth, and the town is proud of the connection. The plaza itself is decorated with big concrete sculptures of clay jars, a nod to a pottery tradition that once kept dozens of local women busy and is now carried on by very few.

Ixtlán is best known today for its forest. The community owns and manages a large stretch of pine, oak and cloud forest, logging it under a sustainable plan that has held international Forest Stewardship Council certification for about two decades, and it is often cited as a model of community forestry in Mexico. The community also runs Ecoturixtlán, a tourism center with cabins, hiking trails, rappelling and zip lines in the forest.