Chorros del Varal

The Chorros del Varal are a set of waterfalls that burst out of a canyon wall west of Los Reyes, in the hot lowlands south of Cotija. The water does not come over the top of a cliff like an ordinary waterfall: it springs from an underground river and pours out of the rock in many streams side by side, falling into the gorge of the Apupátaro River, part of the Balsas basin.

The canyon is lush and green, with dense vegetation and birds, and the state government protected about 72 hectares of it as a natural area in 2004 to preserve the water and the wildlife. A stairway of several hundred steps drops into the gorge, and a hanging bridge leads to a viewpoint in front of the falls, so a visit involves a real climb back up.

Local legend says that during Holy Week an Indigenous princess appears to visitors and asks them to carry a basket of stones up the steps without looking back; whoever manages it finds the stones turned to gold. Most people settle for the view, which is spectacular enough, especially in the rainy season, when the falls are at their fullest.