Hueytamalco

Hueytamalco lies north of Teziutlán, where the mountains start to fall away toward the Gulf and the climate turns warm and wet. It is a working town of cattle, coffee and fruit, surrounded by rivers, ravines and bamboo groves, and it has become known in recent years for a cluster of waterfalls that still see few outsiders.

Among them are El Salto de Iluikatl, whose Nahuatl name refers to the sky, and which seems to fall straight out of it when you look up from below; the waterfall at Rancho Plan de Guinea, reached through bamboo, where you can look at the water from above and from behind; the falls on the Xoyoquila river, the biggest in the area, with some ecotourism activities; and El Salto, outside town on the way toward Papantla, a wide set of falls that has been compared to a small Niagara and empties into a pool where people swim.

These places are still rustic, with few signs and trails that can be muddy and steep. The best way to see them is with a local guide from Hueytamalco who knows the paths and the landowners.