Santuario Piedra Herrada

Piedra Herrada is where most visitors to Valle de Bravo go to see the monarch butterflies. The sanctuary lies in the fir and pine forests of the municipality of Temascaltepec, on the highway between Toluca and Valle de Bravo, and is part of the area where millions of monarchs arrive each winter after flying south from Canada and the United States.

The season usually runs from November to late March, and January and February tend to be the best months. The butterflies cluster on the branches high up the mountain, so the visit means a steep uphill walk of up to an hour at close to 3,000 meters, with a local guide; you can also rent a horse for most of the climb and walk only the last stretch. Once you reach the colonies, the rule is silence: if the sun comes out, thousands of butterflies leave the trees at once and fill the air around you.

Because it is so close to the highway and to Valle de Bravo, Piedra Herrada gets busy on weekends in peak season. Going early on a weekday gives you the quietest trail, and the cold, clear mornings at this altitude make a warm jacket essential.