Mineral del Monte
Mineral del Monte (also known as Real del Monte) is an old mining town of 14,000 people (2020) in Hidalgo. The mines have closed, but centuries of industrial, cultural and gastronomic history have remained in its streets that give it a distinctive touch compared to the rest of the Hidalgo populations.
Understand
A past treasure trove for silver and turquoise extraction, this community has long been centered around the lure for mineral wealth. In addition to its modern name, during the Viceroyalty it was known as "Real del Monte," because it was under the Spanish crown, and then Little Cornwall because of Cornish immigration that swelled around 1850 to satisfy mining labor needs.
Along with boom and bust cycles, Mineral del Monte had some rather ugly labor disputes and even military altercations because that's just a given when it comes to human nature and controlling things.
But through it all Mineral del Monte retains a rich mining heritage today. One interesting caveat about the place is that, sitting in the Sierra de Pachuca at an elevation of 2712 m, it has a cold, wet climate and even snows here at times. So come prepared for a kind of alpine excursion when you arrive in this little nook of Mexico.
Get in
Mineral del Monte is 17 km northeast of the state capital of Hidalgo, Pachuca.
By car from Mexico City, take the Mexico-Pachuca highway and then the Pachuca-Real del Monte highway.
By bus from Mexico City, take a bus to Pachuca from the Central de Autobuses Norte. Once in Pachuca, go to the Hidalgo Market and from here take a wagon to Real del Monte.
Get around
Real del Monte is small enough to be accessible on foot, although the combination of the height and the slope of the town can be strenuous for some visitors. The town has a taxi service and is connected to other towns by wagons. To explore the surroundings it may be necessary to have your own car.
See
- 1 Museo de Sitio y Centro de Interpretación Mina La Dificultad (Museo de Sitio y Centro de Interpretación Mina La Dificultad). 10ː00-16ː00 daily except maybe M. Mine tour and museum about that industry and mineral specimens. Good displays and interesting original buildings.
- 2 Museo de Sitio Mina de Acosta, ☏ +52 771 715 0976. Tu-Su 10ː00-18ː00, closed M. More in the way of guided mine tours and museum.
- 3 English Cemetery (El panteón inglés Real del Monte), Calle Santos Degollado. Cemetery for all the English immigrants who died living in this land. All the tombs were oriented towards England save one. Part of the Cornish mining heritage.
- 4 Museo De Medicina Laboral, Hospital 6. Tu-Su 10ː00-18ː00, closed M. Museum about the old days of medicine, e.g. pulling teeth with the help of a shot of whiskey and a shot of arsenic for indigestion, etc.
- 5 Santuario del Señor de Zelontla. Very old church.
- 6 Our Lady of the Rosary Parish (Parroquia del Rosario). Built in early 18th century by Franciscan friars of Pachuca, baroque style.
- 7 Capilla de la Santa Veracruz. Church circa 1736, also baroque.
- 8 Casa Grande Museum Real del Monte. Tu-Su 10ː00-18ː00. Restored colonial house with exhibits about the history of Mineral del Monte.
Be sure to just walk around the parque centro downtown to take in the colonial character of the town as a whole; it is preserved well and will make you feel as though you've stepped back in time.
- 9 Museo del Paste, Huejutla de Reyes, ☏ +52 771 797 1548. W-M 10ː00-17ː00, closed Tu. Museum about pasty production (pasty not pastry...because of the Cornish influence). Learn about how the miners lived off these and then make your own. Anyway, you don't have to go all the way to the UK to explore this snack.
- 10 Mirador Real Del Monte, Luis Donaldo Colosio 32. daily 10ː00-19ː00. A vantage point for seeing the whole historic town from a distance. Sometimes curios on site.
Do
- 1 Peñas Cargadas (Loaded Rocks), Carr. Tezoantla al Guajolote km 3.3 (drive past the Panteon Ingles on the road to Tezoantla, then 3.5 km further). Sa-Su 08:00 - 18:00. Small, 3 hectare natural area featuring spectacular basalt rock formations set in a forested area amid pine, oak, and fir. Pack a picnic lunch and plan to spend the day hiking, horseback riding, zip lining, mountain biking, camping, or just sitting and marveling at the magnificent towers of precarious looking rocks.
Buy
Eat
The quintessential dish of the city is the pasty (Spanish: paste), which is a baked wheat-flour pastry, similar to an empanada. Traditionally, the Cornish pasty is filled with potatoes and ground beef; however, local re-interpretations might contain tuna, pineapple, red mole, or even chicken tinga. They are frequently consumed at lunchtime, and can be found in the myriad pasty shops that dot the city.
- Pastes "El Portal", Portals 2. +527717971307. 07:00-22:00.
- Pastes Real de Plateros, Hidalgo 55. +527712917509. 08:00-22:00.
- Pastes Mina la Rica, Juarez 76. 09: 00-22: 00.
Drink
Sleep
- 1 Hotel Real del Monte, Iturbide Calle, ☏ +52 771 797 1202. Here you can kind of feel like you've been transported back to the days of the Viceroyalty, and not just because of the hotel's name, as this property exudes quite a colonial charm in its construction stemming from the 1800s and its location in the historical part of the city. Wifi, bar, pet-friendly, guided tours. M$ 659.