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The receding shore of Lake Chapala

Lake Chapala is the largest lake in Mexico at 1,080 sq kms. It is 80km long, 15km wide, and on average 10m deep. It is fed by the Lerma river and flows out to the Pacific via the rio Grande de Santiago. It is the main source of drinking water for the metropolitan area of Guadalajara but the Lerma watershed also provides water to other upstream states and cities. Since the area has suffered from a severe drought for several years, the lake water has been receding as can be seen from the waterfront structures in lakeside towns that are now high and dry and as is clear even to the casual observer in the photo above. While we were in the area there was great controversy about the failure of neighboring (Mexican) states to honor their obligations to Jalisco and allow this year's excess water produced by an unexpectedly bounteous rainy season to flow into the lake. Even without the excess water, we read that the lake's level has increased by a meter or more this year, but there is no guarantee that next year will be as good so Jalisco is working hard to get its due.

The receding shore of Lake Chapala

We almost didn't get to Lake Chapala because we missed the turnoff from the Melaque-Guadalajara highway. Signage in Mexico is generally good, and was this time too, but even good signage can't always compensate for poor maps and that was the case here. We have tried several times to buy a better map book for Mexico, but none seems to exist, or none that we can find. The good news is that an alternate route was found and after bumping over a very badly pot-holed road, we drove into Chapala, the main town on the north shore of the lake, by mid-afternoon.

Our Lunch Spot by Lake Chapala

We relied as usual on the Lonely Planet for hotel recommendations, but found nothing suitable in Chapala and so drove west along the lakeshore to Ajijic where LP recommended three or four hotels close to our price range. We came, we saw and we liked. We took a room in the Italo Hotel and quickly went for a stroll around town. Actually it felt much more like a village. About ten blocks square, it sits between the main highway and the lake. The streets are all narrow and cobbled and very clean, the buidings all low-rise, and all of the commercial development is out of the way on the main road.We're not entirely sure which came first, the pleasant ambiance of Ajijic, or the Americans that obviously enjoy it so much they either come back often, or even set up permanent residence here. All we know is that the American ex-pat community is big enough to have spawned a local monthly newsletter, a largely English-speaking population, and a level of cleanliness that we have rarely encountered so far in Mexico.

We spent two nights, found a very friendly lady at the grocery store near our hotel to wash and fold our clothes for us at a very good price, ate two of the best dinners we have had in Mexico, even got a nice glass of white wine with one of them, and enjoyed an afternoon drive along the lakefront and even a lakefront lunch.