The Cañada de la Virgen national archeological monument, west of San Miguel de Allende, reopened Sunday, May 24, after a two-month closure stemming from an ongoing legal dispute between the federal and state governments and owners of the large ranch property surrounding the site.
The owners say they were not informed of the reopening and have been subjected to repeated trespassing over the past few months by state and federal officials and other individuals who have cut locks, damaged ranch property and threatened and injured ranch employees. They say the archeological zone remains closed because the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) has not reached an agreement with them.
Nevertheless, the reopening was announced May 22 via press conferences in Guanajuato and San Miguel with INAH Director General Joel Omar Vásquez, Guanajuato Secretary of Culture Lizeth Galván Cortés and Jesusa Rodríguez, former Morena senator and advisor to President Claudia Sheinbaum.
“To reach this point, INAH has implemented actions to bring the archeological zone closer and not only delimit it, but also avoid possible damage to the archeological heritage,” Vásquez reportedly said at the press conference in Guanajuato.
The dispute involves more than 700 hectares (about 1,730 acres) of land surrounding the pre-Hispanic site. The pyramids and other monuments within the 16-hectare archeological zone are federal property but cannot legally be accessed without going through land owned by the Cañada de la Virgen ranch (CDLV). The entire site is located within the municipality of San Miguel.
The owners say they have never damaged the site and that access has always been granted whenever it was requested.
INAH announced in January that it was taking possession of the CDLV property through a decree of expropriation President Sheinbaum signed in late 2025. According to the federal Ministry of Culture, the purpose of the decree of expropriation was “strengthening the research, protection, conservation, restoration and recovery of the archaeological heritage of the site.”
Sophia Trapp, CDLV executive director, told Mexico News Daily the expropriation was illegal and constituted abuse of Mexican and international citizens as well as private property laws.
She said she and the other ranch owners are the legal landowners of the property except for the 16 hectares, adding that they have an expropriation injunction from the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation and other official paperwork to back up their position.
“Every country that pretends to have a democracy has laws and due process,” Trapp said. “There are about seven major steps you have to complete toward expropriation, and they have not completed one of them. Not one.”
She said the government officials involved in the expropriation and reopening have no letters, agreements or other documents to prove their claims about ownership of the property. The ranch owners have also not received any payment for the land, she added.
“We have never wanted to sell,” Trapp said. “They sent me a photocopy of a check last week for 71 million pesos, and it was not even drawn on a government bank.”
She said she doesn’t feel safe going to the archaeological site now because her physical safety and that of family members has been threatened.
“We have lost the peace and harmony that we have spent so many years building on a ranch where we have the opportunity to admire the pyramids and also work in our business, which provides a livelihood for many families in San Miguel,” Trapp said.
Cañada de la Virgen has long been a popular place to visit due to its proximity to San Miguel and draws many tourists, along with providing business to local guides. The site is more than 1,000 years old and is believed to have been a center for Otomí ceremonies.
Cathy Siegner is an independent journalist based in San Miguel and Montana. She has journalism degrees from the University of Oregon and Northwestern University
