Hanken, James 1975 Journal Mexico trip: Goray Farías -> Ciudad Valles 4 May 0800 hrs. The morning of 2 May we left our campsite outside of Goray Farías S on Mex 85 with the intention of heading further into the Sierra Madre Oriental to higher elevations in hopes of having better luck collecting. We took route Ato just N of Cd. Mante W to Ocampo. The road quickly crosses the Sierras and descends to Mango and then descends again into the thorn forest. Ocampo lies in this forest and we decided not even to try it for keys. The rest of the day was spent driving in the vicinity of Cd. Valles for possible collecting sites. Driving W into the Sierras only brought disappointment as we found either burned over new agricultural areas, or large swathes of land alongside the road presently or prior to clear them for agriculture. This is just an extension of what is happening in the lower thorn-forest areas where one can't drive for without finding recently- or presently-being burned areas. This burning is being carried to such an extent that the air in the vicinity of Cd. Valles is constantly overcast and hazy, with the sun often reduced to an orange dot in the sky. The air, too, smells of smoke, and breathing is often uncomfortable.