Pinal de Amoles, Sierra Gorda

Pinal de Amoles is a town located in Pinal de Amoles Municipality in the state of Querétaro in central Mexico. It is part of the Sierra Gorda region which stretches over northern Querétaro into Guanajuato, Hidalgo and San Luis Potosí, with 88% of the municipality's land comprising the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve. The municipality contains large areas of forests and the highest peaks in the region, which separate the wetter areas of both the north and east from the drier areas of the south and west. The town began as a mining camp in the 17th century. However, most mining in the area has disappeared and the municipality is one of the poorest in Mexico, despite recent efforts to promote ecotourism and restart mining. This has led a large number of residents to migrate to larger cities in Mexico and to the United States to work, sending remittances back home. These remittances now overshadow the locally generated economy. ()