Tepic (the capital city of the State of Nayarit) Tepic, at 3000 feet, sits in the shadows of three 7600 ft. volcanoes that make up part of the Sierra Madre Occidental mountain range that forms the backbone of the highlands. The city's name means 'land of corn' thusly it serves as the center for farming, manufacturing, and governmental services for the State of Nayarit. With over 200,000 people, the city offers mountain lakes, great architecture, ample accommodations, and beautiful vistas of the Mexican highlands. This is where our journey begins where south bound Highway 15 Libramiento passes through the back streets of Tepic before resurfacing to intersect with Boulevard Xalisco. Be on the lookout to the right for the on ramp to Mex. Hwy 200 were it drops precipitously westward to the Pacific ocean and the resort city of Puerto Vallarta. The highway snakes its way downhill through picturesque highland farm land skirting the small villages of Aquiles Serdan, Emiliano Zapata, Compostela and Las Varas. Tepic (Junction of Highway 15 and 200) to Manzanillo Mex. Hwy 200 traverses through the tropical deciduous forests and mountains of the Nayarit State capital of Tepic, past the palm tree lined zocalos of the tourist mecca of Puerto Vallarta on the Bay of Banderas in Jalisco State, southward hugging the Pacific ocean on its way past farmland, thorn forests and sprawling savannas to the resort city of Manzanillo in the State of Colima. It serves as the gateway to the "Costa Alegre" (Happy Coast) of southwestern, coastal Mexico!