Huejúcar



 Huejúcar  is a town and municipality, in Jalisco in central-western Mexico. The municipality covers an area of 309.2 km2.

As of 2020, the municipality had a total population of 5,920.

The name Huejúcar means "Place of Willows" in Nahuatl. It is about 240 km from the state capital, Guadalajara. It is next to Santa María de los Ángeles and Tepetongo. The municipality borders with the state of Zacatecas.

History
The city of Huejucar can trace its history back beyond the creation of Nueva Galicia in the Viceroyalty of New Spain. In 1530, Pedro Almíndez Chirinos passed through and conquered the area in the name of Spain during his voyage from Cuitzeo, Michoacan to Tepic, Nayarit. On March 13, 1837, a decree is made that Huejucar would become part of the Colotlan Municipality. Later, on November 9, 1861, Huejucar would become its own municipality and twelve years later on September 24, 1873, would receive the title of Villa.

Geography
The town of Huejucar, although its average elevation is higher than that of the alpine city of Denver, Colorado in the United States, it is in a semiarid region with monsoonal weather in the summer months (July and August, mostly) with an average rainfall of 530.30 mm of rainfall per year and an average temperature of 17.4C (63.3F). Summer months can reach highs on average of 38.3C (100.9F) while winter months reach lows on average of 0.8C (33.4F). Due to the Sierra Madre Occidental Mountains to the west, winds usually gust from the northeast. The town has average elevation of about 2,000 m and the municipality's elevation varies drastically to as low as 1,750 m in the valleys and as high as 2,600 m in its mountainous areas on the western end of the municipality along the Sierra Madre Occidental Mountains. Hydrothermal streams and ponds dot the landscape to the west while the east and northeastern areas lead into the vast Mexican Plateau region in between the Sierra Madre Occidental and Oriental regions.

Mexican Federal Highway 23 runs north–south which connects Huejucar on the southern terminus to the metropolitan area of Guadalajara, Jalisco and on its northern terminus to Fresnillo, Zacatecas.

Flora and fauna
Its vegetation is scarce in most of the territory. There are mainly drought-resistant plants such as: Vachellia farnesiana, Mesquite, Pitaya, Opuntia ficus-indica, Agave and some species of Populus, Pine and other trees in a small proportion.

Annual Festivities
Huejucar’s yearly fair, which normally lasts 7-10 days, begins in late September and runs until early October. This festival has been a tradition for decades. Entire families travel from neighboring towns like Colotlán, Jerez Zacatecas, and Santa María de los Ángeles to enjoy Huejucar and its traditional festival. The goal of this celebration is to honor San Francisco De Assis the municipality's patron saint, who is respected deeply by those who live in Huejucar, Jalisco.

The festival offers a wide range of enjoyable activities for people of all ages. Three female contestants will participate for the title of "queen of the fair" one month before the event. The queen will represent the festivities and locals in Huejucar will have the opportunity to vote for their desired candidate. Live music is one of the most visible forms of entertainment featured at the fair. Many well-known performers and bands have performed here, including Regulo Carro, Chuy Lizarraga, Aldo Trujillo, La Arrolladora Banda El Limón, and Ramon Ayala just to name a few. During the live performances you will see many people enjoying themselves and dancing to the rhythm of the music. Also, there are plenty of carnival games and rides to keep the younger generations entertained. Aside from live music and carnival games, Jaripeos (rodeos) are another major attraction that brings many charros enthusiasts to the Lienzo charro to witness the thrills of Charrería sportsmanship. Additionally, there is a wide range of restaurants and food stands that will be available for the enjoyment of the attendees.