La Fajina 2026
Majahua, La Boca and Lagunillas turn out to clear out summer’s jungle
Community is more than a word on this part of the coast. It’s a way of life. That’s especially true in Majahua where 130-some people rely on each other for services you would expect to come from the state or municipality. As the primary route connecting Troncones, Lagunillas, La Boca and Saladita, and a place where the fishing boats come in, life in Majahua depends on local transportation being able to come and go without too much trouble. Every year, the summer rains awaken the jungle which then starts to close Majahua off from the north and east—from Saladita and Federal Highway 200—and every fall, the residents of Majahua get out their chain saws, machetes and weedos [weed-whackers] and clear the way again. It’s how “We” make sure the garbage truck can get through. That clean-up is known as “La Fajina”, literally, the task, or “La Limpieza”, the clean up.
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On Sunday, September 27th about 45 people came out to do this year’s fajina. Most were from Majahua, with help also coming from La Boca and Lagunillas. The work of clearing the summer growth away from the mountain road to Lagunillas started at 7 am and by 10 am, the crews had reached the top. But their work wasn’t done there. Everyone came back down the mountain and started cutting back the growth along the road to La Pequeña and La Boca, the back way to Saladita.
Hunger and heat made themselves known by 11, and the work started to slow down. It was decided—everyone has a voice in this kind of volunteer thing—to clear the most dense areas between La Pequeña and La Boca and call it a day. Once that was done, the beer came out and so did a pozole prepared by Angelita Sánchez. The comisario of Majahua, Daniel Nuñez, sent us a few photos from La Fajina 2026 and the gathering afterwards.
If you’re interested in volunteering for this sort of work—with your time, a donation, some water or food—you’re always welcome. And this sort of community task is not just something Majahua does. The people of Troncones are getting together this Sunday to cut back the growth in the cemetery and prepare that area for the town’s Day of the Dead events. To help out, show up at the cemetery at 8 am on Sunday, and look for Francisco (Chico) Manzanares, Troncones’ current comisario, he’ll give you something to do—or go by Materiales Troncones to make a donation to Troncones’ Festival de la Catrina.
To donate the Festival de la Catrina in Majahua, contact Miriam Nuñez at Restaurante Embarcadero or Yamel Maya at Antonio's Bar & Grill, and in Saladita go to Marejada.
