Climbing volcanoes

The trek began with my alarm going off at 3.15am after a sleepless night. I kept hitting the snooze button but eventually had to get up just before 4am to get to the Quetzal Trekkers office at 4am to throw down some breakfast and prepare for the big hike. We had to carry all our water for two days as well so my pack weighed about 18kg although I didn't want to find out the weight until the trek was over. We left the office just after 5am and waited for our local school bus to come bumping down the road and we were off. The group consisted of the two guides, a Swiss and an Aussie, both volunteers, and the other two guys in the group had recently finished their term with the Israeli army. All were in their early to mid twenties and avid hikers, so I was a great fit. Why am I doing this - I hate hiking??

After about an hour on the bus we got off by the side of the road and started walking up a path towards Cerra Negra. This is the youngest volcano in the group, having most recently erupted in 1999. Unlike the other volcanoes which have vegetation, Cerra Negra is solely black gravel and volcanic stone. Like a black desert wasteland. We left our bags down the bottom with Dom and the rest of us climbed up round the side and through the crater in the middle before reaching the summit. Smoke was spewing out through the crater in the middle and the smell of sulfur was quite strong. Most of the adventure companies in Leon offer Volcano Boarding as a daytrip where you ride down the black gravel on a snowboard type construct. We didn't have this gear with us today so our only option was to run down. From the top it is incredibly steep. I didn't really want to injure myself this early into it so I said I'd walk down. Fine, Adrian said but you'll just end up running. He was right. It was fun, I felt like a kid with my feet sinking into the gravel as I ran down with a big grin on my face.

After a short break at the rangers station, where they kept a rattlesnake and a couple of pythons, we started off on the steep ascent through Las Pilas towards El Hoyo at the back. I knew this would be the hardest part and it would be over by lunch time. Only one and a half hours they told me where it would be really steep. Being the only girl and the only over thirty I did not want to make the group regret my presence so I pushed on and found it was actually not as difficult as I expected, thanks I guess to all the practice at the Yoga Farm.

As the afternoon wore on the clouds came in blocking our views and then the rain came. Both of these were a blessing as the cooler temperatures made the climbing more bearable and not seeing how high our final destination was kept me charging ahead. We arrived at the campsite at about 3pm and thankfully there was a short break in the weather so that we could set up the tents. Almost as soon as we finished the rain came bucketing down which forced us to have a nap for a couple of hours. When we emerged from our tents at about 5pm the clouds had cleared and the views were breathtaking. We looked out across Lake Managua and Volcan Momotombo and across to many of the other volcanoes in this range and watched the setting sun across the Pacific Ocean. El Hoyo literally means the hole and this volcano was named after the massive sinkhole which we were camped beneath. We took a walk up there in the evening but I was a bit freaked out by it and scurried back down once I had a quick look inside.

Unfortunately the rain soaked all the firewood and despite everyone's best efforts, there would be no toasted marshmallows on El Hoyo this evening. It was a beautiful evening looking down at the lights from the different towns, we could see across to Managua and a few other towns. But most impressive were the stars, it was such a clear night and perched so high on a volcano looking out to the stars was magical.

We were up again at 5am to catch the sunrise across the other side near Momotombo and after a big plate of oatmeal we headed off to Laguna Asososco, a crater lake which looked like it was just beneath us but took nearly four hours to get there. The descent was difficult in many parts with steep sections of loose volcanic gravel. It was a relief to cool off and wash off some of the mud and sweat we had accumulated over the past day and a half. There was one more steep climb out of the crater then we were back onto a dusty road for a few more kilometres to get a couple of buses back to Leon. I can tell you I was so glad to have a shower and a beer by the time I got back in the afternoon.

This couple of days was topped off in the most perfect way, a beautiful steak and a glass of red wine at a really nice restaurant across the road from the hostel. The guides had told me about it and I am so glad. It was the first time I've eaten steak since leaving Sydney and definitely worth the wait.

It is worth mentioning the amazing organisation I did this through, Quetzal Trekkers. It is run largely by volunteers and all profits go towards helping the street kids in Leon. What we pay for the trek is largely a donation and the guides aren't paid at all. It has a truly sustainable approach with even plastic water bottles being reused many times. They generously provide any equipment you don't have like tents, backpacks, sleeping bags, etc which have all been donated. Care is taken on all the treks and there is only the lightest footprint left behind so that the trail is kept in tact so others can continue to enjoy future treks.