Climbing Maderas Volcano

I was very, very excited last week to host more visitors! My cousin Katie and her husband Brad arrived on June 16 and spent an action-packed week on Ometepe Island and San Juan Del Sur. Straight from the airport we went to Pochomil, the closest beach to Managua, with Serge and his girlfriend (who arrived June 15). On Sunday we headed to Ometepe Island via bus. Traveling by bus here is always an interesting experience. The Nicaragua transportation system is made up of old North American school buses. They often become full to overflowing (ie, passengers hanging out the back doors). You never need to worry about getting hungry or thirsty because vendors get on and off at major stops to sell you water, pop, cookies, chicken and salad with coleslaw, sandwiches, deep fried sweets...you name it!

On Ometepe Island we stayed at the Charco Verde, located inside a natural reserve and on a nice beach. On Monday, we decided to climb Maderas Volcano. Maderas is almost 1,400 meters high. What a feat!! What sore feet!! It took us 4 hours to climb to the top. At first it was very hot and humid, but it gradually became cooler as we climbed into the cloud forest. It was a challenging climb because Maderas is very muddy. Part way up we saw Howler Monkeys and an endangered White-faced Capuchin monkey. After reaching the summit, we climbed down to the crater lake. The volcanic soil makes the water bottom very mucky...entering the lake puts you knee-deep in mud. We rested for a bit and then started the descent. When we started out we met a bunch of other hikers going down into the crater lake. One climber told his guide that he would pay for a helicopter to come fetch him...we were liking that idea too! It took us 3 hours to get back down. Descending was the harder part in my opinion. About halfway down I thought my legs were going to give out on me. We walked funny for days afterwards....but WE DID IT!