Sweating it out with the Bugs and Geckos in Isla Ometepe
Upon arrival at San Jorge del Sud, a small town on the banks of Lago Nicaragua, we were greeted by clouds of small insects which bore a remarkable resemblance to mosquitos but luckily did not bite. There were also some chained up monkeys near the ferry office who didn´t look very happy.
Here is what wikipedia has to say about the Isla Ometepe:
"Ometepe is an island formed by two volcanoes rising from Lake Nicaragua in the Republic of Nicaragua. Its name derives from the Nahuatl words ome (two) and tepetl (mountain), meaning two mountains. The two volcanoes, Concepcion and Maderas, are joined by a low isthmus to form one island in the shape of an hourglass."
Concepcion is still regarded as active. It last erupted in the 1950s and bares the scarred slopes from that time. Maderas has been extinct for many years and is covered in cloud forest. The area had once been connected to the Pacific ocean but a land bridge developed which created the independant lake. Slowly the water turned from salt into fresh and all the saltwater fish and creatures that had been trapped adapted to their new environment. This has resulted in several endemic species to emerge such as the freshwater shark and marlin.
We got on a ferry to Isla Ometepe which only took an hour. From there we bargained with a few people and secured a taxi to the Playa Santa Domingo at a hugely discounted rate. We picked Hostal Buena Vista to stay. The place was on the lake beach Santa Domingo and had a very relaxed feel to it. We unfortunately discovered that our room was ridiculously hot and humid but we lacked the motivation to seek out alternative accommodation. Along with the heat were more clouds of the tiny mosquito-like insects. When I looked out onto the lake it seemed like it was raining as the fish close to the shore indulged in a feeding frenzy on all the bugs landing on the surface.
By a fluke we were at the same place as the Aussies and English travellers we had met in San Juan del Sur. Just as in San Juan del Sur, there were geckos everywhere making their strange yapping noises. My first step was to get a large cerveca and walk out into the calm lake to enjoy the twilight. There were already quite a few people chilling out there too and the water was very warm and relaxing. I sank contentedly up to my neck and started to enjoy my beer. Just as I was starting to unwind, I feel a sharp insistent tug on my submerged left nipple. A cheeky fish had decided that it looked like a tasty meal and had had a chomp on it! I told Marie who thought I was joking until she got nibbled a few times on her legs, each time letting out a yelp and almost jumping out the water. After several more nips I decided that I had endured enough harassment and got out of the lake.
Map of the Isla: Volcan Concepcion is the big part on the left and Maderas is on the right
Playa Santa Domingo with Maderas in the background
A huge downpour ensued later in the evening. I woke up with water from outside dripping on me and half my mattress soaked through... not what I was needing at all! I managed to get a couple of hours sleep before we were summoned, exhausted, to the taxi to take us for our Maderas Volcano hike. Marie and I had stocked up on 4.5 litres of water between us. That should be enough right? As I had no hiking boots I was generously lent a pair of white Dunlop trainers by Max (Eng) who had decided he would rather go motorbiking for the day. A taxi took us to the base of the volcano where we paid the informal park entrance fee (hidden costs are a specialty in Nicaragua it seems). Our group was made up of Marie, Jack (Eng), Jeanne (Canada), 2 Navy officers from Spain (who we suspect were intimately involved with one another), Victor, Niklas and myself.
The first section was a gradual incline which was easy enough. As the sun rose, the temperature and humidity spiked quite sharply and we found that we had become walking sweat dispensers. Water bottles were frequently in use and by the time we had reached the halfway viewpoint, we realised that we needed to slow down or else we would run out. Our fears were intensified as we had heard a month earlier a tourist couple had actually died on the trek. Apparently they got lost which I find hard to believe. Surely all it takes is a bit of common sense to walk downhill from the volcano to reach the shore??
Smiley faces... little did we know what was in store for us
Concepcion and the isthmus
Anyway we continued our ascent and got immersed in the cloudforest that covers the volcano. The mist enveloped us and the path became damp. There was a great deal of wildlife that we heard such as Howler monkeys and the absurdly loud noise made by a large green species of cicada. The incline became steeper and the path muddier until I was sloshing ankle deep in it and having the occasional slip. Finally we reached the apex of the cone and moved down into it. We collapsed on the grassy banks of the small crater lake and took a long timeout. Most of us went for a swim in the cool waters but the mud at the bottom sank up to your knees which wasn´t pleasant so I didn´t linger.
In the crater lake
Exhaustion!
After some lunch and relaxation our guide kicked us back into gear to make the return journey. This was the difficult part for me. The muddy path had converted the slick bottomed Dunlop trainers into a pair of skis. I literally skidded my way down the volcano for the next 3 hours, cursing wildly at the mud, the shoes and anything else that I happened to crash into. Marie did not help matters by placing a large green cicada on my shoulder that started to make a racket and gave me a minor heart aneurysm. I emerged at the bottom covered in mud and fairly grumpy.
A bored Howler monkey
Back at the hostel we all had a rest as the hike had been really tough (well for me at least). We had dinner and went to sleep early but struggled to get much rest as the temperature and beds made us far too uncomfortable.
Granada was our next destination so in the morning we took a shuttle to the port where we ferried back to San Jorge. In the air-conditioned cabin we were tormented with the music video of a local Nicaraguan artist. I can´t remember his name but I do recall that he was about 50, had a potbelly and long straggly hair to his shoulders. The shocking thing about it was that in the music video were several young girls, (all most likely teenagers) shaking and dancing in a very very provocative manner with him. It was a bit amusing how bad the acting was though.
Here is what wikipedia has to say about the Isla Ometepe:
"Ometepe is an island formed by two volcanoes rising from Lake Nicaragua in the Republic of Nicaragua. Its name derives from the Nahuatl words ome (two) and tepetl (mountain), meaning two mountains. The two volcanoes, Concepcion and Maderas, are joined by a low isthmus to form one island in the shape of an hourglass."
Concepcion is still regarded as active. It last erupted in the 1950s and bares the scarred slopes from that time. Maderas has been extinct for many years and is covered in cloud forest. The area had once been connected to the Pacific ocean but a land bridge developed which created the independant lake. Slowly the water turned from salt into fresh and all the saltwater fish and creatures that had been trapped adapted to their new environment. This has resulted in several endemic species to emerge such as the freshwater shark and marlin.
We got on a ferry to Isla Ometepe which only took an hour. From there we bargained with a few people and secured a taxi to the Playa Santa Domingo at a hugely discounted rate. We picked Hostal Buena Vista to stay. The place was on the lake beach Santa Domingo and had a very relaxed feel to it. We unfortunately discovered that our room was ridiculously hot and humid but we lacked the motivation to seek out alternative accommodation. Along with the heat were more clouds of the tiny mosquito-like insects. When I looked out onto the lake it seemed like it was raining as the fish close to the shore indulged in a feeding frenzy on all the bugs landing on the surface.
By a fluke we were at the same place as the Aussies and English travellers we had met in San Juan del Sur. Just as in San Juan del Sur, there were geckos everywhere making their strange yapping noises. My first step was to get a large cerveca and walk out into the calm lake to enjoy the twilight. There were already quite a few people chilling out there too and the water was very warm and relaxing. I sank contentedly up to my neck and started to enjoy my beer. Just as I was starting to unwind, I feel a sharp insistent tug on my submerged left nipple. A cheeky fish had decided that it looked like a tasty meal and had had a chomp on it! I told Marie who thought I was joking until she got nibbled a few times on her legs, each time letting out a yelp and almost jumping out the water. After several more nips I decided that I had endured enough harassment and got out of the lake.
Map of the Isla: Volcan Concepcion is the big part on the left and Maderas is on the right
Playa Santa Domingo with Maderas in the backgroundA huge downpour ensued later in the evening. I woke up with water from outside dripping on me and half my mattress soaked through... not what I was needing at all! I managed to get a couple of hours sleep before we were summoned, exhausted, to the taxi to take us for our Maderas Volcano hike. Marie and I had stocked up on 4.5 litres of water between us. That should be enough right? As I had no hiking boots I was generously lent a pair of white Dunlop trainers by Max (Eng) who had decided he would rather go motorbiking for the day. A taxi took us to the base of the volcano where we paid the informal park entrance fee (hidden costs are a specialty in Nicaragua it seems). Our group was made up of Marie, Jack (Eng), Jeanne (Canada), 2 Navy officers from Spain (who we suspect were intimately involved with one another), Victor, Niklas and myself.
The first section was a gradual incline which was easy enough. As the sun rose, the temperature and humidity spiked quite sharply and we found that we had become walking sweat dispensers. Water bottles were frequently in use and by the time we had reached the halfway viewpoint, we realised that we needed to slow down or else we would run out. Our fears were intensified as we had heard a month earlier a tourist couple had actually died on the trek. Apparently they got lost which I find hard to believe. Surely all it takes is a bit of common sense to walk downhill from the volcano to reach the shore??
Smiley faces... little did we know what was in store for us
Concepcion and the isthmusAnyway we continued our ascent and got immersed in the cloudforest that covers the volcano. The mist enveloped us and the path became damp. There was a great deal of wildlife that we heard such as Howler monkeys and the absurdly loud noise made by a large green species of cicada. The incline became steeper and the path muddier until I was sloshing ankle deep in it and having the occasional slip. Finally we reached the apex of the cone and moved down into it. We collapsed on the grassy banks of the small crater lake and took a long timeout. Most of us went for a swim in the cool waters but the mud at the bottom sank up to your knees which wasn´t pleasant so I didn´t linger.
In the crater lake
Exhaustion!After some lunch and relaxation our guide kicked us back into gear to make the return journey. This was the difficult part for me. The muddy path had converted the slick bottomed Dunlop trainers into a pair of skis. I literally skidded my way down the volcano for the next 3 hours, cursing wildly at the mud, the shoes and anything else that I happened to crash into. Marie did not help matters by placing a large green cicada on my shoulder that started to make a racket and gave me a minor heart aneurysm. I emerged at the bottom covered in mud and fairly grumpy.
A bored Howler monkeyBack at the hostel we all had a rest as the hike had been really tough (well for me at least). We had dinner and went to sleep early but struggled to get much rest as the temperature and beds made us far too uncomfortable.
Granada was our next destination so in the morning we took a shuttle to the port where we ferried back to San Jorge. In the air-conditioned cabin we were tormented with the music video of a local Nicaraguan artist. I can´t remember his name but I do recall that he was about 50, had a potbelly and long straggly hair to his shoulders. The shocking thing about it was that in the music video were several young girls, (all most likely teenagers) shaking and dancing in a very very provocative manner with him. It was a bit amusing how bad the acting was though.
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