Antigua - Volcan Pacaya

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After another uncomfortable overnight bus journey, we arrived in Guatemala City to, thankfully, catch the 'shuttle' to Antigua, an hour or so away. Gemma decides to head on to Lake Aititlan ahead of us whilst Sarah and Erin spend a night in Antigua, in preparation for a hike up the active Volcan Pacaya.

Antigua reminds us of San Cristobal with its colourful houses and cloth although the setting is even more beautiful due to the surrounding volcanoes. From the photos you can see how picturesque Antigua really is. It has small coffee houses surrounding the parque central. We enjoy tasting the local coffee beans and look forward to a visit to the plantations! It also has a very antique feel and the towns plumbing dates back to the 1500's...There are local artisans scattered through the streets, eager to capture the colourfulness of the town and the beautiful volcanic backdrop. Central Antigua is famous for its Spanish schools. There are lots of tourists and young backpackers that travel from afar to study here. We notice the town seems to be very well kept and more prosperous than any previous villages/towns we have visited in Guatemala.

Another early start. We were up and ready to be collected for our volcano trek by 6am. After another bumpy ride we arrive half way up the volcano in the small hamlet of San Francisco de Sales. Our guide greets us with enthusiasm and we begin an uphill trail to the rim of the old Cerro Chino crater, at about 2265 m. The trail continues to the left along this rim, gradually climbing and circling around to the base of the Pacaya cone. The view is stunning and reveals interlayering flows and pyroclastic deposits. Pacaya's current active phase began in 1965, and the volcano has been almost constantly in eruption since then. From the photos you can see how close we came to the lava streams. The heat was intense and singed a few boys hairy knees! We scrambled over the hot rocks whilst trying to avoid being toppled over by the strong winds and watched our guide (who originates from San Francisco de Sales and is quite clearly insane!) tease us with his jumps across the lava and death defying antics! Many of the people we met on the volcano had seen numerous active volcanoes around the world and this was the closest they had ever come to the lava..."way cool"!!

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Comments

[Sparky]

Amazing!
Wow how cool! you guys are so lucky that's awesome! you look great! big fan of the walking stick can you grab me one of those for fiji! :) haha lots of love xxx

[anonymous]

I said stop it!Im sooooo jealous!!! Just joking, have the best time ever,looks absolutely unbelievable, you lucky girls!!!Love you and miss you lots xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[Carl Read]

Hot Stuff
Wow, that is so cool, i can't belive you guys climbed an active volcano! How brave are you.... The view across the horizon there with the volcano backdrop definitely beats the view across Putney Bridge! Can't wait to see more. xxxxxxxxxx

[Fi]

Hey Guys, Thanks for sending the blogs, I can't believe all the fabulous places you have been, and have still left to go! Enjoy, and I look forward to the next installment. Love Fi x

[Isabelle]

Volcano!
Auntie Sarah, I want to see a volcano! Granny and I looked on the internet and saw you on the volcano. Miss you Auntie Sarah. Love from Izzy. x

[Lou]

oh my god, (Janice stylee)
I have finally got my hands on the URL and have looked through all your journals - they are fantastic - absolutely amazing, (I wonder how many times you've heard that from how many people)!!! You guys are doing brilliantly. Will send you an email this afternoon can't wait to see the next lot - getting lots of ideas about where I'm going to drag Alistair!!! Lou xxxxxx

[Mum L]

Missing you but loving the blog
You've been away a month now and we do miss you but you're obviously having a fabulous time. The whole of Suffolk is reading the blog and can't wait for each instalment. Friends send you best wishes and family send you best love!