Ometepe ALMOST broke me.
On Thursday, our shuttle was just a little late AND I had miscalculated the time it would take to get there, so we ended up arriving for our 2:30pm ferry at 2:27pm & wouldn’t you know it, we missed it. Pro Tip 1: go early for your ferry.
So we chatted with the guys at the Information desk and they reminded me that taxis to the other end of the island, where our hostel was, would be crazy expensive. I knew this, but figured a) we were trying to catch the 3:45pm bus (which we would’ve missed) & b) one taxi is no big deal. But I failed to realize that I booked this hostel before bryce and I decided to climb Concepcíon, which-wouldn’t you know it-was back on the opposite side. So when he laid it all out, we were looking at $200 in taxis. Many people prior to this had suggested that we rent scooters, and he echoed this recommendation. He explained that it’d be less than half the price & we’d get them for 48 hours. Seemed like a good deal, so we paid for that, a guide for our hiking tour, & a shuttle for when we returned. Of course, it was cash only, so my cash supply had been sucked completely dry after this. He explained that on the island, they’d be waiting with our two scooters & they’d just need a credit card deposit & then we’d be off. Sounded good. Done. Check.
While waiting for the ferry, I realized that that last thing I wanted to do was drive a tiny scooter around a foreign island, in the dark, on crappy roads, for an hour to get to our hostel, then back again at 5:30am to climb the volcano. Feeling defeated because I had done too much work to scout a good hostel and booked months in advance, bryce & I decided to try to find somewhere closer to stay. Using my 2G data and Eric’s help, we cancelled my super cool but far away hostel and booked one of the only ones still open. I wanted to cry, to be honest. I put so much time & effort into planning my trips & I research & feel so prepared, & to have miscalculated so much left me deflated & frustrated. Plus, I felt like I had dropped the ball for bryce. This was his first time really traveling, so I had spent hours trying to make it as effortless as possible and at this stop, so far, I had failed.
But, the ferry was amazing and perked up my mood. I think I mostly just love boats. I miss Semester at Sea so damn much, so pretty much any boat gets me so excited. I spent an hour and a half reminiscing about my memories on SAS. Except this ferry was 1,000 times choppier thanks to rough winds and the fact that it was a super old, kind of small boat instead of a massive cruise ship. I had a front row seat up top, though so I was living my dream. But Pro Tip 2: people are cutthroat to get spots on these bad boys so be prepared to push as there’s no real line to get on, just a flimsy, narrow walkway that a bunch of people need to hold on to you while you scramble over. So instead of a line, people are shoving in all directions to get on. Throw some elbows because seats fill fast.
Once we landed on shore of Ometepe, we had to wait about 30 minutes for our scooters, even though we had gotten a new hostel so we didn’t even really need them but it was too late so whatever. While we wait, she explains the deposit. $100 per scooter. In cash. She assured us we’d get it back when we return the scooters but I obviously didn’t have $200 in cash so we had to head to an ATM. I left bryce to watch our stuff and rode off into the sunset with this woman. First ATM didn’t work. Drove further. No luck at the second one, either. The third one ate my card and it took 20 minutes to get it back. I asked again if we could just do the deposit with a credit card, and she said okay. When we got back, she spoke to her boss and apparently that was not okay, so she offered an alternative. After throwing a huge fit, the sun had set and we left Bryce’s passport as collateral. I was fuming at this point.
We drove away, each on our own scooter and me feeling my anxiety levels rising to new heights, off to find our new, last minute hostel. On the map, it looked close, but the scooter lady said 10-15 minutes. I should’ve known better considering our interactions until then didn’t paint her in a great light. And alas, we got lost. Around 8,472 bugs flew into my eyes so I had actually started crying at this point (because of the bugs…). Finally, on our third attempt, we found the hostel, with giant gates enclosing it… locked. At this point, to say I was on edge is the understatement of the year. I tried calling the number listed and using my choppy Spanish, but it was the wrong number. I turned to bryce, with tears in my eyes, panicked, when the owner opened the gate and pointed to a doorbell that I had missed.
Our host was lovely and our room was basic. Private bathroom which was nice, but then we killed the biggest spider either of us had ever seen so we were a little turned off by it at that point. Bryce was more upset than I was, probably because I had really expected it at that point and also because my emotions were so shot that I just wanted to sleep. We ventured out to eat: nothing exciting. I had 1 and a half tacos and we went home to prepare for our big hike. I slept terribly- constantly stressing something or other and frankly really worried that I’d had a panic attack on the side of a volcano and die. My lungs hate climbing and my anxiety hates it more.
In the morning, our host cooked us breakfast but for some reason scrambled eggs make me gag so I only ate a few bites before we left for our hike. Pro Tip 3: eat more than 1.5 tacos and a half of an egg if you’re going on an 8 hour hike up a volcano. Also, remember your granola bars so you aren’t left with two bananas. On a hike that burned close to 6,000 calories, I realize I should’ve consumed more than a couple hundred prior to climbing.
A bit of backstory: Ometepe is an island in the middle of the largest lake in Central America, Lake Nicaragua. It’s, according to our guide, the safest place in Nicaragua, even though there are only 6 police officers. On it sit two volcanos, Concepcion and Maderas. Concepcion is the only one of the two that is active and it’s known to cough up a bit of rocks and ash without much warning. Historically, it had major eruptions every 50 years. It is currently 7 years overdue. The hike is notoriously difficult, particularly since the volcano is about as tall as 3.5 Sears Towers. There’s only trails for part of the climb, so a local guide is required by law. One wrong step towards the top would lead to several broken bones at best.
We ended up getting to the base of the volcano early and we impatiently waited for our guide to arrive. After worrying that we had messed up, he showed up and we departed. Esé spoke very little English, so I got to practice my Spanish for 8.5 hours and surprised myself with how successful I was. The first two hours of the hike was in the tropical forest. We saw monkeys, we saw parrots, we saw random animals I’ve never seen, and boy was I sweating. Drenched, actually. It was probably 85 degrees or more and humid, so even with the shade of the trees, I was struggling. We started off strong, passing a couple groups ahead of us, but I eventually ended up needing more frequent breaks. After I dubbed Esé the Energizer Bunny, he nick named me Tortugita, which meant little turtle in Spanish. Fitting.
After 2 or 3 hours, we made it to the look out point. With wind blowing us over, literally knocking us down, we ate a little bit, took some photos, rested our tiring muscles, and asked our guide about the rest of the route.
He recommended that we head back down. The winds were strong, and he thought it would be too dangerous. Most guides weren’t giving people the option; just heading on the descent. Esé asked us and Bryce wanted to so badly, so I agreed to hike another 100 meters then decide.
The terrain had become just rocks. So steep that we were on all fours, the wind lashed at us constantly. Losing my footing a few times, I’d call down to bryce to warn him about the rocks cascading towards him. We made it to the second stopping point and we could see the top, finally. But it was still an hour or so away. An hour on dangerous rocks with winds well over 20 mph. I tried to convince Bryce out of it, as everyone who had enough courage to climb to this lookout spot had the same debate and eventually turned to descend. Bryce even tried convincing me to just wait there for him (??? Wait 2 hours on the side of a volcano— no.) but finally I decided that we had to go. At least try.
For those wondering, I originally sat down outside of this frame and then scooted, slowly, towards this edge.
I knew it’d be hard, but even I underestimated it. It was brutal. The air was so thin and the rocks were getting less and less stable but more and more jagged as we went up. Some of the rocks were pretty warm, and in some of the gaps between rocks, if you placed your hand there it would burn as the heat from within the volcano warmed the rocks outside. Looking to either side, we could see huge valleys where magma had cut through the ground in the last eruption. Falling down would likely mean death. To illustrate this, Esé would gently toss a rock down and we’d listen to it roll down the jagged side, over the cliff, & several seconds later, we’d hear it thump onto the ground below and continue rolling.
We stopped near the top to put on jackets and eat another banana. We had climbed into one of the valleys to help block the wind, but it was daunting to look up and see how steep the climb ahead was. We saw only one group come down from the top; the rest of the people hadn’t even attempted. Apparently, on a good day, only 25% of hikers reach the top. On the day we went, I’d guess that number was under 10%.
So, ever so carefully, we finished the hike. 2 minutes from the top, the wind was so vicious that I crouched down, trying to keep the volcanic rock and ash out of my eyes and mouth and cover all exposed skin as rocks pelted me with such force that I thought I’d be bleeding. I debating turning back there. Thankfully, I didn’t. In four more giant steps, I found myself with a view of a MASSIVE crater. Sulfuric gas pretty much replaced normal air though, and the winds were whipping us around, so we only had a few minutes here before we started my least favorite part: the descent.
Honestly, what can be scarier than climbing 5,200+ feet up an active volcano, scrambling over slippery, jagged rocks, and holding on for dear life when you slip? Let me tell you: going DOWN that volcano. I was pretty tired when we reached the top, but the way down was so much worse. My knees ached pretty quickly. My feet and ankles we sore within minutes from the last several hours of balancing, and my legs felt like I had already done 400 pistol squats on each side (probably because I basically had.) Bryce & I joked on the way down about how awful it was, but all joking aside I really wasn’t sure we’d make it. Twice, I lost my footing on the rocks, sending several flying out down the volcano while I slid down the side towards one of the valleys, catching myself just in time & seeing a panicked look on Esé’s face. I was bleeding in a few spots by now, but the blood was mixed with dirt and rock and the pain in my muscles overshadowed any pain on my skin. It took us two hours to get back to the trees and mud and away from those damn rocks.
With over an hour left, our legs were visibly shaking. My feet had stopped lifting high enough so I’d continually fall a bit in the muddy forest and would use my walking stick to pull myself back up. At one point I strongly debated staying on the ground, waiting for insects to eat me alive and let me Rest In Peace on the side of this massive volcano.
Spoiler alert: we did survive. Our bodies aren’t working super well anymore and we are both sunburnt to death, but we survived. I’ve shampooed 6 times, but there’s still a layer of volcanic rocks and dirt embedded into my scalp. Maybe it’ll be gone when I come home next week.
Pro Tip 4: hike Concepcion. Bring sunscreen and a bandanna to cover your face. Glasses to keep the rocks out of your eyes. A jacket and long pants for the top. Tylenol for the next day.
After the struggle of getting here, I wasn’t thinking I’d recommend this island. It’s a bit out of the way, so I thought maybe I should’ve skipped it. WRONG. If you’re in Nicaragua, skip Granada and spend several days in Ometepe. I wish we had more time here, as there was still so much to do. The people were incredibly nice and if you’re in Nica, you’ve GOT to do that hike.
Also, we did get Bryce’s passport back without any problems! (*thumbs up emoji*) Now we’re sitting in a cafe waiting for our ferry. Fingers crossed that the rest goes to plan!
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