… an excellent moderate hiking experience for anyone wanting to experience the beauty of volcanos

Day 1

Morning 8:00 am – Pan American Highway Drive to San Jacinto Village

Cordillera Maribios is a volcanic range comprised of five volcanos and is located in the western region of Nicaragua. During this hike we will be hiking three of them, Telica 1075m, Cerro Negro 550m, and El Hoyo 1000m.

Before we begin our hike we will enjoy a short tour of the San Jacinto bubbling mud pits. A truly unique experience due to the ever changing landscape from rain and other environmental factors.

Upon entrance to the fields you will be amazed to see the locals selling artifacts for a very low price. These artifacts were made by the Chorotega Indigenous people and history tells us these people made clay disks, whistles, beads, rattles and various other objects and threw them into the earth during planting season as gifts for the “gods” to ask for a healthy crop. As well as the clay offerings, there are also axe blades made of various rock and other farming implements. If you are interested in spear heads there’s plenty to choose from.

From here we will join up with the rest of our team who will have two horses to assist with our supplies and we will begin hiking our first volcano. Telica became active in August 1999. An eruption produced ash-fall, and on the 18th of August a lava lake was observed in the summit crater. In April of 2015 another small eruption occurred. Due to the ash from the continued eruptions the slopes remain bare of vegetation. There are 3 craters at the top, two of which are very small, the third is 700 meters wide and 140 meters deep. The hike will take five to six hours to reach the summit. As always in an effort to support local economy, we will be met at the top by locals in the area who will have food and drinks to enjoy as you watch the sunset and relax after your day of hiking.

Day 2

Morning 6 am – Hike down the Volcano and Drive to Rota Village

What a great way to start the day, a walk down the volcano and the sun rising before us. Once we have reached Rota we will begin our next hike to Cerro Negro Volcano where Julio Tours will provide you with a pack containing coveralls, goggles, gloves, elbow and knee pads, a bandana to cover your face and a sand board. You are encouraged to carry your own board but if this is challenging there are locals who will gladly do it for a small fee. Prior to 2009 there was no marked trail. Today this trail is classified as moderate to challenging depending on your physical fitness. The hike from the base of the volcano to the summit will take approximately one hour.

Once at the top, you have plenty of time to walk around the crater and take photos of Nicaragua’s rich agriculture nestled amongst five other volcanos. If you look carefully in the distance you can see as far as the Pacific Ocean. The view is truly spectacular, with a myriad of colors in all directions along with the smoke from the gases, this tour is a visual delight and guaranteed to stand out from others.

Getting back down to the bottom is much easier and takes much less time. If you lose your nerve and decide not to board down the side of the volcano you can walk or run down the sandy slope in just ten minutes. For you adrenaline junkies, boarding down Cerro Negro is a once in a lifetime story you will tell over and over again to your friends back home!

You will have time to eat, take a shower and change at the facilities in order to prepare for your next volcano, El Hoyo. The hike to our camping spot will take approximately two hours and you will be able to eat and enjoy another sunset.

Day 3

Morning Hike to Laguna Del Tigre

This fresh water crater lagoon is perfect for swimming. You will have plenty of time to enjoy the morning at the crater before meeting the truck and driving to La Paz Centro to eat a national dish we call “Quesillo”. After lunch we will take you to your final destination and say our goodbyes.