NICARAGUA'S FIRE MOUNTAINS
Adventures in the 'Land of Lakes and Volcanoes' - A fresh and exciting trekking destination - Climb Concepcion, one of Nicaragua's highest volcanoes - Relax on a Caribbean island
11 nights hotels and lodges, 5 days MODERATE trekking, 5 days touring, sightseeing and beach relaxation, max. altitude - 1610m / 5282ft. Some meals not included.
moderate
Approximately the same size as England and Wales, Nicaragua is the largest of the Central American republics. Sandwiched between El Salvador in the north and Costa Rica to the south, Nicaragua's 120,000 square kilometres are jam-packed with fantastic adventure opportunities, centred around its impressive volcanoes and lakes. Running parallel to the Pacific Coast and forming part of the so-called, 'Ring of Fire', many of Nicaragua's volcanoes are considered to be active, although none are currently erupting. A narrow strip of lowland lies to the west or Pacific side of this spine of volcanoes and a much larger lowland area extends eastwards to the Atlantic or Caribbean coast. The focus of this excellent new trekking holiday is the chain of volcanic peaks which lie to the north of the 160 kilometre-long Lake Nicaragua, including two which rise up in the centre of the lake to form the hour-glass-shaped island of Ometepe. From our comfortable accommodation in Granada, in Leon and on Ometepe Island itself, we will enjoy a week of varied day-hiking, walking for between 4 and 8 hours each day and reaching as many as 5 summits. Spanish Colonial towns, charming villages, tropical forest and far-reaching views are all a part of the experience - as are smoking fissures, boiling mud, lava pools, crater lakes perfect for swimming and Pacific coastal lagoons. After a warm-up walk on Mombacho and a chance to tackle the canopy-level walkways and zip lines on its forested slopes, we will take the ferry across Lake Nicaragua to Ometepe Island and ascend each of the giant volcanoes that combine to give the island its distinctive shape - Volcan Maderas and then the stunning Volcan Concepcion (1610m / 5282ft). Then, after transferring to the town of Leon, we will climb the amazing black ash mountain of Cerro Negro and the perfectly conical Momotombo. There is more to this holiday than volcano-bashing, however, as we fly out to spend 2 nights on the remote and unspoiled Caribbean islet of Little Corn, a paradise for diving and fishing. Our time here, far from the influence of the 21st Century, will give us the opportunity to relax and reflect on a gem of a trip.
We have graded this trip as a moderate trek. This is an overall grade for the trip and takes into account a number of factors including the overall length of the trip, the facilities available and the ease with which it is possible to opt out of various sections of the itinerary. Although this is neither a long nor continuous trek, the ascents of the volcanoes themselves will present quite challenging hikes even to regular hillwalkers. Each of our 5 hiking days will involve between 4 and 8 hours walking and the underfoot conditions will often be steep and loose. With the exception of the first day's warm-up hike on Mombacho (where we drive to the summit), each of the days will include a considerable amount of ascent (and descent), particularly the ascents of Maderas, Concepcion and Momotombo.
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The trip pages are only a brief summary of the details available within our trip dossiers. It is important that you read the full day to day description and further information for this trip before making your booking.
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