Exploring the Americas

One of the most spectacular things to do near Antigua and in all Guatemala for that matter is climbing Acatenango. Itself a volcano (one of many in the area), it is most famous for watching eruptions of nearby Mount Fuego.
Even though I was still a little sick and weakened from the two previous days, we set out with a group of fifteen for an overnight trek. The hike to "base camp" (huts, not tents, luckily) is only 6km but 1400m in altitude, especially with the beginning being very steep. The hike itself however was beautiful, going through fields, rainforest and then along the mountainside. As it is rainy season, the usual afternoon clouds had rolled in by the time we came to camp, so we couldn't see the eruptions of Fuego, but luckily, it cleared by nightfall, so we managed to see some impressive eruptions in the dark.
They did return though, so we could not approach the volcano and the lava flows any further at night. Instead, we hiked up to Acatenango's summit to watch the sunrise (another 400m altitude at 4am - yay), also quite a view to behold. After breakfast in camp, we hiked back down, had lunch with some of the group and then set out for our next target - Atitlán.
What made the trip special on top was the group and the guides, as everyone contributed to a good mood despite the weather.En savoir plus