Jo's Quetzaltrekkers reflections

I wanted to write about the 3 months we've just spent living and working in Leon as it's been so different from the rest of our trip. It's been an incredible experience and there have been highs (both literally & figuratively) and lows during which I've learnt so much about myself, which surprised me at my ripe old age!

I have to say to start with I struggled, both with the hiking & the social side of being thrown in with a bunch of teenagers and early 20somethings. Much more so than Phil who reveled in both the physical challenge and the chance to act like a 20 year old again :) On my first hike I was with 2 guides Max & Job who were teaching me the ropes when I discovered to my horror (& probably theirs) that I was older than both of their combined ages... On my first Telica hike the guide training me, Soren, had just turned 19 and we had two 20 year old clients who liked to run marathons so unsurprisingly I was by far the slowest & was practically in tears during the steep section. On another memorable early hike a client was really struggling, so much so I took her bag but she suddenly fainted right in front of me she was unconscious for about a minute, which was one of the longest minutes of my life. I felt so alone & out of my depth and the responsibility of what we were doing really hit home. (It all ended ok, we got her down the volcano and into hospital where it turned out she had a kidney infection - I took her on another hike a couple of weeks later & she did brilliantly.) All in all I really wondered if I would be able to stick out the 3 months we had committed to do.

However I persevered, became fitter and stopped worrying about speed or holding back groups. In fact I naturally preferred being the guide at the back of the group who had to help the clients who were struggling, it was so rewarding to get someone to push themselves and discover they could do so much more than they had imagined. I had one client who cried at the beginning because she didn't think she could do it but by the end was crying with joy as she was so proud of herself. I also had the pleasure of guiding my sister on our hikes, showing her the beautiful landscapes & amazing views we've been living with.

As for the other guides they are some of the nicest most genuine people I've had the privilege to meet. They were initially a bit skeptical when they heard an 'older couple' were going to be guides but I have to say they got over our age differences much more quickly than I did. They were much better at rolling with the issues and annoyances which invariably came up which initially frustrated me but I grew to appreciate the attitude that we'd sort out anything that arose one way or another. "At Quetzaltrekkers we are very good problem solvers!" Miguel Canto guide 2017. I discovered some new bands (Glass Animals) and music genres (Reggaton) and we spent way too much time discussing possible GoT plot twists over way too many beers at Via Via. At our various parties I became the chief Mojito maker & learnt that syrup works amazingly well if you've run out of sugar (this twist on the classic cocktail was named the 'MojiJo').

It has been a great confidence boost to find out that I could succeed in a totally different, physical work environment, learn to need less control & roll with whatever came my way whilst making so many new friends. Overall I'm really proud with myself, I did 12 overnight hikes & have climbed Cerro Negro countless times for volcano boarding. I found out that on the hikes I did in July I made over $3500 in profit going directly to underprivileged kids in and around Leon. Now it's time to move on, it's been emotional & I'm sad to say goodbye but satisfied in a job well done.Read more