Sunrise from Volcan San Pedro

We were told that the view from Volcan San Pedro was not to be missed, but the previous day's fog over the lake wasn't very inspiring. We figured our best chance for a view would be at day break so we set an alarm for 2:30 am and when we looked out of the tent and saw stars, we decided to go for it. We walked from our rooftop campsite up to the park entrance and were at the summit of Volcan San Pedro just as the horizon was turning red. We enjoyed a spectacular sunrise through the clouds, and especially enjoyed the warmth that the sun brought when it finally hit us. We sat and snacked for a while, but the clouds were already getting thicker and higher so we opted for a walk on small jungle trails to a slightly higher summit along the thickly forested crater rim and then started down. We were lucky to catch a glimpse of the rare Horned Guan flying through the trees on our way down the steep trail through the jungle, and lower down we passed through coffee and avocado farms that we had walked through in the dark on the way up. With a day's hiking done at 10 am we relaxed on the rooftop for the rest of the day. Later in the afternoon, we finally ventured down to the lake shore to check out the lively Spanish school/hostel strip that we hadn't explored yet, and then headed back home for an early bedtime.Read more