The Full Moon hike was on the sucking side of things. It was a pretty challenging hike. We started up the hill around 12:30am and summitted around 5:30 at 3800 metres (we started at around 2400m). There were a ton of disasters on the way up. Mostly there were individuals who were not fit enough to get up the hill or people getting altitude sickness and it was kind of unorganized so each problem would require us all waiting for a really long time. One girl banged her head on a log across the path. We got off the main path and had to crawl along logs. But the full moon did help when we could see it. Everything had moon-shadows.
I guess it all would have been worth it, but the top of the volcano (dormant, Santa Maria) was inside a cloud. There were moments when spots would clear and you could see the sun and the ground. Being inside a cloud is a really claustrophobic experience. You canīt really see things that are more than 10m away at all. And itīs very white. Also the summit was absolutely freezing and there was a fierce wind.
And the altitude effects feel really weird. I was only feeling a shortness of breath. I would walk on flat ground on the summit and it wouldnīt be physically challenging but I would be panting like crazy. Itīs weird to have the two (physical activity vs. cardiovascular work) be disjoint.
The whole way up I was suprised by how awake I was. But on the way down all I had to do was shut my eyes and I would fall asleep. And since it was so steep and muddy and rocky, there was a lot of falling and my knees and hips were abused. We got back to the hostel about 11. I slept until 3 and then ate a big meal.
Tomorrow Iīm going on another trek. Itīs 6 days but the first and last days are just travel from Xela and back. Itīs through indigineous villages that suffered the most in the civil war in the 1980s. It starts in Nebaj and ends in Todos Santos. Thereīs a political component to the trek, we stay with local families and schools and we climb the highest non-volcanic point in Guatemala (there are also some van rides in the actual trek). Here are the details: http://www.quetzaltrekkers.com/nebaj.htm
I guess it all would have been worth it, but the top of the volcano (dormant, Santa Maria) was inside a cloud. There were moments when spots would clear and you could see the sun and the ground. Being inside a cloud is a really claustrophobic experience. You canīt really see things that are more than 10m away at all. And itīs very white. Also the summit was absolutely freezing and there was a fierce wind.
And the altitude effects feel really weird. I was only feeling a shortness of breath. I would walk on flat ground on the summit and it wouldnīt be physically challenging but I would be panting like crazy. Itīs weird to have the two (physical activity vs. cardiovascular work) be disjoint.
The whole way up I was suprised by how awake I was. But on the way down all I had to do was shut my eyes and I would fall asleep. And since it was so steep and muddy and rocky, there was a lot of falling and my knees and hips were abused. We got back to the hostel about 11. I slept until 3 and then ate a big meal.
Tomorrow Iīm going on another trek. Itīs 6 days but the first and last days are just travel from Xela and back. Itīs through indigineous villages that suffered the most in the civil war in the 1980s. It starts in Nebaj and ends in Todos Santos. Thereīs a political component to the trek, we stay with local families and schools and we climb the highest non-volcanic point in Guatemala (there are also some van rides in the actual trek). Here are the details: http://www.quetzaltrekkers.com/nebaj.htm
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