Golden dawn
On the 8th and 9th April we walked up the highest volcano in Central America, Tajumulco, an incredible 14,000 feet! We camped near the summit, which was freezing (literally – the next morning there was frost on the ground!), and at 4.30am went up to the top, to see the sunrise. We had to carry a lot of weight up to where we camped – 9 litres of water between us, lots of layers, food for us both for 4 mealtimes,and a tent, so getting up was pretty exhausting, especially for us (we never do much exercise here and are relatively unfit!) We went up with two guides and a group of students from PLQ and the Mountain School. One of the guides was an ex-guerrilla, who talked about how the volcano was a guerrilla base during the war – Ju translated – and what it meant for him to be going up there, the memories it brought back and how it was a special place for him. Also he talked about the current situation in the area – there is a gold mine in the area which is causing lots of pollution to people’s water supply, using up a lot of water and causing conflict. It was really amazing – we have been wanting to go for ages but originally planned to get fit first, because it takes stamina to get up and the air is quite thin on top which makes breathing (and getting up to the peak) more difficult! Luckily we live at altitude (around 1,400m high, higher than Ben Nevis!), I think that helps!
Comments
Well done to the both of you. Love Dad xx