Maderas - Isla de Ometepe, Nicaragua

Maderas

With a height of 1,394 metres, Maderas is the smaller of the two volcanoes which make up the island of Ometepe, situated in Lake Nicaragua in Nicaragua, Central America.  Unlike Concepción, the other volcano on the island, Maderas has not been active in historical times. Its crater contains a crater lake.
The slopes of Maderas are one of the few places on the Pacific side of Nicaragua where cloud forest grows.  Cloud forests are characterized by a rich plant and animal life, made possible by the high levels of humidity in the climate.  Prehistoric petroglyphs have been found at the Maderas volcano.

Myself and 3 Swiss friends decided we'd take the 10 hour climb up and down Mederas.  These guys liked hiking (they're Swiss), and they were all in their 20's .... so I was looking forward to a steady paced climb.  We were all advised to bring at least 3 litres of water each ... I packed 4.5 litres!

Departed at approximately 5:30am.  At about 100 metres elevation the humidity was stifling, my friends who are more adapted to a cooler climate were looking like they were feeling it.  Starting to think I don't have enough water.



Luckily, when we get to about 700 metres the climate is more akin to a tropical rain forest.

It soon starts to downpour with tropical rain, and the temperature drops considerably.




Made it to the top.  Unfortunately a little clouded in, so the view out is minimal.

The creator lake about 100 metres down from the peak.










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