Nicaragua is dotted with 19 active volcanoes, many of them still spewing molten earth. It was, however, one of the extinct volcanoes that drew me out of bed my first morning in the country. Of all the activities on my Nicaraguan itinerary, the one I absolutely knew I wanted to do was visit the Laguna de Apoyo. I had heard from many sources that it was the highlight of many travelers. I wanted the chance to swim in the sapphire waters myself while I was there.

After a quick breakfast and a SIM card debacle, we were ready to make our way out to the Reserve that contains the lake. Unfortunately, we missed the shuttle that transports people, so we had to opt for a taxi. The taxi cost $20. We were bummed to spend so much of our cash so early into the trip. If we had went with more people, the taxi would have been a good deal. The ride from Granada took about 20 minutes, half on highway and half on steep, unpaved road.

At the recommendation of our hotel, we made our destination the Paradiso Hostel, but there are dozens of hotels along the lake and pretty much all of them offer some sort of day pass. The day pass at Paradiso Hostel costs $7 and includes use of all the grounds, the kayaks and complementary coffee all day! Upon check-in, I immediately made my way down to the beach, stripped to my bikini and jumped into the lake. It felt to refreshing.

I had heard that the water at Laguna de Apoyo was very warm.  It was comfortable to swim in, but it was not bath water the way I was expecting. After diving in, I immediately noticed that the water tasted sulphuric, which made sense. The lake is housed in a volcanic crater. Despite not being the temperature of bath water, the lake is still very comfortable considering how deep it is. The bottom of Laguna de Apoyo is the lowest spot in all of Central America. The water maintains its 25 degrees celsius with hot fumaroles. The beach next to Hostel Paradiso was comfortable to swim in, but there are some parts of the lake that are actually boiling!

I spent a long time just floating out in the water. It was so serene to just tread while looking back at the shore.  Eventually, I noticed my fingers had long since pruned, so I headed back to the beach. Hostel Paradiso had a bar right on the beach. After drying off, I grabbed a seat and ordered some fries and a smoothie. The food was inexpensive and pretty tasty.  After finishing my meal and digesting a little, I spent some time wandering and shooting the grounds.

The Hostel Paradiso is, as the name suggests, a paradise. Hotels and resorts dot the shore of Laguna de Apoyo. But Hostel Paradiso’s location tucked in a small cove makes it feel remote. The hostel offers yoga, massage and Spanish lessons. There is a patio on the same level as the reception with an unbeatable view of the lake sprawling out below. This is where you can treat yourself to the hotel’s coffee. Honestly, if I had known how amazing and enjoyable my time at Hostel Paradiso was going to be, I think I would have stayed overnight. People treat Laguna de Apoyo as a day trip. I would, however, recommend all visitors spend a night.

Sweating from exploring the grounds in the hot Nicaraguan sun, I returned to the beach for my second dip in the lake. This swim was even more idyllic than the morning one.  As I made my way into the water, clouds had started rolling in. The beach was covered in shadow, but about 100 ft out in the lake, the sun’s rays were peeking through. Just floating in the mineral-rich water soaking in the last few drops of sunshine of the day was one of my highlights from all of Nicaragua.

When I finished my swim, clouds had completely shrouded the sky.  It was time to return to Granada. Hostel Paradiso offers a shuttle service to Granada, but the day we were visiting, the bus was broken, so Hostel Paradiso was organizing taxis for groups of four. While waiting for our taxi, the skies opened. The next thing I knew I was running through the rain for cover. While the weather is nobody’s fault, the hotel offered us our choice of free bottled beverages. We grabbed some waters and got in the cab back to Granada. It had been a perfect day.

Distance: 6 Kilometers

Time: 2.5 hours

Before getting to Ometepe, I had wanted to climb Concepcion, the active volcano on the island. Unfortunately, the weather was less than cooperative.  December and January is generally considered dry season in Nicaragua, but the weather was rainy and overcast while I was on the island. Thick clouds are not great weather for climbing volcanoes. The clouds shroud the entire cone of the volcano with a dense blanket of fog.

I did not want to leave Ometepe without having done any hiking. The island is, after all, a nature-lovers paradise. So I opted instead for a hike that was less dependent on the weather: San Ramon Waterfall. The hike to the San Ramon Waterfall is a must-do on Ometepe. An added benefit, the trailhead is on the Maderas side of the island which was the side I was staying on. I hopped on a bike, rode the ~9 kilometers to the trailhead, paid the $3 entry fee (per person), and began my trek to the waterfall.

Kilometers 1 and 2

The first three kilometers are pretty much just a walk up a semi-paved hill. I did not know this before arriving at the trailhead, but for an additional fee, you can drive your motorcycle/scooter/quad up the first three kilometers of the trip.  It is not the nicest road in the world, but driving certainly makes it an easier trip. Even if we had ridden scooters instead of bicycles, I would not recommend biking up. The trail was a sustained climb, but did not justify motorized transport.

The weather was absolutely beautiful. After almost a full day of sporadic showers the day before, I was happy to see that it was going to be a sunny day. I started early enough in the day that the air was still cool despite being sunny. The green fields leading up the side of Maderas were absolutely stunning. Quickly, the fields turned into cloud-forest as I continued up the volcano. I welcomed the accompanying sun-showers.

Kilometer 3

It is obvious that there is an immediate change in the trail at the two-kilometer mark. This is where the fun part of the hike begins.  All vehicles are parked at kilometer two. Beyond that, the trail devolves into a rocky, mud path through the jungle.  There is a brief descent through a canyon with a welcome cool breeze. This part of the hike was beautiful, but not in a way that looks good in photos.

After some climbing through the jungle, I arrived at the first river crossing. I, mistakenly,  figured I must be close to the waterfall if I was crossing the river.  After a bit more climbing, I found myself in a canyon that felt straight out of Jurassic Park.  If a raptor had burst out around the corner, I would have felt just a normal amount of surprise.

The next section of the hike was some minor scrambling up tiny waterfalls.  It was around this point in the hike that I realized the third kilometer was a “longer-than-average” kilometer.  Despite the official claim that the full trek to the waterfall is three kilometers, reports all over the internet state that it is closer to four. I am not sure I would say that, but I think the last kilometer was more like a mile.

At the San Ramon Waterfall

I did not find the hike particularly challenging. It was nonetheless a relief to finally arrive at the waterfall.  My skin was feeling sticky from climbing up in the humidity.  The thought of cooling off in the pool below the falls sounded quite refreshing.  Thanks to some foresight, I was able to strip down to the bikini under my clothes. The water was cold, even considering the sweat I had worked up.  I spent a few minutes cooling off in the water before retreating to a place nearby to dry-out in the sun.

Kilometers 4 Through 6

The return trip consists of going back down the same trail as the way up.  That is not to say that it is uneventful. There are beautiful views of Lake Cocibolca all the way down.  The sun was higher in the sky and the weather was much hotter. I did not have any sunscreen with me, so I can describe the trip down as light jogs between patches of shade. At the bottom, horses hanging out next to the lake welcomed me back.

I had not stopped for food on the way to the trailhead, so by the time I reached the bottom, I was pretty hungry.  There is a restaurant on the grounds of the trail, but I decided to eat at an inviting-looking place I had passed called Comedor Gloriana. Overall, I would say do not forgo the hike to the San Ramon Waterfall, even if you are staying on the Concepcion side of the island. Remember to bring a bathing suit, plenty of water, and if I were to do it again I would wear some type of water shoes.

After arriving late in Granada last night (and then having a little mishap when checking into the hotel…) we let ourselves sleep in this morning. We left the hotel at ~10 AM for Garden Cafe. I had heard this was THE place in town for latte art, but apparently the Nicaraguan word for latte is Cappuccino and I got a large warm milk with a little bit of coffee flavor. ?

Breakfast was delicious though! I got a nacatamal – Nica’s version of tamale and it was great! After breakfast, we headed to Claro to buy a SIM card. I think we got unlucky with timing because a large family was in there getting chips before us and it took an hour for us to get out. We made a quick lap of the town square and then headed back to the hotel to get our things for the main event – Laguna de Apoyo.

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Apparently we were getting swindled by our hotel. The cab to Hostel Paradiso was more than the price on the wall when we got there ?. Oh well. The deal was $7 for a day pass that included access to all facilities, kayaks and coffee. We spent 45 minutes swimming in the lake before getting out to get some lunch.

We spent a little more time swimming and then gathered our stuff to leave.  The shuttle we were planning to take back to Granada had a flat tire, so the hotel was calling cabs for groups of 4. While we were waiting, it started pouring rain out of nowhere! We finally got a cab and when we arrived back at our hotel it was sunny again! So we spent the rest of the daylight walking down to see the lake in daylight.

We head back to the hotel and cleaned up for dinner. We had spent a lot of time wondering where all the Americans were. They were all at Restaurant el Zaguan. Despite definitely catering to gringos, Zaguan was delicious! The steak we got was better than any steak I had in South America! After dinner, we were surprised to find ourselves in the middle of a Christmas parade.

We took a quick walk around the town square and then made our way back to the hotel! Interestingly, the pool area was packed! Overall, an awesome day! Now if you’ll excuse me, I think there’s a bat in my hotel room ?