Xela to San Pedro

What to do after getting off a plane in Guatemala City and then instantly getting on a four hour bus ride to Xela?  Three day trek of course!!  Before I get into that, the bus looked nice, 1st class, comfy too!  Yet when the driver started taking switch backs down the mountain sides at 60 mph, not so comfy, it was more like a four hour roller coaster ride! Therefore, there was no needed sleep involved.  We made it to Xela, found our friends Rach and Nick, and the wine flowed!!

The trek was sold as mostly down hill except for the up bits...by Nick of course.  The up bits were explained as rough the first part of the first day, and a bit the second day...LIES!!!  Before I begin, I want to tell you a bit about the guide service that we used, Quetzal Trekkers.  The guides are all volunteers, they are from all over the place and have decided to join this organization because of what they do for the local community.  All profits raised are used for an orphanage and school that are in the area.  The villages that we pass through are also benefiting from the group. Therefore the locals are always smiling an waving as we pass through.  It is amazing what the difference they are making in this area of the world.  In addition, the guides are great!  If ever in Guatemala I highly suggest a visit with these great people and let them show you around!!

Rach and Nick ready to go!!

View from the way up

Back to the trek, it was the special New Year's Eve trek from Xela to San Pedro del Lago....46 kms.  The group, 50 people and seven guides.  I was worried about the magnitude of the group, but it all went smoothly, the guides worked it out to perfection.  The first climb was hell.  The group quickly divided into fast, average, slow and slower groups.  I was in the rear of the group, out of shape, sweaty and cursing the damn mountain!  It took over two hours, but I made it.  The views through the forest were amazing, and at the top it opened into a high mountain meadow.

Guides Rach and Amir whose favorite group was the slow group!

From there it was mainly downhill the rest of the day.  By this point we had divided into two groups, the fast group and the slow group.  The slow group....we prefered the fun group, which it was!!  Laughing all the way down steep switchbacks, littered with rocks.  People fell, we laughed, helped them up and then laughed some more.  We hiked for 10 hours that day, with the final part of the evening being a climb into the village we would spend the night.  We stayed in the city municipal center, all laid out on the floor.  The village was strange, loud music blarring for no apparent reason, warm beers (which were delicious), church bells going off radomly and dogs barking all night.  Exhausted, yet satisfied with the day, we slept...well sort of. Dogs, church bells and honking were always present.

Base of Record Hill

The next day it was up early.  Day two was said to be a heavy climb up Record Hill and then down and easy...LIES!!  My legs were stiff, back killing me and tired, but off we went, our two groups.  We, the fun group, started questioning the fast group as our numbers had grown over night.  When someone falls in the fast group, do they just push them off to the side and call them weak?  Do the guides in the fast group have cattle tasers to keep them going?  It all seemed very militant to us.  Poor folks, we laughed.  We got to record hill after about an hour of hiking.  The fast group was just beggining their ascent.  We rested and one by one began our ascent.  I started early, knowing that I would be the last up.  Thirty minutes of straight up switchbacks, lots of ¨picture¨breaks!  That climb was over, so I thought we were golden.  Not so much.  The worst part was the rest of the ascent.  Not as vertical, but never ending.  A few hours later, it was all just a memory and we were back to our old ways.  The rest of the day was great, passing through villages with locals smiling and waving, children running out to greet us, it all lightened the load.  Our final destination that night was a local residence that had opened their house to Quetzal Trekkers for all the great work they are doing.  Large amounts of food was served, the generosity was impressive.

Double eruption, what does it mean???

The next morning we were up at 3:30AM.  The goal to see the sunrise over Lake Atitlan, which is surrounded by volocanoes.  A one and a half hour steady climb and we were in a grassy field, laying out our sleeping bags.  I quickly fell asleep, but woke up to a volcanic eruption with the backdrop of a sunrise.  Perfect end to an amazing three days trek through the Guatemalan highlands.

Our treking family - Nick, Blanche, Maya, me, Kathrine, Paul and Rach

The whole group

We arrived in San Pedro on New Year´s Eve.  Some of us slept, some of us tried to sleep.  I slept.  Then it was time for New Years.  Quetzell Trekkers was holdiong a fund raiser for the orphange and school at a local bar with live music.  The whole group was there, with many others.  It was a great New Years, spending time with new friends, and old friends.  The highlight was the owner lighting off fire works from the roof and almost lighting the place on fire!  Not safety first!  As it was an exhausting trek, the night ended early...3AM.

Safety not first!!

Relax on a horse, why not!!

We spent the next couple of days relaxing in San Pedro, horseback rides, sleep, food and sleep.  A great little town on a lake.  The people were super friendly and the atmosphere perfect.  I hope everyone had a happy and safe New Year.  Until next time!!!