Nicaragua > Mountain hike through the rainforest

I walk out of the hotel to have breakfast at one of the little restaurants around the hotel. In a display case, I point out a few dishes. It takes some getting used to having rice and brown beans for breakfast, but on the other hand, it’s local. Many Nicaraguans also come here for breakfast. After eating, I head into the rainforest of Cerro Apante with Marlon. It’s a seven to eight-hour hike. The first part of the route goes uphill. Marlon talks about the trees and plants and also tells us which animals we might encounter. When I jokingly ask if we’ll see elephants, he laughs and says no.

Nicaragua - Due to rainfall the stream is high and difficult to cross

Hilariously, just a few hundred meters further, there’s a toy elephant on the ground. Marlon proudly points it out to me. The water in the streams is high, making it tricky to cross. For safety, I store my passport and camera in my backpack. This proves wise when a fellow traveler falls into the water in front of me. I don’t stay completely dry either—one of my shoes ends up in the water. On the uphill path, it’s clear that it rained heavily yesterday. The trail is slippery and slick, and I have to be careful not to slip. At 1,000 meters, about 350 meters above the city of Matagalpa, there is a viewpoint. I look out over the city, spotting the large white cathedral and the neighborhood where my hotel is located. From here, it’s still 450 meters of climbing to the top of the mountain. The path Marlon takes is narrow and fairly steep. The rain has made it slippery, and my hiking boots often sink into the mud, making the climb difficult.

Nicaragua - Muddy shoes during the hike to the top

Around 12:30, after more than three hours of climbing, I reach the highest point at 1,450 meters. Just as Marlon takes lunch out of his backpack, it starts to rain—a true tropical downpour. Under my poncho, I eat the delicious pasta, with heavy raindrops falling onto my plate. The rain has made the trail down the other side even more slippery. Water flows rapidly down the mountain beneath me. In some places, I have to slide down because there’s no more grip in the clay. Sometimes I grab a tree, but I carefully watch out for thorns and needles. In the rainforest, you can’t grab everything. The slides don’t always go smoothly; fellow travelers slip on the slick ground. As I descend further, I walk more between the coffee fields. It’s also dry again now. I pass through the coffee plantations and reach a small village. Coffee is one of Nicaragua’s main export products. In the village, I attract a lot of attention and greet everyone politely. At the small school, I turn right for the final descent to San Ramón. From the height, I can already see the village. Marlon predicts it will take about 45 minutes to an hour to reach it. I notice that the sliding and correcting my balance has overstrained my right knee. I descend the last section carefully. The other travelers also have trouble on the final stretch. Finally, around 4:30, we arrive in San Ramón. On the very last meters, our group experiences its tenth fall. Fortunately, it only results in dirty clothes, no injuries. Quiermo, the driver, is ready with the car to take me back to Matagalpa. At the hotel entrance, I take off my muddy shoes. I walk barefoot to a faucet behind the hotel to rinse them clean. They probably won’t dry anytime soon.