Tag: hiking

A Day on a Coffee Farm in Matagalpa

Matagalpa is coffee country, and it was recommended I visit a coffee farm while here. I took the chicken bus north out of town and visited the organic coffee farm known as Selva Negra, or Black Forest. It was interesting and relaxing spending a day on a coffee farm in Matagalpa.

About The Coffee Farm

The farm, and eco-resort and restaurant, is a self-sustaining business with it’s own town. As well as offering coffee tours, there are a lot of hiking trails, so I spent an entire day there. It was beautiful and interesting.

Some interesting facts I learned: Selva Negra is called Black Forest because it was founded by Germans. Germans brought coffee farming to Matagalpa. The farm is completely organic and ecological. Selva Negra coffee is produced under the name La Hammonia. They sell to Whole Foods in the U.S., so you may have tried this Nicaraguan coffee yourself.

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Another Volcano Hike: Telica Volcano Sunset Tour

On Thursday night I did a twilight hike at Volcano Telica, part of the Maribios volcano chain, same as Cerro Negro. The key reason for the “sunset” or “twilight tour” is because you have a much better chance of seeing lava. I know I already saw lava last weekend, but I am hungry for more! It’s so cool, it’s hot! Seeing lava at twilight or night is much easier than in daytime thus the Telica Volcano sunset tour is the way to go.

The Telica Volcano Sunset Tour Company

I signed up for the tour through Quetzaltrekkers, mainly because they are a non-profit organization that puts on various hikes and donates all proceeds to helping local communities. I was very happy with their work. The Telica Volcano Sunset tour was a well run hike.

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Volcano Boarding at Cerro Negro

Volcano Boarding is one of the top things to do when visiting León, so I signed up to do it almost immediately upon arrival. Why delay? Am I glad I did it because volcano boarding at Cerro Negro is a highlight of this trip and will always be a great memory for me.

Volcano Tour

My hostal offers a daily tour of the volcano through Nicatime Nicaragua. We left at 8am on Wednesday, got to Cerro Negro Volcano by 9am, and started hiking. The uphill climb is only an hour long, but with all the sand and rocks, it’s not easy. Slippery best describes the hike.

Cerro Negro
Our group climbing up Cerro Negro

Cerro Negro means Black Mountain, and that is what it is. This fairly young, still active volcano is a pile of black sand and rock. People have been volcano boarding there for about 17 years, according to my tour guide, Oscar (just kidding, it was Lester – or Luther, damn I am bad at this. I’ll call him Oscar). Now this extreme sport is the primary reason people visit Cerro Negro, and it’s one of the top attractions in León.

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