Based on a strong suggestion from our friends Susan & Jimmy, we headed to northwest Nicaragua to see Volcan Cosiguina. On the way we were in the hot and steamy town of Chinandega... There we were on an overcrowded bus, standing room only (if you can even call it that), as the bus pulled to the loading area (no, it was not quite full enough), we aborted, retrieved our packs from the top of the bus and retreated to the closest bar. We made it to the bar just before a tremendous storm flooded the city. While enjoying our beers and the storm from the covered patio we were approached by a man that captivated us with the stories of his beautiful secluded beach resort just minutes form the isolated volcano that we were trying to reach. We accepted his offer and thoroughly enjoyed the 2 hour trip in an enormous luxury truck passing flooded buses (yes, they were literally bailing water out the windows). If you ever find yourself in Nicaragua, we recommend the Redwood Beach Resort.
Not too far away lies El Corinto, Nicaragua's busiest port. Reagan illegally ordered the port mined in 1983, after which Congress passed a law that specifically forbade the use of US taxpayer dollars to overthrow the Nicaraguan government. Thus began the Iran-Contra affair . . .
Mechapa & Redwood Beach Resort
After dinner on the first night we were told that we needed to go out and catch our dinner for the following day. No shoes, armed with gloves flashlights and a bucket, we headed down to the beach to catch some 30 crabs. We did well and the crab soup was delicious.
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| Me and Don Julio |
Video of storm
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| Our beach front bungalow |
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| The view from our porch. |
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| Beach side breakfast, lunch and dinner. |
Video of the beautiful beach...not another soul in sight
https://www.dropbox.com/s/srhzrddad0jjk0x/2013-06-11%2007.16.12.3gp
Volcan Cosiguina
Once the tallest volcano in Central America, Cosiguina erupted violently in 1835. The blast left three countries in darkness for days and scattered ash from Mexico to Colombia. You can see El Salvador and Honduras from the summit, and the views over the Golfo de Fonseca are stunning.
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| A view to the North and the mountains of El Salvador. |
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| The rainwater-filled cater lake - over 2000 meters in diameter. |
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| Golfo de Fonseca in the background |
https://www.dropbox.com/s/6kxfwckru2hb9y4/2013-06-11%2011.16.28.3gp
https://www.dropbox.com/s/qtr35ffkx2lhc2h/2013-06-11%2011.58.54.3gp
Jiquilillo Beach & Rancho Tranquillo
Redwood Beach was a dream come true, but on a backpackers budget, we could only afford a couple nights....so, we headed south to Jiquilillo to Rancho Tranquillo!
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| Best bar on Jiquilillo! |
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| Ocean view...from the bar. |
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| Lily the Olive Ridley. Also located on the beach is a group dedicated to rescuing sea turtles. We had the opportunity to meet a couple turtles that had been rescued and were waiting to be released back into the ocean. |
http://www.seaturtlerescue-nicaragua.org/
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