Day 9: Volcan Tajumulco

We left Xela in the morning after breakfast and headed towards Volcan Tajumulco trailhead. Situated closer to the border with Mexico, this volcano is the highest summit in Central America standing at 4228m above sea level. Today we would climb to the shoulder where we would camp at 3900m, just shy of the summit in order to limit the sudden increase in altitude. On the drive, we were given a brief on altitude sickness as the quick ascent on this peak makes this a high possibility. Given the first 3 hours of the trek are exposed to the intense midday heat and humidity, potential dehydration further increases altitude sickness risk. I forced myself to drink a litre of water on the bus, put rehydration salts into my remaining water and took a herbal supplement known to help at altitude. I was determined to deter any symptoms that would prevent me from reaching the summit. Even though I have been above 5000m before, the ascent has been more gradual then this summit attempt so I felt the need to be cautious. Diego told us stories of having to take people down in the middle of the night before due to dizziness, sickness and headaches - as the only cure for altitude sickness is to descend quickly. We arrived at the beginning of the trail and met our local guide Marco who would be assisting us with route finding on the volcano.

By the time we began the hike it was midday and the sun beat down as we walked through the small town where the bus had left us. Dogs lay asleep in the shade and I wished that I could join them. Locals giggled, smiled and waved as they saw me, asking to take a photo with me. Diego explained it was because my skin and hair colour, in this village they are very isolated so don't see many people from outside. Everyone here has naturally very dark hair so they are fascinated by any other colour hair. They were so friendly saying "Hola" with kind smiles and from Diego's translating skills, they also wished us good luck on the volcano.

The initial trail out of town had a gradual incline but the difficulty came from the weight of my pack, given the extra water I was carrying and the intense heat. The trail followed switched backs to the entrance to pine forest which would finally offer a respite from the strong sun. We moved slowly but purposefully upwards, our group significantly spread out as people began to feel the effects of altitude on their lungs. I chatted with Diego about the geographical origin of Central America, it was originally formed by the collision of 3 tectonic plates forming a land bridge between North and South America. Not only does this explain the presence of so much volcanic activity but also the high biodiversity in the area as the land acts as a bridge where animals migrated from the land masses in the North and South. Sadly, humans also exploit this geographical phenomenon by using Central America as a transportation bridge between the drug producers in the South and the consumers in the North of America.

All conversations were stunted as soon as we entered the pine forest as the gradient increased, the ground became an obstacle course of rocks and boulders and the altitude became more noticeable. Diego hung back to assess the others prompting me to continue climbing with the local guide. Despite our significant language barrier, we managed to piece together a conversation with our minimal vocabulary in each others languages, injected with the occasional hand gesture and laugh. We were well above the clouds by this point as they drifted through the valley below looking thick, fluffy and inviting. The altitude here was noticeable with elevated breathing but manageable and luckily I felt no other symptoms, but continued to drink frequently.

The climb was relentless, growing steeper by the minute and the terrain becoming looser underfoot - which made moving forward increasingly difficult when the legs begin to fatigue. I find it easier to continue moving gradually and slowly rather than to rest as this disturbs my rhythm and it's often more difficult to start again on such an incline. The climb continued to persist until the Marco turned to me saying "diez minutos" then drew the outline of a tent with his hand in the air. Now unless my GCSE Spanish had completely escaped me "diez" was ten, meaning only 10 minutes to camp which made me feel elated. In just under 10 minutes I saw a flat patch of ground, sitting at the base of the summit which would be our home for the night. I was delighted and collapsed onto my pack to rest my legs and slow down my breathing and heart rate.

The others began to arrive one by one, replicating my reaction - a huge relieved smile followed by collapsing onto the ground! Diego gave me a high five and a hug, and began to boil water for tea. The temperature had significantly dropped at this altitude so I was happy to have a warm drink and help make a fire. The effects of altitude were becoming apparent in a couple of members of the group during the ascent, with complaints of sickness and headaches. I sat quietly by the fire listening to Diego and Beanie, rarely are they not smiling, but I could tell they were discussing what they should do as a member of the group was being violently sick into a bush. Often altitude sickness symptoms get much worse through the night and descending in darkness present a much greater risk, so they had a tough call to make. They encouraged everyone to hydrate, prepared us carbohydrate rich foods and ginger tea - telling us to wake them up in the night if we felt any symptom, no matter how mild. I went to bed early, concious that I needed the rest ready for the 4am wake up call ready to head towards the highest peak in Central America.