The name Ometepe means ‘two hills’ in the native ‘náhuatl’ language. The island measures 276 square kilometers and it houses two majestic volcanoes connected through a small strip of land.
The Concepción is an active volcano and its most recent eruption took place in 1957. The islanders will confirm that sporadic expulsions of gases or occasional earth movements are commonplace and by itself no reason to panic. There are, according to several organizations at Ometepe, specific, well-determined areas of risk during a possible eruption.
The Maderas volcano is dormant and has an altitude of 1394 meters. Its slopes are covered in forest where you can easily spot howler monkeys and white face monkeys. The vegetation is abundant and the trees are so leafy that they continuously color your hike in a green hue. The green color is alternated by other colors from the colorful flowers that grow in the zone, including a rich variety of orchids.
The intricate river and swamp land of the Rio Istián can be explored on a kayak trip. We spent 3 hours kayaking through the languid river that meanders inland on the isthmus between Ometepe's two volcanos. It's picturesque] with carpets of floating water plants where you see lots of birds like egrets, whistling ducks and jacanas as well as caymans and turtles!
We all rented motorcycles on day 2...me a scooter because that's the pinnacle of my skill level! We had a fabulous day exploring the entire island!
Midway through out cycling adventures we stopped in a place where you could relax under the shade of the tropical forest and bath in volcanic water, sipping coconut water(spiked with large amounts of rum!). This amazing place is called the Ojo de Agua!
The water from this natural pool, known under the name of Ojo de Agua, comes directly from the Concepción Volcano. Because it is a volcanic water, it is very rich in potassium, magnesium, calcium, sulfur and sodium.
Ometepe is famous for its rich pre-Columbian past and belongs to the great rock art areas of the world. Ancient petroglyphs and stone statues have been found all over the island, along with sites containing ceramic urns, pottery and utensils.
The early Indians considered the island of Ometepe as their promised land. The Maderas was the sacred place of the sun, while the Concepcion was the brother of the moon.
Archeologists refer to Ometepe as the Island of circles and spirals due to the abstract curvilinear motifs carved on the basalt boulders.
Some motifs are highly stylized and intricately carved. The most common motif is the spiral.
Other motifs depict animals like lizards, crocodiles, turtles and frogs, or anthropomorphic and zoomorphic figures.
Calendars were found on certain stones showing that the Indians knew 18 months, each with 20 days which made a year of 360 days. The oldest petroglyphs on Ometepe date back to around 1000 B.C.
The Concepción is an active volcano and its most recent eruption took place in 1957. The islanders will confirm that sporadic expulsions of gases or occasional earth movements are commonplace and by itself no reason to panic. There are, according to several organizations at Ometepe, specific, well-determined areas of risk during a possible eruption.
The Maderas volcano is dormant and has an altitude of 1394 meters. Its slopes are covered in forest where you can easily spot howler monkeys and white face monkeys. The vegetation is abundant and the trees are so leafy that they continuously color your hike in a green hue. The green color is alternated by other colors from the colorful flowers that grow in the zone, including a rich variety of orchids.
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| The view from our hotel of Conception Volcano. |
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| Hammock with the best view from our room. |
The intricate river and swamp land of the Rio Istián can be explored on a kayak trip. We spent 3 hours kayaking through the languid river that meanders inland on the isthmus between Ometepe's two volcanos. It's picturesque] with carpets of floating water plants where you see lots of birds like egrets, whistling ducks and jacanas as well as caymans and turtles!
We all rented motorcycles on day 2...me a scooter because that's the pinnacle of my skill level! We had a fabulous day exploring the entire island!
Midway through out cycling adventures we stopped in a place where you could relax under the shade of the tropical forest and bath in volcanic water, sipping coconut water(spiked with large amounts of rum!). This amazing place is called the Ojo de Agua!
The water from this natural pool, known under the name of Ojo de Agua, comes directly from the Concepción Volcano. Because it is a volcanic water, it is very rich in potassium, magnesium, calcium, sulfur and sodium.
The early Indians considered the island of Ometepe as their promised land. The Maderas was the sacred place of the sun, while the Concepcion was the brother of the moon.
Archeologists refer to Ometepe as the Island of circles and spirals due to the abstract curvilinear motifs carved on the basalt boulders.
Some motifs are highly stylized and intricately carved. The most common motif is the spiral.
Other motifs depict animals like lizards, crocodiles, turtles and frogs, or anthropomorphic and zoomorphic figures.
Calendars were found on certain stones showing that the Indians knew 18 months, each with 20 days which made a year of 360 days. The oldest petroglyphs on Ometepe date back to around 1000 B.C.
You can easily wander along the paths and see the petroglyphs without a guide.
The last morning before taking the ferry back to San Jorge we hiked to the San Ramon waterfall.
San Ramón waterfall is located on the southwestern slope of the Maderas Volcano, right in front of the lake. San Ramón has about 3,000 inhabitants and is famous for the impressive San Ramón waterfall.
This waterfall is located about 4 kilometers from the village, and it can be accessed after a spectacular hike. We were the frst group up leaving fr the 90 minute hike at around 830am and had the entire waterfall to ourselves for about 45 mins before we turned around to head back down. We also had 2 lovely dogs join us early in our hike and stick right beside us for the entire trek...we named the big brown hound Burro because he looks like a donkey with his giant ears and the little black one we named Shakira...they had a good swim and got lots of love an belly rubs for their effort. They were like little tour guides showing us the way and patently waiting while we caught up.
We passed tons of other hikers going down so were glad to have it to ourselves!
The last morning before taking the ferry back to San Jorge we hiked to the San Ramon waterfall.
San Ramón waterfall is located on the southwestern slope of the Maderas Volcano, right in front of the lake. San Ramón has about 3,000 inhabitants and is famous for the impressive San Ramón waterfall.
This waterfall is located about 4 kilometers from the village, and it can be accessed after a spectacular hike. We were the frst group up leaving fr the 90 minute hike at around 830am and had the entire waterfall to ourselves for about 45 mins before we turned around to head back down. We also had 2 lovely dogs join us early in our hike and stick right beside us for the entire trek...we named the big brown hound Burro because he looks like a donkey with his giant ears and the little black one we named Shakira...they had a good swim and got lots of love an belly rubs for their effort. They were like little tour guides showing us the way and patently waiting while we caught up.
We passed tons of other hikers going down so were glad to have it to ourselves!
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| Me and Burro. |
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| Shakira. |
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