After a long night of enjoying each other’s company by the fire, the group was supposed to wake up at 0400 to climb to the summit and get a better view of El Fuego and the sunrise. We could not do this due to inclement weather so we slept in until about 6:15 AM. We cleaned up camp and enjoyed some more once-in-a-lifetime views of the volcano. We all concluded that we may never see something of this magnitude again. Knowing this, the experience became much more precious.
At 0800, we began our descent down the volcano. Some of us walked and enjoyed the scenery of the volcano, which had taken us five-plus hours to hike the day prior. In contrast, others sprinted down the side of the volcano as quickly as possible, racing to the bus that would bring us back to our beds at the Purpose Hostel. Many of those speedsters said this event was one of the most fun moments on the trip. They ran down the trail, carved off speed at the turns, slid in the volcanic ash and soil, and even jumped off trees to keep on the trails. Along the way, the group suffered minor collisions with barbed wire, trees, and ravines; although no one was severely injured, most were just dirtier than they would have liked.
The bus ride back was quiet. Everyone was exhausted from the trek up the volcano the day before and the following run down, except for Mr. Tedstone and Mr. Weir. They led the pack each day and never stopped making the group laugh while venturing up and down the Volcano. We are confident those two will never run out of gas or jokes.
In the afternoon, we all had free time to do what we pleased. Many stayed in the hostel beds, catching up on the needed sleep for the rigorous work week ahead. Others tanned and did yoga on the hostel’s roof. All in all, the group wasted no time with self-care.
Lastly, Captain Lennon, Professor Cadwalader, and Smitty bought us dinner: pizza, which was quickly devoured. As we ate, we watched the Sunday fireworks display over the beautiful night sky of Antigua to finish our day.
Hike Data Picture Caption: This screenshot shows a map of the hike down the volcano. The ascent is listed as only 223 feet because we were going down most of the way. It took us two hours and twelve minutes, with breaks. From the campsite to the bus, it was about 3.73 miles.
-1/C Zackery Bohnet
