Nicaragua

Cruised through the border at Los Manos into Nicaragua without too much difficulty. I met a fellow motorbike traveler who had a really difficult time with officials whereas I had just the opposite experience, all within the space of about a half hour. Maybe they just cut the old guy a little slack.

Howler Monkey

Somoto Canyon

About an hours ride from the border is the Somoto Canyon National Park where the Coco river has cut through the soft geological formations to form a narrow canyon of about 5 km in length. I took a tour with a group of just three people that took about six hours. A good portion of that time was spent swimming so the life vest that I chose to take was a big help in allowing me to relax and float down the river when the current was strong enough. There was ample opportunity to jump off high overhanging rocks in the river without fear of hitting submerged rocks as the water is up to 100 ft deep in a lot of places.

The short taxi ride to the start of the hike found six of us crammed into a small vehicle with our guide needing to sit in the trunk ( boot ) 

Nicaragua is just such an amazing change from the other countries I have already travelled through for a number of reasons, the first of which is the roads - they are fantastic and do not have a single speed bump. Not only that but there is virtually no trash along the verges of the roads. The countryside is incredibly green as this is the start of the rainy season.

A four hour ride from Somoto brought me to the old colonial town of Leoń 

I understand that there are more than 30 churches in this town , of which I visited about 4. I love the time I spend in some of these magnificent buildings as they are spectacularly beautiful and they always seem like such cool, quite oases from the stiffening heat and hustle and bustle of the outside world.

The Museo de Leyendas y Tradiciones ( Legends and traditions) was housed in an old prison and depicted some of the dark times from this country's revolutionary past

I needed some work done on my bike so rode down to Managua for a visit to the KTM dealer. These guys were incredibly helpful and a pleasure to work with. As I needed to get some parts from the US I will be coming back here next week to complete the repairs.

Managua as a city did not seem very exciting and with all the bad stories I have heard about it was very happy to leave it behind after just a couple of hours. The Masaya Volcano national park was not far outside the city and well worth the stop. The main volcano is very active right now and you are able to stare down into the depths of the earth with hot molten lava bubbling up like a witches cauldron - quite spectacular

I spent the night at a local hotel in the little town of Masatepe after a ride ride around the Masaya Lagoon and getting caught in a downpour - rainy season is definitely here

Laguna de Apoyo, just outside the town of Granada is an incredible, 6km in diameter crater lake that has got to be one of the most beautiful places in central America. The water is crystal clear and warm and in the evening hardly a mosquito interrupted the consumption of Toña, the local beer, watching the sun go down from the BnB I stayed at for a couple of nights. Fireflies danced through the trees and all seemed good in the world.

Laguna de Apoyo

Down the west side of Lake Nicaragua is the town of San Jorge where the ferries take people and vehicles across to the Island of Ometepe. 

This Island in the middle of this vast freshwater lake is dominated by the twin volcanoes of Conception and Maderas that rise up over 5000ft.

The roads and transportation are fairly basic on the island and I am pleased to have a bike that can handle a few rocky and washed out section of road. Oxen still play a big role here in working the fields as well as providing transportation.

Volcano Conception

Down a small dirt road to a beach brought me to the “lodge” of Taguizapa where I am sitting under the tin roof of the porch.This being mango season the ripe fruit whistle down and crash on to the roof every few minutes making me almost S***t myself. 

The orchestra definitely was not playing

The locals all seem very friendly and some just curious

Whereas these guys I am not quite so sure about