From the distance, it was just like any other non-descript volcano in Nicaragua, a conical mound of dark ash with scarred slopes rising up from the undulating landscape. The smooth paved highway winding up to the top, however, was a dead giveaway that this was special.
Not often does one get to peer into the maw of the earth, through a gaping crater were the inner flames of the core find a way up to the surface. Volcan Masaya is one such place. Looking down the rocky cliff a mere 100ft below was the active crater, belching sulphurous gases that glowed with the deep orange characteristic of the mantle.
Witnessing the lava flow inside the caldera was one thing, but enjoying the wild atmosphere outside was something else. The quick turnaround at the summit, the constant stream of tourists, the toxic gases, the blood-red sun in the evening sky all became part of the experience of witnessing this active crater.
And while the current conditions on the ground may be unstable, this volcano will continue to belch and smoke until its next cataclysmic eruption.
Volcan Masaya
Nicaragua