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Mark Moxon's Travel Writing

El Salvador: Parque Nacional Los Volcanes

The amazing maguey plants on the flanks of Volcán de Santa Ana
The amazing maguey plants on the flanks of Volcán de Santa Ana

El Salvador's tallest peak, Volcán de Santa Ana, is not far from the city of the same name, and you can climb it as a day trip from Santa Ana. I really love climbing volcanoes – I got a taste for it in New Zealand and cemented our relationship in Indonesia – and although the jaunt up the Indian's Nose in Guatemala was pleasant, it wasn't a proper volcano climb, as it only scaled a wide crater rim rather than a volcanic peak. With a summit of 2381m above sea level, Volcán de Santa Ana, which is known in the local dialect as Ilamatepec, is the real deal, and it isn't alone.

The views of Volcán Izalco from the trail are breathtaking
The views of Volcán Izalco from the trail are breathtaking

On the Buses

Peta on her way through the maguey plants
Peta on her way through the maguey plants

We were joined on our excursion by three other incumbents at the Casa Verde – a young and energetic Swiss man called Chris, and a lovely couple from Italy called Pamela and Matteo – with whom we'd also team up to visit the Ruta de las Flores. This made life a lot easier, as all three of them spoke fluent Spanish, though to be honest the Salvadorans are so helpful that even we seem to be able to cope with the confusion brought about by our lame Spanish. We walked down to the bus station, bought tickets for 70 cents each, and hopped on the 248 chicken bus that goes from Santa Ana all the way to the national park (El Salvador's buses all have route numbers on them, as well as the start and end points in garish lettering on the front and back, so once you know the number or the route you want, it's surprisingly easy to find your bus).

The boiling sulphurous lake in the crater of Volcán de Santa Ana
The boiling sulphurous lake in the crater of Volcán de Santa Ana

To the Top

Mark on the top of Santa Ana, with Lago de Coatepeque in the background
On the top of Santa Ana, with Lago de Coatepeque in the background

I've climbed quite a few volcanoes in my time, and Santa Ana is definitely one of the good ones. The route goes from the car park and up to the forested peak of Cero Verde, before descending down 1300 steps to Casa Cristal on the saddle between Cerro Verde and Santa Ana. Then the ascent up Santa Ana begins, initially through pretty forest along a relatively gentle rise, before the forest peters out soon after you pass a viewpoint. Here the greenery gives way to the most amazing landscape of rocks, scrubland and maguey plants (or Agave americana). These plants are astonishing, with luscious, cactus-like leaves that are covered in sharp spines, and huge flower stalks that rise up to 8m from the plant, topped with lovely yellow flowers; there's an added poignancy to the flowers, as the maguey only flowers once, at the end of its life, so every flower stalk represents the last gasp of this strange-looking plant.

The lake at Volcán de Santa Ana
The lake at Volcán de Santa Ana
The blue lake at Keli Mutu
The blue lake at Keli Mutu

But Santa Ana scores over Keli Mutu because the views from the peak are stunning. The volcanoes of El Salvador spread out to the west on the other side of Lago de Coatepeque, while the Pacific Ocean gleams to the south and the perfect cone of Izalco fumes gently next to Cerro Verde. You can look back on the route of the whole two-hour walk while staring out at travels yet to come, and all the time the crater lake bubbles away in the background, inducing vertigo and awe in equal amounts. As a place for munching on lunch at the top of the world, it's hard to beat.

Our police guide on top of Santa Ana, with Izalco in the background
Our police guide on top of Santa Ana, with Izalco in the background