I went back to Nicaragua to explore the north of the country. Given that I had to be in El Salvador for my volunteer work, I had run out of time in July. Nicaragua is a very beautiful, diverse and safe country and it is compared to countries like Costa Rica and Panama also very cheap. If you travel on a budget you can easily spend less than 30EUR per day incl. hostel, food and excursions.
From El Tunco, El Salvador (ugliest beach I have ever seen) I took the shuttle bus to Léon Nicaragua and from there I went straight to Esteli. Léon is my favourite city in Nicaragua – very good food reaching from Nicaraguan street food at the central market, to a French bakery Pan Y Paz and very good ice cream at DulceMente (see my post from week 7 for more info). Unfortunately, Esteli is quite the opposite. The only advantage of Esteli is that it is close to several natural reserves, like Miraflores.
During my research, I found a nice Finca in Miraflores – Finca Lindos Ojos – and I booked a 3-nights stay there. Travelling budget, i.e. with public buses instead of a rental car – it is already an adventure going there. You take the bus (only 3 buses per day) at Cotran Norte in Esteli to Miraflores/Yali. Though it is only 20kms to the bus stop “La Rampla” – the bus will take almost 2hours given that the road is a stony country road and the bus is slowly climbing up the hills. Furthermore, the people who live in Miraflores mainly come to Esteli to trade their commodities, like potatoes, or to do their weekly/monthly grocery shopping in the city. So, the bus is not only crowded with people but also with all kinds of stuff and it sometimes takes a while until everything is up- or offloaded. Once you arrive at La Rampla you need to walk approx. 2km to the Finca. It is safe – so you can easily do this alone as women and only the first 300m go up, the rest is relatively flat.
The Finca does not have Wi-Fi and is in the middle of nowhere. If you urgently need Wi-Fi – you can walk to the next Finca “La Neblina” ca. 1.5km. It is the perfect spot to relax and enjoy nature. The people living and working on the Finca are super nice and will help you with everything you might need. They will explain the way to a beautiful waterfall you can visit by yourself or you can go on a guided tour through the forest, do horseback riding or learn more about coffee. The food is very delicious. I asked for Nicaraguan food, but the team is happy to cook international dishes for you. I stuck this time with my small budget and booked a bed in the dorm and Nicaraguan breakfast and dinner, just paying 11USD per day, which is an awesome deal. Of course, for this price, I haven’t had a private bathroom, but share it with the people living there. The toilette is not a water closet, there is just a deep hole under the toilet seat and the water in my shower was refreshing after a hike. The Finca of course also has more comfortable “Cabañas” with e.g. warm water – if you are not so into budget travelling as I am. For me, it was an awesome experience to live a couple of days this way. It opens the eyes that even having a WC etc. is something you should not take for granted. If you think it is getting too boring just you and nature, the kids and the dogs living at the Finca will be more than happy to play with you. Dina, the youngest girl, and Rompe, the little dog, are adorable. One of the dogs even slept in front of my door – knocking on my door with his tail from time to time.
The days at the Finca were a perfect time-out for me. I did Yoga in the morning on the veranda overlooking the beautiful landscape, went for a walk, and spent lots of time just relaxing. For more information on the Finca, please visit their website http://www.finca-lindos-ojos.com/. On my first day, I did a hike by myself to the beautiful waterfall with a natural pool. I was also offered to learn more about potatoes and help with the harvest, but the natural pool sounded more convincing 😊 It is just 8kms in total and you can swim in the pool if you like to. Though the tour guide explained the way very well to me, I was not sure, whether I am at the right place. After 4km I came to a private property with a sign “Welcome to the waterfall xy”, so I entered it and I knew I have to go to the house next and pay an entrance fee of 10 Cordoba, but I could not see any house. So, I walked down the hill and finally come to a small river. There was no path, but I somehow sensed, that I must cross the river, so I balanced over the stones and walked up the hill on the other side and finally found the house.
I was at the waterfall all by myself – it was calm, only the sound of the water. But suddenly a swarm of bugs attacked me. They were everywhere. In my hair under my shirt… I grabbed my things and fled the scene. I had to recover 4 dead bugs from my hair…. But the few minutes of peace were worth it. The next day, I did a guided tour through the forest. You can hike by yourself on all the country roads in the area, but you should not enter the forest by yourself as there are hundreds of little paths and you would get lost very quickly. Some of the plants are also toxic and should not be touched at all, so it is best to have a guide with you. I had lots of good luck that day with the butterflies and could take some awesome pictures, while the birds went into hiding. The sound of the forest, the twitter of all the different kinds of birds is amazing. During the hike, you will also walk through a coffee plantation and walk by the potato field and others. Depending on the season you might be able to see how the harvest is done – most is done manually or with the help of water buffalos.
My next stop was Somoto – i.e. I had to take the slow bus back to Esteli and then take another chicken bus to Somoto. Somoto is on the Panamerican Highway and the best place to start from when you want to visit the Somoto Canyon. Somoto itself is a tiny town, the main attraction is the central park (with lots of trees keeping the air cool), the church and the Somoto tower. I booked the Somoto Canyon Tour with Henry. Henry is kind of famous in Nicaragua and amongst travellers. He runs the “https://www.somotocanyontours.org/”. Henry is a very nice guy and very interested in Ecotourism and ensuring that the community benefits as well from the tourism and not only the hostels and tour guides. As there aren’t many tourists at the moment, I had my private tour with a nice tour guide from Henry`s team. The tour starts with a little hike of 2-3km until you reach the river. From there you will need to walk, swim, wade in the water, and at least once you must jump down 2meters into the water. If you like, you can also jump from 10meters but that is up to you. If the water is high enough even 20meters might be possible if you are an experienced cliff jumper, but most guides might not allow this given the risk of injuries.
Though September is supposed to be rainy season in Nicaragua, the river did not carry that much water. Usually, you can swim more parts of the river or just float, while we had to walk or wade quite a lot. Climate change is real and most visible in the poorest regions of the world.
Anyhow, if you are in the area and you like to do some more adventures “hiking” you should do this tour.
I spent my last day in Nicaragua in Ocotal, mainly because the border “Los Manos” is close to Ocotal. There is not too much to see and do in Ocotal, the central park and the church, which is located on Avenida Wiesbaden, the partner city in Germany. There are also some thermal pools close to Ocotal inviting you to relax a little bit in the warm water.
Wanderlust 