I do not even know how to describe my lodging last night. Located on a jungle mountainside, its main redeeming quality was that it was less than 200 feet from a private, unobstructed view of Volcán de Fuego. This allowed me to leave my camera on a tripod unattended, taking photos of the volcano all night using an intervalometer programmed to capture a 6-second exposure every 7 seconds.

I slept in my clothes with my boots on, waking up every two hours to go out and change memory cards and batteries. By morning, I had over 4000 images, a small number of which captured the two eruptions that occurred during the evening. I assembled one sequence into the video below.

I returned to Antigua this morning because it is, without a doubt, the most enjoyable city/town I have visited within Guatemala. I parked my car and covered a lot of ground on foot, taking time to soak up the culture and go inside some of the ruins I had photographed from the outside yesterday.

Driving here has been quite stressful. The ratio of motorcycles to cars is insanely high, and they drive wherever they want to, mostly in between lanes of slow-moving traffic. I was quite relieved when I returned my rental car this afternoon, undamaged and with no civilian casualties to answer for. My flight leaves very early tomorrow morning, and I am looking forward to returning home.

After years of trying, I finally managed to photograph an erupting volcano. Pictured here is the Volcán de Fuego, taken from a safe distance above the town of Alotenango. Prior to a major eruption a few weeks ago, Fuego would reliably erupt every 15-20 minutes. I witnessed only one event over several hours, suggesting this volcano may have entered a new pattern. I was fortunate that there was a break in the rain and clouds when things kicked off.

Antigua, now a UNESCO World Heritage site, served as a major capital of the Spanish Empire for over two centuries. It is a beautifully preserved showcase of Spanish colonial charm, renowned for its cobblestone streets, colorful building facades, and Baroque architecture. A series of devastating 18th-century earthquakes eventually forced the government to relocate, leaving behind a cityscape filled with intact monuments and crumbling ruins.

The USA defeated El Salvador 2:0 to win the five-country Central American amputee soccer tournament—the perfect tune-up for the World Cup to be held in Mexico this November. Nico was named MVP of the tournament, a nice consolation for having to play today’s match with a sprained big toe.

Below, Nico congratulates Liam on winning the Golden Boot Award. He is one of a group of exciting young players who have recently been selected for the national team.

This morning, I flew to Guatemala, where Nico is competing with Team USA in an international friendly amputee soccer tournament. By the time I cleared immigration and obtained a rental car (I had to wait an hour for my pre-booked car to be available), I missed the first game against Costa Rica, which ended in a scoreless tie. The playing field is somewhat less than optimal, if I am being kind. Technically, it is grass-covered, but the surface is rock-hard, with many undulations making the motion of the ball over it entirely unpredictable. That, combined with smaller-than-regulation-sized goals, led to the lack of scoring. Apparently, the US dominated shots on goal by a wide margin, but the inconsistent field surface made accurate passing and shooting very difficult.

I arrived in time for the second match against Honduras, during which the US adjusted its tactics to favor possession and patience on the ball until a high-percentage shot was available. The strategy paid off with a 7-0 win. Nico had 1 goal and assisted on several others. Pictured above, he is able to just beat the keeper to the ball, flicking it over his head to a teammate behind him who tapped it in for the goal.

Link to all photos. https://photos.app.goo.gl/ymoRL7pxmukJZLUH9

Below is a view from the lobby of the Tikal Futura Hotel, where I am staying for the weekend. I generally prefer to avoid such high-end hotels in favor of basic accommodations. I’d rather spend money on reaching more destinations. In this case, however, its proximity to the soccer venue and high security ruled the choice. In this area of Guatemala City, tourists are advised not to walk around the streets after dark. Nico and the team are staying in dormitories at the school that is hosting the tournament, and I was not permitted to join him there.

As national libraries go, San Salvador’s is possibly the most iconic. It was built with a $54 million cooperation grant from the People’s Republic of China and opened in November 2023. It has specialized zones, including children’s areas, gaming sections, reading rooms, robotics and 3D modeling labs, and a digital archive with millions of resources.

The Catedral Metropolitana de San Salvador sits on the opposite side of the plaza, creating quite the juxtaposition of modern and classical architecture.

The Seven Waterfalls Hike is a wet dream for a photographer, pun intended. Even so, I doubt many have ever packed a tripod to enable long exposures that turn the falling water into silk. The reason is that it is a grueling 5-hour hike in the sweltering heat over very slippery rocks, mud, and through rapidly flowing stream beds. First, let me say that attempting this trail without a guide would leave you hopelessly lost in the jungle. The trails are not marked and are virtually impossible to identify.

I wanted to hit the trail early so I could photograph the falls without people in the foreground and to beat the afternoon heat. I went to the office where guides have to register every day, an hour before most tourists arrive, and requested an English-speaking guide. Phone calls were made, and I was told a guide would meet me at 7:30 AM. I was almost ready to join one of the group tours scheduled to leave at 8:00 when my guide finally showed up at 7:45, and she did not speak a word of English. I decided the head start trumped the language barrier, and we set off. As we started walking out of town to the trailhead, it registered with me that she was not carrying any rope, something the other guides had stowed in their backpacks. So far, things were not looking great. At that very moment, she asked if I would like to stop and pick up some bananas and pupusas. Music to my ears, as I had not had breakfast or been able to locate a single healthy snack for the trail.

The head start paid off, and I had each waterfall to myself. Despite our inability to communicate, my guide kept me safe, and to my utter amazement, I did not fall once, despite ample opportunities to do so. To reach the very end of the trail, you have to ascend the face of a waterfall as it pours over you, using a rope to pull yourself up. When we reached this point, my guide told me that it was too dangerous for me to try. What became clear to me was that she never intended to do this section of the trail before we even met. To be honest, I think I had a better chance of getting to the top than she did, despite her 40-year age advantage. That said, in retrospect, I am glad we turned around then. By the time we reached town, my legs were Jell-O, and I could not imagine their state had we climbed the falls.

To break up the final segment of my journey, I stopped at the Santa Teresa Hot Springs, which sits on top of the largest geothermal geyser field in Central America. The resort features 30 thermal pools filled with natural volcanic waters of varying sizes and temperatures. I sampled most of them 🙂

I have generally been trying to bypass urban areas on this trip in favor of the natural beauty everywhere. Even so, I had to spend some time in Santa Ana as I passed through on my way to Juayau. Pictured above is the city’s gemgem of the city, the Catedral de Nuestra Señora Santa Ana. Below, a municipal building and small church.

Just outside Santa Ana is the Parque Arqueológico Tazumal, the best-preserved pre-Hispanic Mayan site in El Salvador. It was inhabited from 1200 BC until its definitive abandonment around 1200 AD. Its name, of Maya-Quiché origin, translates to “the place where the victims were burned.

Yesterday, I discovered what can be described as tree cups on a playground adjacent to a bistro overlooking Izalco. Each tree is fitted with a ladder, allowing you to climb up to a platform within the crown. I imagined the photo above, possible only with a drone, to take a selfie with Izalco in the background. I took the photo very early this morning for the light and to avoid flying over kids who were here in numbers yesterday. The composition turned out even better than I had imagined, and I much prefer it to the more traditional selfie below.

After spending the morning on the coast, I drove inland to the Cerro Verde National Park, arriving just ahead of the clouds. I don’t generally shoot a lot of video with my drone, but I wanted to share the awe I experienced as I flew up over the rim and down into the sulfur-venting caldera. When my attention returned to photography, I captured the image below with Lago de Coatepeque in the background.

Although it lacks an emerald cauldron inside its peak, Izalco offers a classic conic volcano shape that Santa Ana does not. Rain is forecast for the next two days, so I am very pleased that I got these photos in early.

My flight arrived in El Salvador last night, and I promptly rented a car and drove 50 minutes to the small surf town of El Tunco. Note to self: It’s best to make your first drive in a foreign country during daylight hours, especially if 75% of the headlights and taillights on cars and trucks in that country no longer function. I wish I had had the energy to go out and enjoy the bohemian nightlife when I arrived, but the long travel day had taken its toll, and I was asleep in five minutes. I did rise with the dawn patrol for some nice morning light photography.

I would have liked to have spent more time here, but it is the rainy season, and you have to make the most of the generally dry mornings. I stopped only once at Cueva El Zonte, a striking natural sea cave and large rock archway located along the scenic black-sand coast. It is accessible on foot only during low tide, which I missed, so I had to settle for an aerial photo.

For the next 9 days, I will be traveling in El Salvador and Guatemala. The trip was motivated by a desire to watch Nico compete in a couple of international friendly matches next weekend. Since I would be in the neighborhood, I decided to take a brief photography tour focused on volcanoes and waterfalls, both of which are abundant in this part of Central America. As is generally the case when I make such journeys, about 70% of my baggage volume is dedicated to photography gear. I will be doing a fair bit of strenuous hiking, including the 7 Waterfalls Hike, which involves a first for me: a 100-foot ascent up the face of a waterfall, clinging to a rope for safety. I have rappelled down a waterfall in Costa Rica, but I suspect going up will be a different experience altogether.

For years, we have seen more bald eagles than osprey on our stretch of the Sudbury River. This week, however, has seen an influx of the latter. I watched as the one pictured above snatched lunch from the river and flew off into the distance with his meal. Interestingly, this is a different bird than the one featured in a post from a few days ago. Check the eye color. Osprey eye color changes as they age. Today’s fisherman is a mature adult compared to Tuesday’s juvenile perched in a tree.