CLIMBING

You do not need pitons to climb a volcano, just a lot of stamina and strong desire to get to the top of everything. Because volcanoes tend to be lonely peaks, the views from the top are sweeping and impressive. Guatemala’s highest mountain is a volcano, Tajumulco in the north near the Mexican border. It’s a tough two-day hike, but the views over the line of volcanoes down past Quetzaltenango, Lake Atitlán and Antigua are stunning and unique. The most popular volcanoes to climb are Tajumulco (4,210 Mts.), Santa Maria near Quetzaltenango (3,768 Mts.), San Pedro beside Lake Atitlán – one of the most spectacular for the sweeping views over lake and Pacific Ocean (3,055 Mts.), Agua above Antigua (3,752 Mts.), and Pacaya, close to Guatemala City – the only active volcano on the list (2,552 Mts.). You can ascend Agua on foot, on horseback, mountain bike, or dirt bike. The others can only be done on foot. Pacaya is the easiest, as you can get to within a two-hour hike to the summit by motor road.