Highland Hiking, Hangin' Out

We had breakfast in a comedor off of the market square. I love Guatemalan breakfast. It consists of tortillas, eggs, beans, queso fresco and black coffee. Unfortunately, although Guatemala is one of the world’s greatest coffee producers, almost all coffee is instant. Good coffee is grown for export only. Even then, most of it fetches pretty pathetic prices. Starbucks, the single biggest buyer, forces prices to exploitatively low levels.

In the morning we hiked along the valley floor, through farms and a few small villages. It drizzled off and on, Seattle style, but it was so beautiful we didn’t pay it much mind. We climbed out of the valley though the forest, on a maze of footpaths and game trails. While the locals navigated the trails with heavy loads and no hesitation at the forks, our clients struggled up the hill and we had to keep a close eye on them, lest they get lost. The boys were a huge help, each one sticking with one of the slower hikers, taking some of their stuff and showing them the way. Eventually the trail emerged on a high ridge, where I took this photo, before we plunged back down again.

In the afternoon we followed a river through the valley, zig-zagging across it again and again. Some of our female clients exemplified gringa stereotypes, taking off their shoes at every single crossing, timidly hopping from rock to rock, occasionally falling in. Again, the boys were a huge help, finding sturdy sticks and ferrying the girls’ packs across the biggest fords. Just as we were climbing out of the river valley it began to rain in earnest, soaking us to the skin. It’s a steep, slippery ascent up to the road and many of the clients were already wet from the river, so Xiprian, or Santa Clara La Laguna was a welcome sight.

This Quetzaltrekkers trip has been staying with the same family for years now. The mother, Doña Ana, had warm water for washing up and a hot dinner waiting when we arrived. Afterward, the father, Don Pedro, played guitar and he and the guides sang folk songs in Spanish. Before bedding down we built a fire in the courtyard. We roasted marshmallows and Abe read us some of the new Harry Potter, which he’s been hoarding and been hauling around, although it’s crazy heavy.