Hiking from Xela to Lake Atitlan

There are two ways to get from Xela to Lake Atitlan, by taking a shuttle for about an hour and a half or the best way in my opinion, hiking the 46km through the countryside surrounded by volcanos.
Of course I opted for the 2 night 3 day multi day trek. I had heard great things about this physically challenging hike and it turned out to be the highlight of my month in Guatemala. The cost of the trek is 750 Q and 100 Q for the bag drop. This includes everything from breakfast the first morning to lunch on the third day, except a beer or ice cream on the second day. I did the trek with Quetzaltrekkers, the only non-profit, all volunteer-run trekking and outdoors association in Guatemala. 100% of the profits goes to support a school and provide housing for children who would otherwise be working and living on the streets in Xela. The trek runs on Tuesdays and Saturdays only so plan your time in Xela accordingly.

The night before the hike we met at the Quetzaltrekkers office at 6pm for a pre departure meeting. In the group we were 22 participants and 4 guides so 26 hikers in total. We introduced ourselves, collected any equipment we needed such as sleeping pads and bags and rucksacks, collected food we would be carrying and were told about the route and general information for the next 3 days. You can borrow sleeping bags, mats, rucksacks and walking poles from Quetzaltrekkers. They also provide a bag drop service for an extra 100Q where they will bring your bags from Xela to the lake.

The next morning after a hearty breakfast at the office we all set off for the bus station at 7am. After a 20 minute bus ride we arrived at the start of the trail. We all became acquainted with each other and the shit kit, both of which would be great friends of ours for the next 3 days.

The first two hours is quite a steep ascent. There are plenty of breaks for people to catch their breath, have some water and trail mix. It levelled off for a bit, another ascent and then plenty of down hill after the lunch break. We all carried items of food for the lunches, snacks and dinner for the first night. To be honest I’ve never eaten so well in my 6 weeks of backpacking as I did on that trip. The lunch the first day was delicious. I saw vegetables for the first time in a week. I didn’t think I’d ever get so excited to see vegetables after a week of tortillas, fried plantain and eggs.

After lunch it was pretty much mostly downhill to the town where we were staying that night. We stayed in a town hall the first night. The hall was very spacious and had two toilets and a sink. I was just delighted to use an actual toilet and be able to wash my hands. We set the sleeping pads down and sleeping bags for the night and set out an order system for the termascals. Temazcal means sauna in Spanish but not your standard sauna I was used to in my fitness centre at home. The best way I can describe it is as a large pizza oven. This was how we all managed to wash the first night. The termascals are warm little huts you crawl into. The is hot water and cold water. You can sit on a bench at the back of the hut and wash by mixing the hot and cold together and using a small bowl to pour the water over yourself to wash off.

Being able to wash with warm water was a treat. We were all black with dust, dirt and sweat. After a lovely pasta dinner we settled into our sleeping bags for the night. We had an early start at 6am the next morning.

Day 2

Breakfast was provided in the village before we headed off on the second long day of the hike. I found the second day the hardest. From 8-2pm just seemed to be one unrelenting hill. I don’t actually think the first two hours of the morning were that bad but all I can remember from that morning was ‘record hill’. Record hill was the start of a steep, narrow and long hill. About half the group decided to part take in some healthy competition. We were timed coming up the first half of the hill. The fastest time to date is 7 and a half minutes. In general it takes people who are hiking 25 minutes. I finished in a respectable 11mins and 40 seconds. It felt like I had developed chronic lung disease 1 minute in. The altitude gives another challenge to this hike.

After record hill we were half way to ice cream village. Ice cream village is the carrot the guides dangle to get us through the first half of the day. It’s not a village full of ice cream or homemade ice cream stalls, which I had been dreaming about that morning. It’s a rural village that we stopped in to buy drinks and an ice cream.

Reenergised with sugar and the promise of some level ground we headed off for the corn field of misery. I think they are named so due to the miserable hills. But the views of the corn fields were amazing.

After the lunch stop the rest of the day was mainly downhill bar the last climb through the cornfields of death.

We arrived at our destination for that evening at about 5pm. The accommodation on the second night is in a local family’s house. We all sleep in the dining room on our sleeping pads lined up side by side. There is one shower in the house and a toilet so everyone gets the chance to shower. We had another fantastic meal provided by the family in the dinning room followed by marshmallows roasted on the fire.

The next morning we at 4am to hike 45 mins to the sunrise stop. This was one of the most magical sunsets I’ve ever seen. We got comfortable in our sleeping bags with hot chocolate and cookies to watch the sun rise behind the volcanos and illuminate Lake Atitlan below. I will let the photos say it all.

After a breakfast of banana bread, granola and oatmeal we started they final descent down to the lake. It’s quite an even and steep decent but easily finished in two hours. The views of the sun shining on the lake on the way down were incredible.

The hike finishes in San Juan with a visit to a coffee plantation and cafe. They serve some of the best coffee in Guatemala. Most of Guatemala’s good stuff is exported. After an hour break there we hopped into the back of pick up trucks to bring us to San Pedro, our final destination and where we would be getting our bags back and having lunch and a swim in the lake.

This trek was my highlight of Guatemala mainly due to the people I met and friendships I made. We all continued on to a party that night together in Santa Cruz. Luckily after 3 days we weren’t all sick of each other and as I write this a week later I’m still travelling with two girls who are now great friends of mine.

The trek was one of the most physically challenging things I’ve ever done but one of the best things also. It was really nice to be off the grid and without a phone for 3 days. I don think I’ve gone that long without being online since 2006. It was amazing connecting with people over campfires, simple food and bonding in our shared struggle up never ending hills.
I cannot write about the incredible three days without thanking the incredible guides. I don’t think I’ve ever seen people work so hard for free. They volunteer 3 months of there time to this cause and generally hike twice a week on multi day treks meaning there are very few days they aren’t hiking or preparing the gear, food and route for the next trek. They were all so lovely, patient, fun and helpful. Thanks Liam, Margot, Julianne and Marian!

Tips for hiking from Xela to Lake Atitlan:

• Get a chilly bottle/ aluminium bottle to keep your water cool. You’ll need to carry at least 2 litres each day.
• No need to buy your own snacks. There is so much food on the trek and amazing food at that. I brought fruit and nuts and didn’t end up eating any of it.
• Bring a coat and a fleece or jumper. It gets cold in the evenings and in the mornings.
• Make sure your shoes are comfortable for walking. Lots of people suffered from blisters. Bring blister pads.
• Bring flip flops, a swim suit, shorts and long pants for night time, an inflatable pillow, hand sanitiser and wet wipes. They’re basically currency.
• Pack a torch. Handy for the sunrise portion.
• If you have a low level of fitness it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get out walking uphill or meet the stairs masters in the gym before the trip.