Hanging Ten and Climbing the Flying Tiger

OK, so maybe I didn't hang ten but at least I tried surfing, 3 times actually.  It's much easier balancing on the board when it's stationary on the beach, step one in our lesson.

Step two is to ride a wave in on your belly, wee, wee!

 

 

The final steps are to get up on your knees and then stand.  I never mastered these final steps.  I managed to get up on my knees and to put one foot forward.  It took me so long to get this far that I ran out of wave.  Marc was more successful.  He managed to stand for a few seconds!

                                    
Our afternoon activity wasn't as challenging.  We went kayaking in the nearby estuary at Playa de Esteron.  We saw many water birds such as Egrets, Herons and Kingfishers.  We arrived back just as the sun was setting.

Our last volcano to tackle was Volcan Conchagua.  In Mayan, Conchagua means Flying Tiger.  I asked our guide how the Mayans knew about tigers.  He replied that they meant flying wild cat but the Spaniards changed it to flying tiger since they didn't know what a wild cat was.  The others in our group decided to stay at the beach so only Marc and I made the climb.  It was a pleasant walk along a cobblestone road through forest.  On the top was a 50 foot observation tower from which we had a great view of the Gulf of Fonseca.  The Gulf is surrounded by the countries of El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua.

I found this handy map on the Smithsonian Insitute Web Site which shows the location of  El Salvador's major volcanoes most of which we have now climbed.

Back at the hotel we enjoyed our last night in El Salvador.  Marc got to use his new machete opening up a beer bottle.

Marc thinks that his machete will be a good tool for trail clearing.  We had a great time in El Salvador, climbing volcanoes, touring quaint colonial towns, kayaking and even trying surfing.  We made new friends, tried new food and discovered a vibrant, diverse and friendly country.