» Volcano Boarding
  December 4th, 2006

Here I am, day four, and I'm still stuck in the "Leon Black Hole" - but I'm OK with this. After all, Leon is the perfect base to stay while you can take day trips to the beaches, volcanoes, and the neighboring lakes and villages. Yesterday I went to Cerro Negro, a black volcano, is the newest cinder cone to form in the western hemisphere. It thrust out of the ground back in 1850, much to the surprise of the quiet farming community I'm sure. The hostel I'm staying at offers visits to the volcano every other day for US$20, giving adventurous souls the chance to slide down the side of the volcano on a four-foot long board reaching speeds of 30 miles per hour. Do it right, and you'll have a story to write home about. Do it wrong, and you'll have the story to tell after a stay in the hospital.

The trip through the farming communities outside of Leon took about 45 minutes and the hike up to the top of the cinder cone took another hour. It wasn't a very difficult hike, but some areas were through loose stones the size of grapes and golf balls up a 45 degree incline. One step forward, slide two steps back. From the top, the view was spectacular. Our guide and driver, Darryn, the Aussie hostel owner, pointed out at half dozen volcanoes in the area. Most did not show any signs of activity, and some were quiet enough to have its sides covered in lush green foliage. Looking into Cerro Negro was like looking into hell. Muted colored minerals covered a canvas of black basalt. Hot gasses pour out from many vents. Boiling water is just under the surface in some areas and digging down a few inches into the lava rocks can reveal hot stones and scalding steam.

Interestingly, insects are confused by this young volcano and are drawn to the summit in numbers. Katydids, beetles, ladybugs, and bees can easily bee spotted on the black surface. We found a large swath of bees feeding from the condensed volcanic steam vents. Unfortunately, insects on this summit usually do not survive the hot sulfuric gasses.

Among our cameras, water bottles, and backpacks, we carried our volcano sleds, goggles and bright orange jumpsuits. Darryn explained that the jumpsuits act as an extra layer of skin to help if you fall off your board when going down. I looked at mine and saw old blood stains on its legs and arms.

Before speeding down the mountain at breakneck speeds, we were all required to do a test run on a slightly lesser incline for about 30 feet. My test run had me slipping sideways and digging the front of the board into the volcano. Some of the others laughed. I calmly looked up at the group and said calmly, ¨I feel confident about this. I'm ready.¨ My acting deserved an academy award.

After everyone practiced their run perfectly, it was time for the real thing. Darryn took us to the edge of the volcano and we all looked down a steep incline about a mile long. I concentrated on the beautiful sunset, a deep red and gold, setting in the distance beyond Leon. I felt clammy and my stomach was twisting, but I was pretty sure that this wouldn't be the last sunset I'd ever see.

The first three people went at the same time. They were friends and wanted to do it all at once. Darryn was a bit reluctant since if more than one fell, it could be difficult to bring them all medical attention. They sat on the back of the boards, gripping a leash attached to the front of the board with their left hand and a small handle at the back with their right. The front leash isn't used for anything other than to hold onto something, and the back handle is used to stay on the board when you need to break, which is done by shoving your heels into the volcanic rock. Without holding onto the back handle, you can flip over your board when breaking. One guy from Colorado did just that yesterday. He had cuts all over his head and arms.

The three started their run, gaining speed very rapidly, leaving big plumes of dust in their tracks. Darryn gave commentary as they went, saying that they were reaching speeds of 30 miles an hour easily. He said that two look like they are about to wipe out. They reached an area where the incline is a bit steeper and we lost view of them. Darryn judged by the increased amount of dust that one of them must have wiped out. However, five seconds later, they reappeared at the bottom all in one piece. The whole run took them about 15 seconds.

I decided to go next. Being a big guy, it was difficult for me to not only fit on the board, but also to fit in the orange jumpsuit. I felt very restricted. Darryn helped position me onto the board, making slight adjustments to body position. My knees were practically in my face. He gave me some last minute advice, explaining that I would most likely gain speeds faster than anyone else due to simple rules of physics. Great. He wiped the sweat from my goggles, but I could still barely see out of them. Maybe it would be better to do this blindly?

He gave me a slight nudge and I was off. Simple plywood on volcanic rock is a sound I will not soon forget. It was a lot like the sound of two pieces of sandpaper scraping together, but much louder. And it got louder the faster I went. The dust surrounded me and followed me like a comet streaking through the sky. About half way down - that is to say a half mile down - I found myself slowly turning. The front right edge was digging into the volcano and I felt that it was just a matter of time before I ate it, flipping over my board and scraping the surface of the volcano. I could hear Darryn's voice in my head talking to the others at the top. "Ok, here is where Kolby is going to really take a tumble. Get those cameras ready!" I put my feet down and came to a dead stop on the volcano. It was immediately silent. I could see the three down below, still looking like little orange ants on a black tarmac. My heart was pounding. I got up and removed my board from the volcano. It had buried itself 2 to 3 inches. I shook it off and got going again. My feet were too close to the front and the rocks were now bounding off the short lip and hitting me in the face and chest. They didn't hurt but it made it hard to breath. I came to a stop again about 100 yards from the bottom. The three others were standing there cheering me on, but the rocks were golf ball size, making it difficult to get going. I decided to experiment a bit with the board and in a large jolt of adrenaline; I stood up on the board, held on to the front leash, and surfed to the bottom.

The others looked at me like I was insane. Not by my fancy move at the end, but by how much volcanic soot I had acquired on my way down. I removed my goggles and it left a perfect anti-shadow around my eyes. One girl said she didn't know where my beard ended and the rock began. Another said I looked like William Wallace, ready to conquer Nicaragua.

The others made it down without incident and we all loaded into the truck and headed back to town to celebrate our accomplishment. I've been pulling pieces of volcanic rock from my scalp ever since, a reminder that this was something I was happy to do... once.

Here are some photos from the adventurous day.

Thanks for reading!
~K