We crossed the border to Costa Rica on June 11th 2010
Day 144 - 146
June 8th - June 10th 2010

San Jorge - Rivas - San Juan del Sur

We spent a couple of days cruising around the southern part of Nicaragua before we were going to cross the border to Costa Rica. The southern most tip of the country is wedged between Lake Nicaragua and the Pacific. So we spent one night in San Jorge, Rivas at the Lake and the next close to San Juan del Sur on Playa Madera. The fun part was getting there. The road was washed out, really narrow, low hanging branches and cables. But after 2 hours of searching we finally found the place where we wanted to stay. It was a nice little place right at the beach called "Camping Matilda" and spent the night parked on sand. Unfortunately we didn't bring enough water so we left after one night and went back to San Jorge where we spent the last night in Nicaragua preparing for the border crossing of hell...

Day 143
June 7th 2010

We said good bye to our little paradise at the Lagoon Apoyo and drove 20 km south to Granada.

Lake Nicaragua is the biggest Lake in Central America and despite being a freshwater lake, has sawfish, tarpon, and sharks.
We spent the night at the Centro Turistico which is at the shore of Lake Nicaragua.


Days 141 & 142
June 5^th & 6^th 2010

Laguna Apoyo

Went back up to the crater after breakfast. Left National Park towards Granada. Got stopped by police again. This time they came after us on a motorbike and one of the officers told me I was going 80 km/h (60 mph) which I was not. I told him that the digital speedometer of my GPS was showing 60 km/h. Now he told me I was driving on the wrong lane in the roundabout about half mile back. He would have to give me a ticket which was C 800 (US$ 40). He told me that I had to go back to a bank in Managua to pay for the ticket and then pick up my license at the police station. That of course was no option but I told him that I would go to the bank Monday. Well, he said, you are not able to drive without a license. He then walked away to consult with the other officer. When he came back, he repeated what he told me before. But this time he offered me the convenience of paying him on the spot. How much would I pay?? I looked him in the eye and said that I would pay zero, nothing, nada today. He realized that I've read his bluff , gave me back my license and wished me safe travels. That was the first time on this trip that the police was trying to rip us off. We changed plans and drove to the Laguna de Apoyo, which is about half way between Masaya and Granada. 

The road to the lagoon is not the best, but the drive is worth it. The Lagoon de Apoyo is a lake in the crater of an extinct Vulcan. A piece of paradise. The reserve houses a tropical dry ecosystem, within the reserve the flora consists of numerous species of plants and tropical dry trees, such as pochote, black rosewood, mahogany, hogplum and guacuco, as well as a large variety and amount of orchids. The fauna consists of mammals such as opossums, giant anteaters, pacas, jaguarundis, Howler and White-faced Capuchin monkeys. As well as a variety of reptiles such as green iguanas and common boas. Over 200 species of birds have been documented in the reserve are abundant, oropendolas, falcons, hummingbirds, and 65 species of migratory birds are present. Also, various species of butterflies and mollusks.Apoyo lagoon also contains a variety of fish species, four species of mojarras, which are to be found exclusively in the lagoon. One of these species is the Arrow Mojarra (Amphilophus zaliosus), discovered in 1976. Three additional species were discovered in 2008, by the multinational research team directed by the Nicaraguan NGO, FUNDECI/GAIA, which manages a research station on the shore of the lake.
We found a nice spot to park after a while of driving around. The parking lot of the Hostel The Monkey Hut offered fairly level parking, There was also access to the lake, tubes and boats. The water was a little bit cooler that the air - but not by much. Just enough to cool off a little.

Day 140
June 4^th 2010

Leon to Masaya NP.

We had the choice of two roads. Both were going from Leon to Managua. We chose the wrong one - the old road. One of the worst roads so far. Got a little lost in Managua. Eventually found the way out. Quick late lunch at a chicken restaurant. Got stopped at a police checkpoint. The cops didn't like the copy of my drivers license and kept it. We spent night at Masaya National Park Visitor center. 

We drove up to the crater to check out the Volcano. The Volcano Masaya is one of the most active on earth. Although the recent activity of Masaya has largely been dominated by continuous degassing from an occasionally lava-filled pit crater, a number of discrete explosive events have occurred in the last 50 years. One such event occurred on November 22, 1999, which was recognised from satellite data. A hot spot appeared on satellite imagery, and there was a possible explosion. On April 23, 2001 the crater exploded and formed a new vent in the bottom of the crater. The explosion sent rocks with diameters up to 60 cm which travelled up to 500 m from the crater. Vehicles in the visitors area were damaged and one person was injured. On October 4, 2003 an eruption cloud was reported at Masaya. The plume rose to a height of ~4.6 km. Experts expect the next big eruption anytime. The Volcano is one of the most natural polluters on earth, throwing up to 3000 tons of dust and smoke into the air.

Day 139
June 3^rd 2010

Leon

We went out to explore the colonial town Leon.

The first city named León in Nicaragua was established in 1524 by Francisco Hernández de Córdoba about 20 miles east of the present site. The city was abandoned in 1610, after an eruption of the Momotombo volcano, located only a couple miles away, which left extensive damage in the form of flooding from Lake Managua. The inhabitants decided to move to its current location next to the Indigenous town of Subtiava. The ruins of the abandoned city are known as "León Viejo" and were excavated in 1960. In the year 2000, León Viejo was declared an UNESCO World Heritage Site.Nicaraguan President Anastasio Somoza García was shot and mortally wounded in the city on September 21, 1956.
Leon was one of the hot spots during the war. The city is not bad but not great either - compared to all the other colonial towns we've already been to. Nice churches. It was very HOT. Uncomfortable. We spent afternoon at a Texaco gas station where we thought we could stay the night. Street kids came by and asked for little things like candy or pens. A tourist bus stopped and an American tourist jumped out andasked whether he could take picture. Later this afternoon the security guard of the gas station asked us to leave. No problem, we just went across the street to stay at the Esso again. This time at the other end of the huge parking lot where is was a little more quiet.

Day 138
June 2^nd 2010

Today we crossed the border to Nicaragua. The border at Las Manos is a little chaotic and not very well organized. Trucks are lined up along both sides of the road miles before the border. We squeezed through and parked at the Honduran customs building. Through in a little over 1 hour.

First step at Aduana to check out the car and get it stamped out my passport. Next step car insurance for Nicaragua (20 $). Then Immigration Honduras to check out. Next Immigration Nicaragua (same office - Honduras official hands over passports to Nicaragua official. Next Aduana for Vehicle permit. Then quick vehicle check. Lots of maneuvering, many trucks. Not lots of space. We drove straight to Leon. The main Roads are very good in Nicaragua. Lots of cows on road. Beautiful scenery ( Volcanoes, green etc.) We spent the night at an Esso Gas Station in Leon. Seemed like THE spot to spend the night for all the trucks in Nicaragua. There were at least 50 trucks. The last one arrived around 11pm and the first left around 4 am. By 7.30 am all the trucks were gone. Many of the truck drivers were interested in us and came over to chat. All liked the idea of traveling with the family.