Work With Hey Tours

Two of the most inspiring people I've gotten the chance to work with thus far, are entrepreneurs named Alvaro and Nicoly. Alvaro and Nicoly are married and run two businesses, a local clothing shop and a social tourism business, Hey Tours. Our team has been working with Hey Tours to better market their offerings to a wide array of clients and other tour operators. In the future we will be helping them measure their social and economic impact for their community, and hopefully helping them expand their business. For now, here are some photo from a "Quality Control" trip.

Alvaro took our group to the Masaya Volcano National Park. The Masaya Volcano is still active and is known to still periodically throw rocks and molten material from its crater at a moments notice. In addition one should only spend 15 minutes or so near its crater as the sulfuric fumes can become intense. We didn't see any lava on this day because of how smokey the crater was.

Formally known as the gate of hell 

An artist's rendition of the Gate of Hell

This cross was placed here in 1536 to protect locals from the Volcano

Smoke and fog coming off the crater, countless buzzards were flying above the smoke

Friends!

Has withstood a number of small explosions and other damage. Currently inaccessible for people.

The Crater Below 

Alvaro having a good time

Enjoying the trip 

The hike home 

Until next time

Adventure! Volcano Boarding

Rolling my windows down, to cruise. 

Pretty cool reviews, had to try it! 

Stoked

Nicaragua is a fascinating country because all of the natural elements that comprise it are tremendous. The trees are massive and astounding, the volcanos have created some of the most unique bodies of water in the world, the animals and plants are very diverse, and the people love adventures! This past weekend we decided to try our luck with one of Nicaragua's most unique adventures: Volcano Boarding. Volcano Boarding is so unique to Nicaragua in fact, that it's the only place in the world you can do it.

Cerro Negro

Contrasts 

Noted. 

Exploring solo 

Cerro's crater 

Held up by some crazy winds 

Cerro Negro, the volcano we boarded on is also quite unique. Cerro Negro is the youngest and one of the most active volcanoes in Central America. That's pretty cool. It's a cinder cone volcano which means that it builds on itself with each eruption. Addition through destruction, sounds cool. That means the boarding is only going to get better, that's pretty cool too. Strangely, most cinder volcanos only last 15 years or so as they usually occur on the flanks of other large volcanoes that eventually swallow them. Cerro Negro however, has already been around for 160 years! Cool. In addition, due to their youth, most cinders usually don't grow too high. Cerro Negro however, is over 400 meters high, which means you can volcano board at 70 kilometers per hour. That's most definitely cool!

The ascent 

More crater shots 

Volcano boarding itself was pretty fun, but Cerro Negro was unique enough to warrant a visit. In order to board down the back side we hiked up the volcano, which is really just a massive mound of volcanic ash. From there we got to traverse the spine of the volcano to the crater where the gas is emitted from. From there we felt some of the strongest winds I have ever experienced: you could lay back and they would hold you up. In addition, since Cerro is all ash it is entirely black and there is no plant life whatsoever. All around is luscious Nicaraguan vegetation, a pretty cool contrast!

Suited up and ready to slide 

After our day of adventure we took time to explore Leon, one of Nicaragua's most interesting cities. A college town, Leon had plenty to eat, see, and do.

The view as we departed Cerro Negro 

Just kidding, it was more like this

Leon

Free wisdom

Growing in Tight Spaces

Last week the summer interns and I got to launch a really cool project. We've been focusing on urban gardening for a little while, and we finally decided to give it a shot. We are seeking to combine a number of Nicaraguan passions to create something innovative. Nicas love their food, their natural landscapes, sustainability, and doing things themselves. Thus, we are trying to convince people to use their own trash, cramped spaces, and creative minds to grow healthy food for their families. 

To kick the project off we thought we would get the community excited by visiting local schools to launch a competition. More info to follow but for now, some pictures from the first visit! 

Bambooing in Catarina

I have been working with a couple of artisan groups of late. Here are a few shots of the products that ACAT, a group of bamboo artisans make. ACAT are unique because their craftsmanship is truly spectacular, and they treat all their bamboo with an ecologically friendly finish. The finish gives the bamboo a darker look, and preserves the product, while still making it safe to dispose of should it break. 

ACAT are seeking help with their marketing strategies so they can stabilize their revenue streams and provide higher wages to the local men that they employ. Get your orders in now because it looks like they've been under charging by a significant margin! Please provide any feedback you may have, will definitely be helping ACAT iterate with different designs and suggestions from potential consumers. More updates to come... 

A lamp, can also be turned into the face of your favorite Central American Revolutionary

Garden Lamps

An unfinished mirror

The Pinta

The Santa Maria

A wine caddy

A wine car

A wine, cannon?

Candles

Candles

Landmarks for finding ACAT in Catarina

The view on the way home.