Nicaragua...or BUST!!!

Our luck changed pretty drastically after we left the lake, which is good, as things were getting pretty bad. We left the lake and went for the cool of the mountains again, staying just outside a little town called Zunil that has a plethora of volcanic activity that creates enough hot water for a multitude of different sauna and hot spring options. We picked one that had three relaxing pools and plenty of views to keep us relaxed and happy.

After much persuasion and a relaxing day at the hot springs in Zunil, I was able to convince Christina to head to the beach for a bit of a surf. We found a place where we could drive right to the beach and stay just off the surf break (Los Pinos) outside of Sipacate.

We had a surf the evening we arrived, but it wasn't until the next morning that it shaped up enough to catch a few waves. Although I was frustrated with the quality of the beach break, I had a blast catching waves and riding right up onto the sand. After a couple of sessions, we decided that we were pooped enough, and motivated to get closer to the airport for Christina's departure in the morning.

Although we tried to stay away from Antigua, we ended up back there after getting a little lost trying to find a village in the hills above the city. We were disappointed to return to the city, but ended up enjoying it much more than our previous stay, considering that McKenzie was well, we stayed in a nicer hotel, enjoyed a nice dinner outside of the tourist area, and even had a bit of time to pick up some souvenirs on our way out of town.

I got Christina to the airport in time for her flight and promptly returned to Antigua (7th time in/out of the city) to collect Lizzy to head to El Salvador (8th and final time in/out of Antigua). We didn't quite make it to the border, but instead decided to stay the night back at Los Pinos before making the charge for the border...

After a fast border crossing, we headed down to El Zonte to meet up with Sean and Erin to continue the surf journey.

Sean and I had a sunset session at El Zonte, but decided that it was not worth sticking around for unless it got much better in the morning. When it failed to get better, we got on the road to head down to La Libertad to outfit, and then try El Sunzal to see if it is handling the surf any better than El Zonte.