“We can start at 5am or 6am, though some people do it as early as 3am to see the sunrise,” our guide Moses suggested for starting our hike up Indian Nose, one of the best views of Atitlan and the surrounding area. Our late night jam session had resulted in a later start, something I was beginning to regret as we cut an aggressive path straight up the steep walls of Indian Nose. Every time the sun shined onto the trail, we would break out in an intense sweat, pausing to rest every 10 minutes or so. After a steady climb of a couple miles, we reached the spine of the mountain range and proceeded to the nose.
Moses was one of the best guides I’ve ever met. We had instinctually shooed him away when he first approached us after landing at the boat dock; an instinct I’ve had anywhere when first arriving to a new locale. He hooked us up with a great hostel and kayaks and we were more than pleased to have him on the Indian Nose trek. Though fluent in English, Maya and several other language, he firmly stuck to Spanish with us, something that is firmly appreciated with anyone who is learning or looking to practice. A former coffee plantation worker, he gave us a rundown of the harvesting process on our ascent and was full of interesting quips and jokes along the way. At a rough point in the trail I requested that he use his powers to part the bushes, to which he responded “only if brother Jeremiah is here to help lead us.”
I’ll let the view speak for itself, but upon arrival, Moses asked us if we wanted to learn some Maya. We surprised him with the basic “Mahk Diosh,” (thank you) and he seemed pretty pleased that we had even gone that far to remember Maya. Afterwards we cruised by the village of Santa Clara and were treated to a spectacular market scene.
