I would like to time my vacations around volcanic events in
Nicaragua and Costa Rica. While they are impossible to predict these
things isn't it possible to give a "high probability" alert?
You guys probably have heard other collegues talk about what they
done/been/etc? Has anyone gone swimming in the lake in the caldera of
Volcan Madera (on the island of Ometepe in lake Nicaragua in Nicaragua)?
Would it be safe?
Allen
Dear Allen,
Cerro Negro
(Nicaragua) and Rincon de la Vieja,
Arenal, Poas, and Irazu (Costa Rica) are erupting or have had recent
activity.
Yes, our collegues talk a lot about what they've done and where they've
been but none of them have mentioned the lake in the caldera of Volcan
Madera as their favorite swimming hole (perhaps it is a secret). Volcan
Madera is dormant with no know eruptions in the last 10,000 years. I
don't know of any publications that describe the quality of the water
(pH, etc.) I don't know if it would be safe. Ask the locals (or take
some pH paper).
Steve Mattox, University of North Dakota
Recently, Alan wrote asking about swimming in the laguna of Volcan Maderas,
the dormant of the two volcanos on Isla de Ometepe in Nicaragua. Steve
Mattox suggested testing the pH before taking a dip. Actually, the water
is sweet and VERY clean, and the two-thousand or so folks whose drinking
water comes from the lake would like to keep it that way. Look but please
don't swim. The best way to the caldera is via the town of Balgue. Guides
can be hired at Hacienda Magdalena, a farm up the mountain a few hundred
metres from Balgue, and the trip is a about four or five hours up and back.
The hacienda also has three dormitory-style rooms with comfortable beds at
rock-bottom prices.
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