In LIFT, we go on many adventures throughout the year. One such adventure would be hiking an inactive volcano named “Volcan Acatenango”—our highest peak of the year. The volcano, from the trailhead to the summit, is about 5,200 ft in total elevation gain with the peak being around 13,000 ft above sea level. It goes without saying that more than a few of us were nervous about the daunting challenge ahead, but before I get into the thrilling experience of hiking a volcano and seeing lava erupting from an active volcano in the distance (called “Fuego”), I want to talk about the lead-up to the hike.
The hike did not start while we were in Guatemala, but rather it started back at home at Camp-of-the-Woods. While we were still preparing for our trip to Guatemala, we were all aware of the excursion we’d eventually be doing together in a distant land all the way in Central America. Everyone was both excited and nervous about the trip at the same time. Throughout the LIFT year, LIFTers can qualify to go on the hikes which are more physically demanding by climbing up the local Oak ski mountain twice in a row, being about 650 ft base to summit. Shortly before we left to Central America, there would be groups going up Oak Mountain 3 times in a row and encouraging others to do likewise so that we would be more prepared for the challenge ahead. There would even be people praying for one another at times, asking that God would give them the strength, energy and endurance required to safely participate. It was uplifting to see that everyone wanted the rest of the group to be well prepared by reflecting the love of God to one another by intentionally taking the time to train with each other, that there would be a sense of physical accountability around the community. We were all looking forward to the trip and wanted to do everything within our power to prepare as much as we could.
Saturday, 18 April: Day 1. We started the day by leaving Magdalena for the last time at 03:30 in the morning, saying goodbye to our host families and heading out for Acatenango. On our way, we made a stop to get with our guides and gathered additional gear needed for the hike. It was clear that if we, being in the LIFT program having hiked the Adirondacks, needed to have guides with us, then this would be a hike nothing like what we’ve encountered before. After we had breakfast at a local restaurant, we made our way towards the volcano by bus. The volcano was so tall that the top was covered by clouds and the top was not visible. There was electricity in the air accompanied by a shared, yet unspoken sense of uncertainty. While we were at the base of the volcano, there were people encouraging and praying for one another before we embarked on our journey, showing our devotion to accomplishing a shared goal and being present with each other. Once we were hiking up the volcano, Nate Tarnowski and Paul Raucci, who were the leaders of the day (LOD’s), would make the most of every stop by taking the time to give their spiritual emphasis for the hike. The two had worked together on their spiritual emphasis and read a few passages out of Ephesians which to my recollection greatly boosted morale. I recall one LIFTer recounting that as Nate was reading out of his bible, a passerby had exclaimed “Oh, cool! He has a bible!” None of us were ashamed of our faith as people all around us would observe us being in God’s word as they walked by which is an incredible testament to how each of us are firmly rooted in our faith and unashamed of the Gospel.
The plant life from the base to the summit was incredible, watching it go from green jungle life below to dusty, druid, mute colors towards the top. I recall that one LIFTer was not doing so well at the beginning of the hike. The altitude was the biggest contributor, causing altitude sickness. It wasn’t until after one of her roommates, Giullia Smith, had prayed for her during one of our stops that things started to turn around. She had gone from nausea and a pounding headache to hiking up the volcano with no problem in just minutes—not thanks to anything the girls had done, but because they had invited God into their presence to be their strength during the hike. I heard multiple others tell a similar story that they would not have gotten up that volcano if it weren’t for prayer.
Later that evening, 4.5 hours into the hike, we arrived at base camp approximately 1,300 ft (1 mile) from the summit. Off in the distance was an active volcano called “Fuego” which would frequently erupt at all hours of the day. It was incredible to see and sometimes hear the destructive and mighty power of God’s creation in the distance throughout the night. During our debriefing of the hike, one LIFTer had mentioned that the volcano displays the mighty hand of God holding back what could be far more destructive, displaying God’s mercy and grace towards us, that even though we are deserving of death because of our sin, God loves us enough that He would want to redeem and be with us. Numerous people had also mentioned that God was “showing off” to us that evening as well; our camp was above a bed of clouds like what you’d see out of an airplane window, in sight of an active volcano erupting frequently with lightning happening around the billowing smoke. It was so surreal and just magnified the glory and majesty of God’s creation. Many mentioned as well that they didn’t even care that we didn’t have our phones since God’s creation can capture our attention for hours on its own. In fact, a phone is the last thing anyone wanted to see which people had mentioned they want to be a normal thing, even back in the States; spending more time in God’s creation in fellowship with others rather than being trapped inside a digital world, cut off from other people.
Views of Volcan Fuego erupting (on the let) at from our base camp
Sunday, 19 April: Day 2. The plan was simple: wake up early to summit the volcano and watch the sunrise. Easy enough—or was it? Early that morning we were all up by 03:00 to start towards the top at 03:30. We were moving slower than we’d imagined. Every hill was a challenge and the breaks were long. We were fighting against ash and dust with nearly every step and the altitude made each step more difficult than the last. It took us 1 hour and 40 minutes to reach the top—and we were only moving for about 35 of those minutes total. This was much slower than in the Adirondacks. It was clear that now, more than ever, we needed prayer in order to get up this volcano. We had gotten about a 4th of the way up when the guides told us that that was the last opportunity for anyone feeling unwell to turn back. No takers, yet I knew that there were a couple people feeling unwell from the altitude. As we ascended, it became evident that not everyone was able to make it to the top, but generosity and selflessness emerged from among the group; the guys in the group had offered to carry the girl’s packs for them if they were struggling to climb further. If no one had offered to carry someone else’s bag, there would have definitely been some people who didn’t make it to the top, but the love and generosity of God had shone through our group that day by literally carrying one another’s burdens up the volcano. As we got closer to the top, we had gone up into a rain cloud and wind increased and temperature dropped. I personally had been praying for myself and the group from the beginning of the hike because of potential danger. During our debriefing after the hike, one LIFTer recounted that she wasn’t feeling well at the beginning of the morning hike and should have turned around when she had the chance, but went anyway. She was experiencing nausea and a pounding headache, but they didn’t tell anyone. Towards the top, I recall seeing her bent over. Our LIFT staff and guides were aware of the problem and did what they could to help and we all still managed to summit despite circumstances. She mentioned reasoning for not turning back was pride, thinking that she can do what they want to do despite multiple signs saying otherwise. She related the experience to our walk with God; sometimes God lets us do things our own way, even to the brink of destruction, to teach us that we need God’s presence in everything we do. As we’ve memorized in John 15, “apart from God, you can do nothing.” At the top of the volcano, there was no sunrise. Only clouds. The weather was not getting better and we had to get a couple of people warm and dry, so we departed 20 minutes before sunrise.
After we’d had breakfast back at base camp and descended the rest of the volcano, we had our debriefing later that evening. I would like to end this blog entry with one thought which has stuck with me since returning from our hike. As a group, we discussed the different plant life (biomes) at different altitudes, and something lingered in my mind. I’d formed an analogy between the jungle-like forest at the bottom and the dry, desert life towards the top. The jungle can be representative of our lives when things are going well and there’s nothing to worry about; it’s easy to see the presence of life, vibrant colors, growth, solid ground to stand on—and the dry, dusty, arid part of the volcano can represent our lives when things aren’t going well, when all you can see is a lack of life, no color, no solid footing. However, there was this particular yellow flower at the top, which was difficult to spot, but among the mute colors, it was the one of the most beautiful sights to be found, but you wouldn’t know it’s there unless you look for it. When things are going our way, we can easily spot God’s goodness, but in trials and tribulations, that may be hard to do—but we won’t see how God is working within us through those trials for our good unless we search for God’s faithfulness with eyes wide open.
Ken P.
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