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In-Depth Information
amid pine forests. The site is just 15 minutes from Los Encuentros, 45 minutes from Pana-
jachel, and 1.5 hours from Quetzaltenango.
From Los Encuentros, the road descends through beautiful agricultural fields tended by
Mayan Indians, many of whom still wear traditional dress. After passing the departmental
capital of Sololá, the road becomes steeper, descending to the Lake Atitlán shoreline with
gorgeous views of the large, crescent moon-shaped lake bounded by three volcanoes on
its southern shore. You'll also pass a waterfall or two along the way. For centuries the
beautyofLakeAtitlánhascaptivated travelers,includingAldousHuxley,whocomparedit
to Italy's Lake Como “with the additional embellishment of several immense volcanoes.”
Words cannot begin to describe the magic felt when seeing the lake for the first time, its
waters shimmering in the afternoon light. Lake Como, as beautiful as it is, doesn't have
volcanoes, tropical vegetation, and quaint Mayan villages lining its shores.
LakeAtitlán'soriginscanbetracedback85,000yearstoavolcaniceruptionthatcreated
the collapsed caldera the lake now fills, also spreading ash over a 1,000-mile radius. The
lake was created when drainage to the Pacific Ocean was blocked after the emergence of
the more recent Tolimán and Atitlán Volcanoes. It covers 125 square kilometers, being
30 kilometers long and 10 kilometers wide. Its maximum depth is more than 320 meters,
though the 1976 earthquake that rocked much of Guatemala may have opened a drainage
point somewhere, as the water level has been gradually declining ever since. A third vol-
cano, San Pedro, which is just under 3,000 meters high, is somewhat lower than the other
two but still offers a challenging climb on a path straight up its slopes.
The lake'smain tourist townhasalways been Panajachel, once arequisite stopalong the
“Gringo Trail,” as it was known in the 1960s, the path of American and European back-
packers making their way down to South America. There are incredible views across the
lake from “Pana,” as it's often referred to by locals, though in recent years several of the
outlying villages have started receiving their own fair share of visitors. Many foreigners
like the more peaceful atmosphere of the other villages surrounding the lake. As one ex-
patriate living in San Pedro put it, “Twenty minutes in Panajachel is enough for me.” Still,
Pana is worth at least a night's stay for the excellent shopping and decent restaurants.
Lake Atitlán has begun exhibiting signs of eutrophication, with a green gulag of cy-
anobacteriamakingitsfirstwidespreadappearanceonthewater'ssurfaceinOctober2009.
A legacy of Hurricane Stan was the destruction of a wastewater treatment plant that was
never rebuilt. Adding to the raw sewage streaming into the lake from the towns and vil-
lages on its shores are phosphates from agricultural fertilizers. The race to save Atitlán is
