Volcano surfing, Nicaragua

Photo © Peter Gene

Snow-, water- and sand-boarding are for sissies. Or so say fans of one of Central America’s newest pastimes: volcano boarding.

The very-much active volcano of Cerro Negro in Nicaragua is a popular site for the emerging sport.

Here you can goggle up, don a fetching orange jumpsuit and choose between a toboggan or a surfboard to tackle a long slope of warm, rocky volcanic ash.

Cerro Negro, just 728m, is the continent’s youngest volcano. Tour agencies offer trips to the site, involving a two-hour hike to the smoking crater, and the long slide back down at speeds of up to 50mph.

Written by - Photo by Peter Gene

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