At a recent conference in Pennsylvania, I had the pleasure of connecting with educator Deb Donahue, who is an adjunct instructor at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown. In March, she accompanied her Geology Club students on a spring break fieldtrip to Guatemala. Let’s look at some highlights from their trip that you can visit, too!
Sharon Lyon
Editor, GeoLifestyle
Volcán Pacaya
Carreraardon/ Shutterstock.com
Located 19 miles southwest of Guatemala City, Volcán Pacaya is part of an active volcano complex composed with four eruptive centers.
Area geology:
The complex is formed as the Cocos Plate subducts below the Caribbean Plate.
Pacaya lies on the southern edge of a large volcanic caldera. The last caldera-forming eruption occurred 23,000 years ago.
The volcanic rocks are dominantly andesitic, with some olivine-bearing basalts and dacites.
After a short quiet period, Volcán Pacaya began erupting in 1961 and has been erupting frequently since then. A major eruption in 2010 ejected debris and ash, which mixed with rains from Tropical Storm Agatha, causing lahars and flooding.
In 2015, the growth of a new pyroclastic cone inside the summit crater produced frequent loud Strombolian explosions and ash emissions through May 2021.
Field notes from Deb: “Because Pacaya is an active volcano, we could not hike to the verytop of the crater for safety reasons. On our hike, we saw many examples of small drip stones—formations formed when molten lava ‘drips’ over small, already solidified ledges to form miniature, stubby-looking stalactites. We also found lava bombs—globs of lava thrown in the air during the eruption—which cooled to form spherical objects as they fell back to earth. These ranged from hand-size to about 40 centimeters in diameter.”
Trip tips:
There is a 200 Quetzal ($27 USD) fee to enter the national park and hire a mandatory guide.
The hike up to the highest safe point on the volcano is rigorous, but there are a lot of places to rest along the way.
The students loved toasting marshmallows by the heat of the volcanic rock. You can purchase the marshmallows at the small grocery store at the bottom of the volcano.
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View from atop El Mirador Viewpoint/ Courtesy of Deb Donahue
Located in a jungle 45 miles from the city of Cobán, Semuc Champey is a natural monument and popular tourist site.Six-tiered turquoise pools sit atop a natural, 300-meter limestone bridge of tufa, which formed above the once-exposed Cahabón River.
The Cahabón River flows underneath the limestone bridge through a narrow gorge, forming a hidden river cave.
The tufa formed from mineral-rich spring water. As the water flowed, it released CO₂, and calcium carbonate precipitated along the rim of the pools. This rim deposition shaped the pool edges over time.
The pools are typically about one meter deep, although some are deeper. The water in each pool gently cascades into the one below. You can walk between the pools on a wooden boardwalk.
Trip tips:
Experienced hikers should climb to the El Mirador Viewpoint, a 30–45 minute, extremely steep jaunt, with more than 1,300 feet in elevation gain. The trail is shady and jungle-covered with flights of uneven rock stairs.
Cool off in the pools atop the limestone bridge. Fish will nibble at your toes!
You can explore nearby caves with underground waterfalls or tube down the river (There are fees associated).
Field notes from Deb: “The climb to El Mirador was very difficult—we were supposed to hike back down on a gentler path, but when we got to the top, the other path was closed, and we had to climb back down all those rock steps. That said, the view was spectacular.”
Iximche Mayan Ruins
Photo Caption: What is in the image, who to credit
The Iximche Mayan Ruins are located in Guatemala’s western highlands, roughly 56 miles from Guatemala City.
History: The Kaqchikel Maya are an indigenous group in Guatemala. Today, they are the third largest Mayan group in the country. Iximche was the capital city of the Kaqchikel Maya from 1470–1524.
The city was strategically built on a ridge with ravines for defense.
When the Spanish arrived in 1524, the Kaqchikel allied with them, aiding in the conquest of rival Mayan groups.
Iximche was briefly declared the first capital of the Spanish Kingdom of Guatemala, but the alliance dissolved quickly, and the Kaqchikel abandoned the city later that year.
It burned to the ground two years later.
The Spanish capital was relocated, and the Kaqchikel surrendered to the Spanish in 1530.
Iximche was declared a Guatemalan National Monument in the 1960s.
In 1980, Iximche became a symbol of indigenous rights during the Guatemalan Civil War, and in 1989, Mayan ceremonies were re-established at the site.
Today, most visitors are of Mayan descent and ceremonies still occur, with cacao, chocolate, sugar, cinnamon, spices, flowers, and water brought as offerings to the Mayan gods and spirits.
Archeology: Iximche had six plazas, each associated with a ruling clan. The plazas included pyramids, altars, ball courts, palaces, platforms, and residences. A moat bisected the city.
More than 160 structures have been mapped; many feature stone facing and lime plaster, and some have Mixteca-Puebla style murals.
Tectonics: In 1976, a 7.5-magnitude earthquake destroyed one of the temples at Iximche. The earthquake epicenter was located along the Motagua Fault, a left-lateral strike-slip fault forming part of the boundary between the North American and Caribbean plates.
Field notes from Deb: “The ruins encompass a large area, and our group spent an entire day there. We saw evidence of ceremonies that may have occurred one day prior, as some small fires were still smoldering.”
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