Living on a Lake

Lately I´ve been Liking Living on a Lake.

Lake Atitlán in all her glory as seen from across the lake in San Marcos.

this is an awesome shot of the lancha docked in Panajachel.

a long term volunteer bought a bike while we were visiting

the other side of the lake.
i absolutely love riding in these boats.
I´m a sucker for an early morning lancha ride.

If there is a short term group volunteering here for a week

they always take a lancha ride on Sundays and we as

long term volunteers are always welcomed to join

which is an excellent perk for a solid week of manual labor.

Here we are on a hike on Cerra de Orro (hill of gold),

which is just one quick pick-up ride away from San Lucas.

The water is smooth like glass early in the morning,

This particular morning we got to

watch the sun come pouring over the mountains

as we paddled in its warmth.

Here is a photo of Matt and I waiting for a boat

at the dock of a neighboring town, Santiago Atitlán.

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The SAD TRUTH::: is that Lake Atitlán is very contaminated. the three main contaminents being:

1 - fertilizers with phosphates seeping into the water from surrounding farms,

2 - the soap which is used for many things particularly washing clothes in the lake also has phosphates

3 - there are no sewage treatment plants on the lake and few septic tanks so the sewage from hotels and entire communities just flows right back into the water.

Read this article to learn more about the situation.