|Viaggio da solo - lug 2026
**Overcoming Obstacles of El Hato Mountain. Learning how to keep moving, and walk by faith. Explore my Journey to Altamira Gardens**
• On Sunday, June 21st, I left my hostel and hopped on a moto‑taxi from Antigua Central to Altamira, a scenic park high in the mountains of El Hato, near Hobbitenango. As always, riding these motorbikes in Latin America is nerve‑wracking. I asked the driver to go slow; the traffic and the chaos of motorcycles here can be overwhelming.
- After about ten minutes, we reached the base of the mountain, only to find the road blocked by police. They were holding traffic for fifteen minutes to ease congestion on the winding roads. The driver sat down to wait, while I stood nearby, debating with him whether we should take the long way around. I argued, “Why go ten minutes out of the way when we can just wait ten minutes for the road to reopen?” Right on cue, the policía lifted the barricade, and we continued climbing.
- The hills of El Hato were breathtaking, curvy, steep, and a little terrifying. But halfway up, the old red Yamaha motorcycle began to struggle. With me at 260 pounds and the driver around 150, the bike simply couldn’t handle the incline. He canceled the trip, dropped me off halfway, and asked for 20 quetzales. At first, I resisted: “You didn’t finish the job, and now you want the dinero?” But then I thought about it. His phone screen was cracked and water‑damaged, and the bike had been fighting the climb the whole way. So I handed him the 20 quetzals equivalent to $2.80 dollars and considered it fair, especially since we’d already waited at the base for 20 minutes until the road was reopened.
- From there, I started hitchhiking. A pickup truck heading toward San Lucas stopped and offered to drop me at the steepest part of the road, about two miles up for 10 quetzales. I accepted, and once he let me off at the fork, I walked another hundred feet before another vehicle stopped. This time, they were going to Hobbitenango and kindly offered me a ride all the way.
- Finally, I arrived at the shared parking lot for Altamira and Hobbitenango. I thanked my newfound companions, snapped a photo, shared my social media, and said goodbye. After spending four magical hours at the park, I called an UberX back to my hostel for 70Q. On the ride down, I even managed to “orange pill” the driver and then tipping him in real money that We The People control.
- Moments like these remind me that someone is always looking out for me. It brought to mind a verse from the Quran, Surah 6 al‑An’am 61‑62:
“He is the subjugator over His servants, and He sends over you guardian angels until, when death comes to one of you, Our messengers take him, and they do not fail.”
#AltamiraAdventure #ElHatoMountains #AntiguaGuatemala #MotoTaxiJourney #TravelStories #BackpackerLife #Hobbitenango #GuatemalaTravel #CryptoJourney #OrangePillMoment #TravelAndFaith #GuardianAngels #MountainRoads #LatinAmericaTravel
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