September 11
Hello everyone!
As I didn’t get to Punta Mango for the long weekend, I decided to explore a little bit closer to home. I went to a place which I had been told about before arriving: Ecoparque El Espino, more commonly known as the Ecoparque.
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| A running/cycling trail in Ecoparque |
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| Flowers of many colours guide your walk |
This, apparently, was where I was going to spend a lot of time running. A large park about five kilometres north of downtown Santa Tecla, it contains numerous trails for running, walking and cycling, not to mention some stunning panoramic views of the cities below.
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Ecoparque is actually on the same road as the
one which gets you to the volcano |
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With the terrain and the weather, cyclists weren't
going quickly enough to make them a hazard |
Locals will know that ‘north’ in reality means ‘up’. Ecoparque is situated on the slope of the volcano which dominates half of the skyline. The entrance is about 1,100 metres above sea level, and at least 100 metres above my house. Getting there means going uphill, quite significantly, in order to find the main entrance. There are two entrances but this one is more easily found and a bit safer.
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| Part of a brutal uphill running stretch |
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| The sign for the turn-off (yes they also have paintball!) |
Not quite as safe was the route I currently have to take to get there. The path shown on Google Maps isn’t possible, as it is the back entrance into a private residencia called Puerta Real. I thus have to go up a major road and then wind through a couple of backstreets.
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| Slightly dodgy and quite a few stray dogs |
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| Less dodgy - to the left is the front entrance to Puerta Real |
The land was - possibly still is, I’m not sure - owned by the El Espino Coffee Estate. The main use was to grow coffee, one of the country’s main exports. In 2007 the coop group opened El Espino to offer an outdoor space to the people who lived below.
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| I think this sign talks about adaptive measures taken to aid the park |
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| Heading towards the northern tip of the park |
The park is about 35 hectares in size (about 85 football pitches). Within this, there are wider trails, narrow trails and a lot of impassable ‘routes’.
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| The trails. I think I did most of red and a bit of blue. |
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Not everything is bike friendly, though there are some wooden
ramps which mental riders can use to jump across paths. |
I decided to go early to beat the heat. In doing so, I found myself in the clouds. Those panoramic views weren’t at their best…
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| See the lake over there? No? |
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| Mirador 3: not much to see at 7am |
As I looped around the main viewpoints (miradors), the Sun began to weakly break through. As I was leaving the park, I got a glimpse of the spectacular.
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| Looking south towards Santa Tecla |
My run had taken me past one of the more interesting parts of the park: El Infiernillo. This translates as ‘Little Hell’ and is where you will find steam coming out of a geyser. I was right next to a volcano, after all. The nearby equipment helps to measure volcanic activity.
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| This was donated by the AECI from Spain in 2004 |
The tranquility was lovely, only occasionally being interrupted by birds…
…cows…
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| Cows on the blue trail |
…and cyclists.
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| Cyclists at the end of this trail, by Mirador 3 |
I actually bumped into (not literally) one of my colleagues as I was finishing my run. I joined him and his cycling group for breakfast. Eating three pupusas made me glad I had ran an wildly undulating 12km before seeing him.
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| A pupusa is essentially a flatbread, usually stuffed with cheese, beans and pork |
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| Aside from the race, my longest run in ES so far |
I took an Uber back: I didn’t fancy running those pupusas downhill for another four kilometres. Though mostly cloudy when I was there, I did avoid the heavy rain which hit a couple of hours later…
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Waiting for my Uber. As it came up the hill, I realised I'd left my
water bottle and had to sprint back up the hill to retrieve it. Muppet. |
Ecoparque El Espino seems to be a lovely spot. Great for active people, apparently great for birdwatchers, and great for people who want a quick escape from urban life for some fresh air. Well, fresh away from the geyser, at least. A rewarding place where I will come many times in the future.
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| Spider web glistening in the morning at Mirador 3 |
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| An eco-friendly day in the Ecoparque! |
Love you all,
Matt
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