OMETEPE, Nicaragua Any local guide will tell you, a climber should not attempt an ascent of Nicaragua's Concepcion volcano by its south- ern flank. It's too fragile, and volcanologists fear it will ...

Our original plan did not include Nicaragua. We would, in fact, merely endure Nicaragua. We'd get on a bus and blow through the land of Contra vs. Sandinista on our way to Costa Rica, land of peace ...