Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Visit Meteorite Crater in Nicaragua



Huge Meteorite Crater in Nicaragua
By Rolando Tellez                                      Traductores certificados
Awesome experience for adventurous travelers. Here is a description of how you can enjoy the beautiful views of an impressive 14 km diameter crater known as Pantasma, Jinotega, Nicaragua.
According to a team led by scientist, Pierre Rochette, the crater structure of Pantasma is the result of an enormous meteorite impact that occurred in the area about 815,000 years ago. Then the center of the crater became a lake, which was drained by the rivers for many years. Today, the administrative center of Pantasma, Las Praderas, is in the center of the crater. The lush vegetation made it almost impossible to detect the crater until satellite images revealed such place in 2006.
I've been traveling to Pantasma by bus since 2009, and just the impressive views make the trip worthwhile. Pantasma is 192 km from Managua, the number of each kilometer is now indicated on short white posts along the road.  But the center of the crater or Praderas is about 210 km from Managua.
If you want to walk and take some beautiful pictures from the crater you can ask the bus driver to drop you anywhere. Likewise, you can signal another bus to take you to Praderas or ask for a ride. You can walk along the road but there are no shoulders on the sides of the paved road.  However the walk and the view are just wonderful. There are about 900 meters in altitude difference between the entrance of Pantasma and the valley in the center.
Here is how you get to Pantasma. If you´re at UCA university microbus terminal, you can take a taxi to Mercado Mayoreo Market. The cost could be US$6 to US$10, depending on how much luggage, or you can take the urban 110 bus number bus all the way to Mayoreo Terminal called Cotran (koTRAN). Bus fare is less than 10 cents in US dollar, but busses are usually crowed.
At the Mayoreo Terminal, Cotran you take the express bus ´Expreso a Jinotega´ to Jinotega city; bus fare is currently 110 cordabas (local currency) and to get a numbered seat you have buy the ticket in the east part of the bus terminal, and the bus ride will be 3 hours or so. There are 3 or 4 express busses, starting at 5 am until noon. When you get to the Jinotega bus terminal (best bathrooms at Cotran Sur), you take a 13 cordoba (less than US$0.50) taxi to go to Cotran Norte, remember you are going north. At Cotran Norte you take the Wiwili Pantasma bus, which passes by Pantasma, first and it continues to the other place called Wiwilli. This bus ride takes about 3 hours because of the curves and steep mountains, a couple of breaks for eating.
Where to stay in Praderas: there are a couple of new hostals. I prefer to stay at Hotelito el Esfuerzo. The phone of the owner Teresita Medina is 8418-0234. The rate is about $10 per day: Clean rooms with private bathrooms. I recommend you a room on the first floor, because usually the water pressure is not good at noon. There is plenty of water in the evening at night and in the morning on the second floor.
Las Praderas is a small safe town and most businesses are on the main road: everything is within walking distance. If you want to see some rocks you can visit the Mayor's Office or Alcaldía, which is near the Praderas Bus terminal. To visit other places like the Hidro Pantasma, a recently built dam, the taxi cab will ask for about $10. Eventually, Pastasma will become the tourist main attraction in Central America, because its meteoritic origin. Further details   
Huge meteorite impact in Nicaragua by Rolando Tellez


Small black particles are melt

Entrevista sobre meteoritos en Pantasma



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