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Backpacker Options ♥ Open All Year Round ♥ Volunteers Welcome ♥ Vegans Accommodated
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La Biosfera is an educative mountain
adventure and healing retreat-in-progress in Nicaragua that encourages volunteerism and
cultural exchange while working organically on quality of life issues.
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Comunal and rustic-chic, or private and enchanted, there is something for everyone, including scouts of all ages.
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| Take a load off those tires. And sleep on ours! |
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| Rugged & romantic, The Loft won't disappoint. |
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| "The Loft at Falling Water"
Charming forest cabin available for glamping (glamour+camping), and your expertise -- if relevant to park's goals -- may be worth a discount. The Loft @ Falling Water is located at the juncture of two healthy springs, features a small pond, fire pit, bamboo meditative "Zen" water feature, kitchenette, loft, beds and bedding for 1-4 with additional hammocks and space for sleeping bags. Within some 150m from the Source Cave to east, 300m from the old highway to the west, 4kms from town. $40/night, whether you are one or six people.
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| Upper loft, lower salon, kitchenette, transformer furniture is couch and coffee table or bed. |
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| Looking down from Upper Deck |
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| Loft @ around 4pm |
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| Loft @ Twilight in the Forest |
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"The Long Haul," Backpackers Lodge
At La Biosfera we are proud to be at the "rustic cutting edge" of eco-technology, and boast the best view for the budget in the country, possibly in Central America. Probably the first earth bag built in Nicaragua, the Long Haul (Hall) is a hacienda-styled bunkhouse nestled in a hillside, featuring a matrimonial bedroom, eight bunk beds and hammock space, kitchen for guests' use, pot of delicious, curative tea daily, free Highlander Coffee, and wash/sanitation facilities. $10 USD/person or c220 NIO/night; Volunteers are welcome to join our work force for a 4hr minimum/$5 lodging discount. Low-cost meals on site (c$30;c$50;c$70), or BYO. Restaurants nearby. Contact: Biosfera@hijuela.com, (011 505) 8698-1439 (Suzanne:Eng/Span), or 8427-8414
(Spanish Only).
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| Sweaty or sedentary, there is plenty of "work therapy" for volunteers. |
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| Facade done in taquezal, brickless adobe, cobb, or waddle & daub. All pretty much the same. Clay and straw. Then covered in stucco. |
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| Wander around in your jammies. First rule @ La Biosfera: You Get to Do What You Want. |
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| Hard to imagine dining with a better view, under the orange trees, near the Long Haul. |
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| The matrimonial room in Long Haul. Simple spartan cowboy digs. $16 |
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| Hot Chocolate is a big hit @ La Biosfera. This one made with cacao, azucar, canela, pimienta de olor, Jiñocuao, cuculmeca. |
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The Long Haul will be surrounded by landscaped gardens featuring covered seating areas for relaxation and dining, and an open brick oven. It is co-located with organic vegetable and fruit gardens, which all guests are encouraged to sample raw and to cook with. The construction is packed earthbag of soil and clay on three sides, with the Western exposure having been built in classic taquezal, a sort of mountain colonial of clay and straw (adobe sin block, or cobb). Stucco covers its soundproof and geothermically sound materials. The construction is consistent with La Biosfera's ongoing effort to provide low cost solutions for folks of few resources, and a budget will be posted here when complete. Adjacent are showers with a view and compost toilets for humanure recycling. See Our Work for more photos and info.
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| Pitch tent, putter around in garden, ride horses, spelunk. |
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| "The Just Be You Solution"
Pitch a tent or hammock where you like or in a select site. Available for rental, $2-5 USD. All campers and lodgers are expected to follow the rules with regards to compost toilets, waste disposal, fire and trail safety.
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| WWOOFer Tassi chills out after digging water retention swales. |
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| Happy Curry Belly at Cross Pointe, just in time for Happy Hour Sunset. |
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"El Cambalache" (The Trade)
Work can be exchanged for a lodging discount. You MUST be serious. Volunteers, war vets, backpackers, WWOOFers, those downsized, ennui'ed and others in trauma, addiction or disease recovery willing to work in exchange for bunk, tent or hammock, contact biosfera@hijuela.com with a profile of your capacities or talents - as simple as a strong back and good work ethic are acceptable. Be aware that the cost of a bunk is roughly equivalent to a full day's hired work by a motivated Nicaraguan. Donations such as a tent, tarp, a quintal of corn, headlamps, unusual seeds, etc. are all worth a Cambalache (kam-bah-LAH-chay). Bunks are $8 regular, discounted to $5 for a 4-hour work day. Tent space and hammocks free with work exchange. Each guest is responsible for his/her food, and there are low cost meals onsite.
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Contact: info@hijuela.com, or Suzanne at (011-505) 8698-1439 (English/Spanish) or alt.phone at 8427-8414 (Spanish only).
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