Mudpies and mud volcanoes.
Much to my mother’s chagrin, I would bust out the backdoor with wild hair and bare feet every time it rained in dry El Paso, Texas and furiously rip up the back yard to appreciate this simple kid’s delight.
Never in my life did I imagine I was going to be up to my neck in mud.
We hopped on a tour last minute to go to the mud volcano with the Santana crew. I mean, how can you say no to an interesting idea with a group of such amazing people?
And overall, I can say the whole experience is quite… interesting.
Here is a quick heads up on what to expect when going on this adventure.
– Expect to climb a VERY steep mud staircase up to the top of the muddy earth pimple, including shaky, unstable wooden handrails.
– You slowly lower yourself into the lukewarm mud and without really asking you, the attendants lay you down and pass you off to someone to be massaged for a few minutes ($1.50 extra).
– After the massage, they shove you off to a corner as you glide and float in the mud. Don’t expect to feel the bottom as it is 15 meters below. Maneuver carefully.
– They will pack about 40 people into your small mudpit. I hope you aren’t claustrophobic or a germophobe.
– If you want pictures, they have people there holding your cameras ready to capture your experience. Just be prepared to wait for your camera to come up while the guy juggles 40 other cameras ($1.50 extra).
– When you get out of the mud pit, you will be manhandled by a guy who works there to get all the mud off of you. I think we went to third base.
– Expect to go down a VERY steep, super muddy, wet, slippery (after all, other muddy people went in front of you) staircase up to the bottom of the volcano, including shaky, unstable wooden handrails that are slippery as well. Hopefully you will avoid it during a storm unlike we did (a la Erica and Shaun rain curse). Descending is even worse with rain, thunder and lightning.
– When you arrive to the lake to wash off, women will be waiting there to wash you off because apparently you cannot do it on your own ($1.50 extra). We did it ourselves and came our sparkly clean.
– If you do take this, be prepared to have your trunks/bathing suit taken off you with no warning. Being nude is really the only way to get the mud out of everything (especially the dark recesses). The water is already muddy so you can’t see much.
– Even after washing yourself in the water, you will smell like rotten eggs all the way home.
Now, do I suggest this? Only if you’re into the above. As I said… it was an interesting experience and I think I still have mixed feelings about the whole ordeal. Now saying that, I think I’ve outgrown the need to play with mud.
This looks amazing. I’m not sure about smelling like rotten eggs afterwards or getting to third base as a guy washes you down (unless he looks like Brad Pitt of course) but looks like a great experience.
Haha, this looks like so much fun! Will definitely do this if I head to Colombia. Thanks for the nudity head’s up.
I’d be put off too if some guy started man-handling me when getting out of the mud pit. At least you had the experience and weren’t taken for too much extra charges. How long did the smell of rotten eggs last?
@Monica: Yeah… this was no Brad Pitt for sure.
@Kate: It is definitely an experience to bed had. I’m glad I had already spent time with my Santana boat crew so I didn’t feel so weird about de-robing in front of strangers.
@Patricia: Good thing I saw some other people go through it first so I knew what to expect. I think I would have cried. They make TSA agents look tame. As for the rotten eggs, the smell comes off when you take a shower. Remember to get your clothes to a laundry place ASAP.
I think you had me until the eggs 🙂
I love that you’re so honest about how the whole thing really is! On other sites you always just read how awesome it (supposedly) is, but nobody mentions the climb, how small it is and the SMELL! I took a mud bath in Turkey years ago and all I remember is how bad it stank.
@Heather: Yeah, it was pretty gross. We had to go to the store to buy more shampoo and I felt bad for every person who walked near me.
@Dani: I’m so tired of hearing people say everything in the world is so great because, you know, it just isn’t. Some trips are all hype and well, I enjoyed some aspects of this one but definitely not all of it.
This looks like so much fun! I loved the Mud Festival in Korea, but this looks like a whole other kind of fun. Awesome!
@Aussie on the Road: I don’t mind mud, I apparently mind the sulfur smell lol! I say go for it! 😀
This looks awful! I don’t think I’d like being all muddy like this!
This sounds very interesting! I think I would do it if I would have the chance…
I was in Colombia during rainy season and decided not to do this after I heard a few other reviews like this one. I think it’s good people give a balanced review on things like this so you know exactly what you’re getting into.
That sure looks fun! I never need an excuse to play in the mud 😛
@Ali: So I guess that is why you weren’t a fan of La Tomatina?
@Sebastian: Might as well if you’re in the area right?
@Ayngelina: It was rainy season and actually there were cracks of lightning while we were bathing. A bit unnerving!
Third base… very funny.
I did a “mud bath” at the base of a volcano in Costa Rica. Thank God there weren’t so many people there. I do not like 40 people in my mud pool.
@Stephanie: I seriously haven’t been manhandled like that in a while. The amount of people they put in there really started getting to me for sure. That and I tried not to think about the germaphobe aspect.
This looks like the most fun ever! I’m usually not one for getting dirty (I’m such a girl), but I’d totally do this.
@C&C: Normally I’m not down to do something like this anymore – but when in Rome?
I had heard about this place before…I think I would also go for it, eventhough I probably would not expect too much. Been there , done that I guess…
@Federico: I don’t know what I expected going into it really. I’m glad I didn’t have high expectations!
I’ve heard the washing off of the mud can get quite… intimate…
@Rebecca: You should have seen the faces of some of the girls…