We begin our hike outside the city of Xela in a town called Llanos del Pinal. The four and a half hour climb begins with a gradual ascent up through family-owned farmland; the trail quickly steepens as we enter the forest. Emerging above the tree line, we climb the rocks on Santa María's summit to get a better view of the Xela Valley and maybe even the Pacific Ocean. We look out at eight other volcanoes in Guatemala's volcanic chain, from Acatenango to Tajumulco. If we're lucky, Santa María's smaller neighbor, Volcán Santiaguito, will surprise us with an eruption. After breakfast, we head down the trail the way we came. On the ride to Xela for lunch at a local comedor, we look back at Santa María and remember how it felt to stand atop that 3772 meter cone.