It had to happen...after 21 days I finally managed to prise my fat arse off the stool inside the Barrier Reef Sports Bar and place it onto the water taxi that took me off Caye Caulker and planted me in the shithole that is Belize city.
I spent two nights in the city because there were clothes to wash and buy and a visa needed to be extended but finally on Thursday 21st I got back on the bike. It had been 24 days since I last spent a day in the saddle and the 50 odd miles to Belmopan, the capital of Belize was going to hurt....
The road was mostly flat, bumpy and boring. It was also damn hot, I mean really hot! However after several hours of slow cycling and lots of stops for rehydration and shade worshipping I made it to the outskirts of the capital. That was far enough for me and the 1st hotel I came across was the one I was going to be staying in. As it turns out it was expensive but it did have a super quiet and very efficient a/c unit and a fully loaded wide-screen TV....so it wasn't all bad.
The next day it was only 23 miles to the small town of San Ignacio and after a small lie in I was back on the road for about 4 hours. The road spent most of the time going up and over gentle rises and small hills which completely wore me out....3 weeks of doing nothing ruins the fitness! I arrived in the town just after midday and got a hotel that had A/C and TV which also happened to be opposite a bar...strange that! I had an early night “in” enjoying the coolness of the A/C and the firmness of the mattress on top of the large bed.
The next day it was Saturday and after watching two football matches and one game of rugby I finally got out of bed and went to get something to eat. It was then that I found out that a hurricane was heading across the sea to Belize. Looks like I got off the island at the right time and I was in the best place in Belize to ride out the storm. The hurricane was due to hit the country on Sunday afternoon and until then I chilled out and relaxed.
On Sunday afternoon the rain started, a gentle drizzle cooling down the heat of the day. The old saying “of the calm before the storm” is absolutely correct. By the evening the wind had picked up and at just after 19:30 the power went out! Unlike areas near the coast (i.e. Belize city) the effects of the hurricane were just a few trees blown over and a few sections of corrugated iron blown off a couple of roofs. The next morning nothing was open and there nothing do to except lie in bed and wonder when the power would becoming back on....the answer was 8pm!
On Tuesday I was booked on to a caving trip but due to the hurricane's rain laden downpour they were all shut! Therefore I walked to the outside of town to the nearby Mayan ruins of Cahal Pech, perched on the top of a tree covered hill. I was the only tourist there and I had the place to myself. It was a small site but I enjoyed the ambience.
The following morning some of the caves had reopened. The waters had returned to their normal levels and the work gangs had cleared the paths of the fallen trees allowing the tourists to return. There were 3 of us on the day trip, myself, an Swiss bloke called Lars and a crazy Dutch girl (is there any other kind?) mysteriously called Ms Q. After a drive of about 60 minutes sitting in the back of a pick-up like a red-neck we arrived in the car park and picked up our tubes! An easy 45 minute walk found us at the edge of a narrow river, its milky blue waters were cool and refreshing. All of us got onto the tubes, some with more difficulty than others (yes Ms Q I'm talking about you!) and then linked up in a row, feet under the armpits of the one in front and headed off downstream into the underworld.
The 1st cave we tubed through was about 800m long, our headlamps reflecting off the water and the quartz in the rock ceiling as we floated along in the darkness. Then we re-emerged into the sunlight and up ahead was the next cave. As we came to the cave mouth the water turned white and all off us went “butts up” and we navigated the rapids. This cave was about a mile long with a few twists and turns and even a waterfall half way through near a opening that allowed the sunlight into the huge cavern.
Eventually we saw the sunlight of the entrance and left the cave and the darkness behind. We carried on floating downstream and the rays of the Belizean sun warmed us up chasing the cold chill of the caves away.
The following day Lars and Ms Q went to the ATM whilst I had a nice long lie in. The day after I went to the ATM but due to the overnight rain the tour guide abandoned the trip before we even got to the 2nd river crossing. The water level was rising very fast, 3 inches within 5-10 minutes.
The next day was Saturday and once again I made out like a red-neck and headed to the ATM (or the Actun Tunichil Muknal cave to give it its full name). The water levels had gone back done to their usual level and after about 60 minutes walk through the jungle, crossing the river 3 times we made it to the entrance of the cave. The ATM cave is a “wet cave” and to gain access to the cave you have to swim about 20 metres from the cave mouth to the 1st bit of “land” or rock to stand on. After that it was a case of climbing, squeezing, wading and swimming upstream further into the cave system. The water was ice cold and amazingly refreshing, well for me at least!
At one point the guide told us all to turn off the head lights and placing one hand on the shoulder of the person in front of us we waded deeper into the cave in complete darkness. After what seemed like an aeon the guide told us to turn our lights back on and the views were fantastic. (go and check out the pictures!) We carried on over small waterfalls and through narrow gaps before we got to the turn off and the climb up into the “dry area” of the cave. The river itself carried on for another 3 miles before disappearing into the depths.
Climbing up about 20 meters we stopped and after removing our shoes we carried on in our socks. The cave was viewed as an entrance to the underworld by the Mayan and their priests and here in the dry area were offerings and sacrifices. The artefacts have been left exactly where they were found and the “holy offerings” contained in clay pots were “on show” just how a museum would do. There were 3 chambers to “discover” and the second one was a huge cavern about half the size of a football pitch.
Sadly all good things must come to an end and after about 2 ½ hours in the cave we retraced our steps leaving the underworld behind and emerged reborn into the sunlight and the land of the living. Sitting down in the nearby “picnic area” I was enjoying a long lazy cigarette when I discovered that I was right on top of a solider ant trail. I found this out when they started to bite me!
In the evening I hanged out with Ms Q and bored her with stories of my travels (she's only on a 3 week holiday) and then faced up to the fact that like her I to would soon be leaving San Ignacio.
Today is Sunday 31st of October and tomorrow its the start of a new month and for me a new country. From San Ignacio it's 11 miles to the Belize/Guatamala border, so it should be an easy day!
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