Having finally left Guatemala, which we had enjoyed so much, we crossed the border into Belize a few days short of our visa expiry. The border crossing was easy and took less than an hour.

We really weren’t sure what to expect from Belize at all apart from the few facts obtained from the Lonely Planet. Firstly that it is an English speaking, (formerly English colony) and secondly that it is expensive.

Our first night and then several subsequent nights were spent at “The Trek-Stop” a friendly eco-campsite less than 20 miles from the border. The owners, Americans, have handed over the running of the place to Tino and his lovely family and a very good job he does of it too. We parked in a little shady patch amidst the Frisbee-Golf course, which fortunately was little used.

We passed the time catching up emails (good wiFi) reading and exploring. Just across the river, crossed by a hand-winched ferry, we visited the neat little Mayan site of Xunantunich, which has an impressively high “Castille”. We also found a really nice bike route to Clarissa Falls and were refreshed by some of the most delicious licuadas (essentially a milkshake) that we’d tasted. We also took the bikes out to visit the botanic gardens and though they weren’t too many miles away, the track was very rough and incredibly steep in parts. We were forced to abandon the bikes at one point and continue on foot. They were very well worth visiting however and we learned a lot about some of the indigenous trees/plants. The chicle (sapodilla) is the tree whose sap was formerly used to make chewing gum. The logwood is the tree that first attracted British loggers as it was a source of textile dyes. The gumbo limbo tree’s bark and part of its root can be used to delay the effects of snakebites and  of course there were some of the giant Ceiba trees with “buttress” roots to support its enormous height.

After about a week we decided that we really should move and explore a little more of this tiny country about the size of Wales. We had contacted Barton Creek Outpost via Couchsurfing a few weeks earlier and coincidentally met Jim the owner, in a café in San Ignacio. The “road” down to the outpost is a very rough track of about 25kms. However, it is worth every bumpy kilometre. The tropical jungle setting is just gorgeous-especially the driveway down, which is lined with flamboyant orange, red and hot pink flora.
Jim and his wife Jackie and their three lovely offspring Caitlin (11) Logan (9) and Cyan (2) set up there about 5 years ago and have established a neat little hostel/campsite. They offer campground space or a floor on which to put your sleeping bag and if you are willing to take the “volunteer” option, can benefit from free board and food in exchange for a few hours help each day. The food, by the way is well worth going for. I don’t know how she does it but Jackie is able to conjure up some delicious and beautifully presented meals in the middle of the jungle. The first night we arrived we were invited to share the delicious lobster pasta that she had just made.
We had a fabulous time there, socializing with the current volunteers, Kate, Nikki, (NZ.)Stephan (CH) and John (UK). Phil got his wish to find a chess playing companion and alternately beat or was beaten by Stephan. I spent a bit of time helping the children with some schoolwork (they are home-schooled) which was fun and we both took advantage of the gorgeous swimming-hole in the river that flows past the place.
We visited the nearby Barton-creek cave which you canoe through with a knowledgeable local guide. The cave is fascinating and has a vast, high, church-like ceiling and is occupied by catfish and long-legged cave spiders. It also houses a few pottery artifacts and a skull fossilized into the rock.
We also all went out for a day’s “jolly” to visit the Rio On falls which are another 30 or so bumpy kms further along the road. They are well worth the visit however as they are very pretty and it’s a lot of fun to clamber up each fall and pool from the bottom to the top. We stopped briefly at another fall (BIGrock?)which was very impressive and the guys took turns at leaping into the pool from increasingly high and slippery spots.
Unfortunately, at some point we must have drunk some “bad water” as that night I felt quite poorly and took to my bed.
The Outpost is deep in the jungle but it is also in the midst of a large community of Mennonites. Basically they are a people of Dutch (Protestant) inheritance and live their life in the simplest form possible. This essentially means that they scorn the use of mechanical stuff, preferring to use horsepower instead. Phil walked over to their sawmill where they use 8 horses to power the wheel together with a Heath Robinson collection of old car gearing systems. Their dress is uniformly denim dungarees, a straw hat and a long beard for the guys and thick long dark skirts, long sleeved shirt and bonnets for the gals. When you meet them on the road it feels like you have slipped back in time a couple of hundred years to the pioneers. They will generally acknowledge a “hello” or “good-evening’ but are usually reluctant to engage in a conversation. The Mennonites are the farmers of Belize and work extremely hard. In fact they are responsible for farming much of the produce and dairy in the whole of the country.
We spent seventeen days at the Outpost-much longer than we’d really intended, but with our 30 day visa almost up already, we felt it was time to hit the coast and see a little more of what Belize has to offer. We had really loved our time there, enjoyed the fruits of the jungle –banana, grapefruit, oranges and the more exotic jackfruit and breadfruit. We had even learned a little more about some of the native plants like the disgusting Jackass Bitters which you drink to cure parasites and such like

Passing through Belmopan, we renewed our visas for another month. Belmopan is actually now the capital of Belize as Belize city was devastated by (several) hurricanes and it was felt safer to have an inland capital. As such it is an extremely small city and can be circuited in about 10 minutes. A little shopping was needed so a quick call to “Brodies” the Gringo store was made. We also found a small market for fresh veg and a bakery.

From here we headed down the delightfully named “Hummingbird Highway” a fairly new and very scenic road which reaches the coast at Dangriga. On the way we stopped to visit Herman’s cave. A short walk through the jungle takes you to the massive and eerily lit cave-mouth from where you descend some way into the dripping darkness. We ate our picnic inside the darkness of the cave and avoided the plagues of mosquitoes outside.
A little way further we visited the Blue Hole- a lovely swimming spot. Not quite blue but very refreshing and full of inquisitive little fish. Our destination was the nature reserve of Cockscomb and we arrived in time to set up camp before darkness fell-which incidentally it does very swiftly and early in these parts.

Cockscomb was established some years ago as a jaguar sanctuary and as well as the big cats has claim to being the home of many and varied animals. We didn’t actually see any jaguars whilst there, though did come across some paw-prints in the mud as well as a tapir footprint but we hadn’t really expected to see any. There are allegedly over 80 resident in the park but as shy, nocturnal creatures, they prefer the depths of the jungle to the camp-sites. Despite few animal sightings, there are some lovely and very well marked and maintained hikes-most of which can be done in about 3-4 hours. We especially enjoyed those which had the reward of a sparkling waterfall and pool somewhere along them and took the advantage of much-needed, cooling swims to keep us going in the heat. The waterfall at the end of the Tiger-fern trail is particularly lovely. We also loved the tubing, lounging in an inner tube as the gentle current took us down the limpid, jungle-lined river as the sun began to set.

A short hop from Cockscomb, we next visited Hopkins which has a Garifuna community. The Garifuna are oF African (slave) origin and speak Creole/English. This was our first view of the Caribbean and it was lovely to feel the sea breezes at last. Looking for a campsite, we drove down through the sleepy village and found a perfect spot on the ocean, shaded by coconut palms and with its own dock extending out into the bay. It was in fact a plot meant for the acquisition of some speculating American builder but had yet to be claimed. We watched the sun set from the dock and thought this was almost perfect- until the jejenes arrived. Jejenes are invisible sand flies that can quite possibly drive a person to suicide! So tiny that they could easily pass through our mossie net, we spent almost the whole night scratching at the invisible little beasties whose bite is as sharp as a needle prick. One night was enough and we left the next day and headed for the little river-side village of Sittee.

Serendipity then took over! We spent rather longer at the internet café which served yummy choc-banana, peanut-butter milkshakes than we’d intended so decided to stay the night. As it’s off-season a few places were closed and so we ended up at Glover’s hostel which we’d initially rejected as it looked a bit ramshackle. On return however, Shirleen, the lady who looks after it for the owners, welcomed us and gave us such a good deal ($4 a night and the 3rd night free) that we could hardly refuse. Glover’s hostel is the mainland base of the family who own Glover’s Reef Atoll. We’d spotted posters about this place before and had remarked on how fabulous it sounded. Advertised as a “Back-packers’ Resort” and set on the reef about 40 miles off the coast it offers basic accommodation on a desert-island setting. We read various reports about the place though and some had been very vituperative about the owners (difficult and occasionally hostile) and the facilities (no electricity, fresh water). However, with Phil’s charm and superb negotiating skills they agreed that we could go for the week for around $300US and throw in a free kayak. Also considering the trip were a young honeymooning couple, Charles and Amy. In the end it was all agreed and we packed up their little skiff with our week’s worth of food provisions and a few clothes and headed off, in the rain, to the island.

IT WAS FABULOUS!
The reef is pristine and was much visited by the celebrated Jacques Cousteau in his lifetime. The ocean is shallow inside the reef and ranges from brilliant turquoise to sparkling sapphire and the island itself (North Caye) is your typical desert island. White coral sand backed by swaying coconut palms. It’s only about 6 acres in all and the family –whom incidentally we had no problems with at all as long as you respected that this was their home too, could be circumnavigated by kayak in about 30 minutes. It was also home to hermit-crabs (particularly the garbage dump) and many species of birds who seemed to spend time chilling out their on their way to some other migratory destination.
But it was the ocean that thrilled us. We snorkeled every day, sometimes twice a day. It was awesome. Imagine a fantastical garden, filled with exotic, colourful and weirdly shaped plants amongst which “fly” an incredible range of tropical fish. We lost count of the number of species within ten minutes. From the tiny azure blue and gold ones, to the sapphire-blue, spotted, the yellow and black angel fish, the artist’s palette parrot-fish and so very many more in between. In addition we were delighted to be able to see sizable rays flying through the water, starfish gingerly treading the sands at the bottom and Phil was even brave enough to snorkel with the nurse-sharks which came in to the dock, right on schedule at 6p.m. every evening to take advantage of the fish scraps from the days catch. We saw a huge spiny lobster, squid and jellyfish (tiny and non-dangerous). The young Belizian guys who work for the family asked him if he would like to go lobster fishing with them one evening, which he did. After an exhausting swim, he arrived back with a big smile and three lobster tails. They had caught eleven between them. We boiled them up in sea-water and feasted in style that night-it was so delicious.
 Our meagre provisions were thus eked out by the addition of much coconut (which Phil had learned how to crack open easily), occasional lobster and some of the most delicious fresh fish that I have ever eaten-red snapper, mackerel, two types of grouper (better than cod!) and conch-the big snails that live in those gorgeous pink-lined shells you can often buy at beach type shops. It’s delicious egg and floured and fried in butter!
We loved it so much that at the end of the week we decided not to leave and so we spent another week reading, sunbathing, wandering the island searching for coconuts, kayaking and of course, snorkeling. For us it had truly been paradise and a very special treat to have lived in our little palm-thatched cabana built on stilts over the ocean.

On return to Sittee, we found the truck to have gained a little ant colony and a generous coating of mould on the bedding etc, caused by the high humidity in these parts. Consequently we decided to stay another day or so to get it all cleaned up and dried out. We took advantage of the free kayaks to take an early morning ride down the river, which was lovely even if we didn’t spot any crocs.

Back to Belmopan to restock, before heading north, we had time to visit the acclaimed Belize zoo. It’s a great little zoo with very naturalistic settings and we finally got to see some jaguars as well as the lovely ocelots, margays and jagarundi s(another type of cat). The young jaguar was raised at the zoo so is relatively tame and this allowed for some great close-up shots as he brushed past the netting. We spent nearly three hours there and really enjoyed it despite the ever present mossies.

After an overnight wild-camp near the zoo, we traced our way up the Northern Highway. Belize only has four “proper” roads. The Western Highway, the Northern Highway, The Hummingbird Highway and the Southern Highway (how’s that for initiative when naming?). All the other roads are unpaved but varying in quality and generally not too bad. We were headed for another Couchsurfing contact-the “Back-packers’” resort in Sarteneja. The last 50 or so miles is unpaved and our late start and slow progress meant an overnight stop amongst the sugar cane plantations. Mosquito heaven! Fortunately our net proved adequate enough to get a peaceful, if hot night’s sleep.

We finally arrived at the pretty little village of Sarteneja just in time to take an iced tea and piece of freshly baked pineapple cake at the very newly opened French Deli. Ces’t superbe! Sartejna has quite a different feel to many of the Belizian town’s that we’ve visited-feeling very much more Mexican. In fact Spanish is the more common language spoken.
We then headed to the campsite owned by the lovely French couple Nathalie and Ed.

Spending our last five days in Belize, enjoying the hospitality, the delicious cooking (especially the cinnamon crepes) and meeting many locals who are made welcome here. Nathalie and Ed are doing something that is really worthwhile and quite unusual in that they are giving-back to the community, by establishing a project for planting mahogany trees, to hosting young cadets who came to cut down some trees and just being down-to-earth good people. They don’t own a car but use bicycle, public transport or Nathalie’s horse with or without the buggy. As she also is currently looking after a friend’s horse too, I was able to finally enjoy being able to go horseriding along the beach. It was lovely. Phil sweated to help Ed to install their new well and we took a tour with a local guide to visit his little farm and to see a cave system and its resident bat colony.

It was a lovely place to end our stay in Belize. We have been captivated by the diversity of  places that we’ve been fortunate enough to visit here. Expensive? Yes- well we probably spent more here-but then we did a lot more too. Anyway, we plan to return in a couple of months after visiting our next destination- Mexico.
But with our plans .. . . . .who knows!

END.