A Gringo from Alberta in Central America. Part 2

Day Ten Today we decided to go down country to see Punta Gorda in southern Belize.  From Punta Gorda if you wanted you can take a boat and go to Guatemala which is about an hour away.  The drive to Punta Gorda is scenic following the Mayan mountains most of the way.  It was sunny and hot along the coast.  The people were out and about in this little city.  Stopped and had a fish sandwich and watched the long boats go by.

What is interesting about southern Belize is there are more Mayan ruins with about three areas that are assessable by car and foot.

Drove back and spent the night sitting on the deck listening to the night sounds

Day Eleven  Today was a scuba diving day.  I got is two dives while Sherry snorkeled by the cayes.  An hour boat ride out.  Both dives were great and on one of the dives 7 large spotted Eagle Rays swam past as we moved along the sea wall.  It was an impressive sight to see.  The boat ride back was calm and sunny and we spent the time talking with the other divers and where that had dove before.

Day twelve  Well went diving again today.  We stopped at a Caye on the way out to Glover's Atoll where we were going to dive.  We dropped off our friends on Thach Caye and they spent the day hanging out in the Cayes.  I did three dives this day. All were very clear with alot of color.  The highlights was seeing a Moray Eel and getting up close and personal with a 6 foot nurse shark.

We spend the night at a local restaurant sharing tales of our day and the things we saw and did

Day thirteen  spent the day reading and sunning on the beach with a trip to the produce stand to stock up on vegetables and fruits.  I can't say enough about fresh vegetables and fruits in the tropics.  There is so much flavor and color.  Cooked up on the beach grill and had an early night.

Day fourteen  Today we went hiking in Cockscomb park.  The trail took us up a large mountain and down the otherside to a waterfall and jungle pool.  It was nice and cool sitting next to the pool after the long hike.  Hiking in 85% humidty is tough.  Sweating is a constant.  There were great vista's to see in this park and we completely enjoyed the day.

I met a young guy who was travelling the length of south and north America.  We exchanged a few stories and I gave him a few places to visit in western Canada.  I thought was a cool journey he was on.

Day fifteen Today i spent some time in the morning reading and they hanging on on the beach.  The days are enjoyable and I am able too get alot of swimming in.  Got on the Kayaks and dis a paddle along the beach.  This was a very enjoyable day.

Day sixteen  We started out the day with a drive out to Gales point.  This is a very small community located on the southern lagoon it takes about an hour off the humming bird highway on a dirt/clay road to get there.  Our hope was to see Manatees.  When we got there the wind was up and the waters were murky so no Manatees were seen.

We decided to do an afternoon hike in Mayflower Bocawina park.  The trail we went on takes us up a mountain.  The first third of the trip takes us by a Mayan ruin which is partially excavated and the trail is flat.  The next part of the trail is called the stairs portion.  There are stairs built into the trail to get us up to the bottom of a long falls.  The last section is what is called the rope section.  Here there are ropes along the trail to get up to the top falls and pool.  It is very steep and the ropes keep you from falling into the jungle.

The hike was well worth it.  We had a swim in the pool and were able to get some pictures of the jungle and the Caribbean off in the distance.

Day Seventeen  Today we left Hopkins and went to stay our last few days in Placentia.  We spent most of the day walking around the town and lounging by the ocean.  Finished off the night at a little restaurant taking with some local people and their kids

Day Eighteen  We walked for hours today all around the town looking at the ocean the lagoon and some of the local houses.  It is a small but cool little town.  The afternoon was spend walking more and my wife went to look in some of the local shops.  We finished off the day on the beach and a birthday dinner at a local restaurant eating local fish.

Day Nineteen and Twenty We packed up our stuff and drove to the airport to head home.  This was a great trip on this go around.  After flying in to Houston we spent the night then arrived home later that day.

Verdict:  a successful trip