- Mexico and Belize Motorcycle Adventure 02'
Having a campfire made from pounds of stuff I don’t want feels good, guide books, maps or whatever burns. The motorcycle feels overloaded, especially when carrying water and food for camping, so anything that’s not needed gets burned. I reminisce of stories my father and older sister told doing the same exact thing while on their three and a half month Appalachian Trail hike.
My Belize guidebook talks about a scenic route to Belize City, but in the rainy season, you need to talk with the locals to see if it's passable. Well..... this is the dry season, so I just go for it. Yeaha! It is scenic.
Belizeans: Tooling into Belize City there is lots of activity. At every busy street corner stands a police officer or two, or three. Zigzagging around town did lead me to an empty street with just one dude hanging out at a pole. He looks like Sammy Davis Jr. and is wearing a neon yellow suit with matching pants and hat. This is like a set of an NYPD Blues take. This Belizean is pleasant to talk with he says he is ‘kind of’ famous, showing me his scrapbook of signatures, photos and notes of VIPs. I'm in there, Tom Junkans on a Harley Davidson from the USA. Life is good, I find the Belize City beach and start chillin out under a palapa. A couple hippie vans are parked fifty yards away on the beach with some Belizeans hanging out. I start chatting with them and what a pleasure. We talk for a while and then one asked me if I had trouble with any Mexicans during my trip. Not thinking the gas station story was anything, I say "Not really". He says "Ya, some Mexicans like to play the piano". I say "What?". He says, "They like to play the piano!" Standing there with a stupid look on my face for a moment, then light bulb! "Yeah! A Mexican did play the piano on me a few days ago!" My Belizean friend starts practically rolling on the ground with laughter knowing exactly what that means. The goal today is Placencia, a small village in the middle of the country on the tip of a 20-mile long and narrow peninsula jetting out into the Caribbean Sea. I ride to the end of the road, park the bike next to a store and buy two beers. With help from a new “Helper” friend, I find a place to stay for $11 a night, private bath, shower and a view of the sea. Sweet is the word! The next day I reserve a beach cottage for 10 night's right at the tip of the peninsula for Heidi and I. Placencia is small and cool town. I became a slight celebrity at the beach bars, the guy who drove his Harley from the USA, everyone knows who I am. My landlord keeps my motorcycle right behind his house under his bedroom window and his dog sleeps underneath. I give him a bunch of stiff wire used to repair my backpack and other miscellaneous hardware. He says he is going to make a fishing trap. We are friends for life. Rain Forest: Still have a week before Heidi arrives. My guidebook says the best rain forest in Belize is to the far south near Guatemala.
The main highway and only highway in Southern Belize. The gaps between the bridgeboards are super wide and make for a weird sensation when a tire slips in the crack.
The main highway (only highway) in southern Belize. No warning signs for this washout, you have to keep on your toes.
Chilling out in the Jungle. I love creeks like this anywhere I go but I'm loving these even more. I attempt to scrape some of the crap off the bike that caked up and have some lunch, perfect.
This is approaching the Maya Mountains - Southern Belize
Far southern Belize high up in the Maya Mountain rain forest is where the Mayan Indians fled in the 1500's to escape enslavement. The Mayan's still live a primitive lifestyle today. The villages are set near good swimming for bathing. I've seen drinking water wells near central buildings and schools, I'm told this is good water to drink even for me. Driving through the villages I see lots of chickens, pigs and mules in front yards.
Riding down the main road into Agucate village. South, past here is one more village before the Guatemala border. I forget the name but it is larger then Agucate, which is around 40 homes. To get there is a one hour Hike through the rain forest, the only way in.
School is out. The kids all run at me at first, but when I dismount to get the camera, they all jump back.
Agucate Village, Southern Belize near the Guatemala border.
The road turns into two worn tracks, then to a single track. I park the bike, two Mayan dudes pop out from nowhere and guide me an hour into the rain forest, with their dog, to some caves and a waterfall. My guidebook says this is the best rain forest in Belize.
My Mayans guide me down a Jungle path while being super friendly, courteous and informative. One Mayan spoke good English and had recently graduated a Belize sponsored Eco-tourism training program. Yeah! I just bumped into them. I guess many villages have people who have gone through this training, plus many villages have guest bunk houses for eco-travelers. Everyone who visits my camp outside of town asks why I'm not staying in town at the community place.
It is about a half-hour walk through the jungle before reaching the caves with pre-Columbus markings. These poles are for helping me climb to the mouth of the cave.
Another half-hour hike before we reach the water falls. Way cool, I feel like this is some kind of dream.
My campsite a half-mile out of Agucate village. This is great swimming here.
I keep looking for Tarzan
Visiting Mayan's at my campsite near Agucate village: Out hunting they captured this Iguana. The legs are bound for transport. The handler is showing me the full belly and says this is prized food because it's full of eggs.
Another group of Mayan Indians visiting me at my campsite near the Agucate village. They are asking me "Were you in the Army? Aren't you afraid to sleep out in the jungle alone?" I say "Na! I'm from the north-woods, this is nothing” Then one of them say "What's that" pointing to the thick brush next my tent. They were teasing me about the jungle and I thought this was another attempt. Then I see the biggest snake I've ever seen, at least six feet long and thicker then my arm scurry from the brush to the front of my tent. I swear if my tent wasn't zippered shut it would have slithered inside. One of the guys said "I would stay inside your tent after dark if I were you" I forget what I said but I do remember what ever I said my voice was shaking and my knees felt loose. I take their advice and sleep with my cycle boots on all night and sacrificed a water jug so I don’t have to step outside to pee. Before the group takes off, one of them with a machete makes a stick for me, it has a name but I forget what it’s called. The stick is for checking the brush for snakes. He shows me how to use it. "You check for snakes like this, you kill them like this and this is how you whip the snake out of your way." Yaaa!....I thank them and practice using the stick. Wakeup call,...Hello, I'm not in Wisconsin any more! Hang on! Much more to come …
Continued: ---> Page 4 <----
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Of course skip all the dribble if you like and just check out the photos
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