Belize, formerly "Brittish Honduras", is located along the Southeast base of the Yucatan Peninsula.  It is bordered to the North by Mexico, and to the West and South by Guatemala.  Its Eastern side faces the Carribean Sea.  A barrier reef runs parallel to most of the Belize coast, varying from about 8 to 20 miles offshore.  Running along the leeward side of the reef are many small islands, called "cayes". 

My plan for the first part of my vacation was to kayak along the reef from North to South between Belize City and the town of Placencia, camping on islands along the way.  I had brought my kayak with me from home.  It's what is known as a collapsible, or "folding" sea kayak.  It's made by a company called Feathercraft in Canada, and consists of a bunch of jointed aluminum poles that form a framework.  A "skin" made out of nylon canvas with a rubberized, waterproof bottom fits tightly over this frame to form a rigid, seaworthy craft.

I arrived in Belize City near the end of January in 1993.  I had read that this town had a bad reputation, so I did not want to remain longer than necessary.  (The little hotel I stayed at employed a man with a rifle to stand guard on the porch overnight.)  I bought my groceries the next morning and hired a water taxi to drop me off on Sargent's Caye.  I set up camp, assembled my boat, and the next day I began paddling and made stops at Goff's Caye and English Caye on my way to the Bluefield range.

Here is a chart showing the first section of my voyage.

When I paddle at home along the coast of Maine, land is always within sight, but Belize was my first experience with open water navigation.  I had to guess at a rough compass heading and hope that the islands shown on the chart would eventually come into view.  Here is a picture of the sophisticated navigational instrument I used to judge distance on the chart:

I spent my second night at Ricardo's in the Bluefield range, and had a nice meal cooked by Finn, the caretaker.  Many of the cayes are little more than stands of mangrove trees, so the choices for my next destination were somewhat limited.  Because of this, I had a very long haul of 22 miles to reach Tobacco Caye.  I stayed a day there to relax and do some snorkeling along the reef.

During this trip I found that my information was somewhat out of date.  Some islands that I expected to be unoccupied were now privately owned with houses built on them.  The government of Belize was trying to put a stop to all the cayes falling into private hands, but I don't know if this sort of trip would still be possible today.

The next place I stopped was an unoccupied fish camp in the Pelican Cayes.  The following day I made my way to the next island I planned to camp at, but found there was a house built on it.  As I pulled up on the beach, several young fellows came out from the trees holding machetes.  They turned out to be quite nice - they'd just been cutting some brush for the owners - and said it would be fine if I camped there.  I spent the afternoon watching some pelicans dive for fish, amazed at the grace and precision of their flight.

Here is a chart showing the latter part of my voyage.

When I arrived on Pompion Caye, I found a gentleman living there named Moz, who didn't mind if I set up camp.  Normally, the tradewinds blow from the East and the barrier reef stops the waves, but sometimes during the Winter, strong, Northerly winds blow down from storms in the central US and pass across enough open water to kick up some big surf.  I ended up having a layover day on Pompion because of the weather.  Actually, I packed up my boat that morning and prepared to set out.  Moz didn't think it was a good idea and stood on the shore muttering things like, "Each man, he choose his own fate."   I paddled out for a bit, and was pleased with how the boat handled, fully loaded, in the rough conditions.  My original schedule, however, had been to travel all the way down to the Southernmost cayes, the Sapodillas, and then backtrack North to here before heading West towards the coast of Belize and the town of Placencia.  I realized that I might make good time going South with the wind at my back, but if it kept blowing for the next few days I probably wouldn't be able to make my way back against it.  So I accepted that Moz probably was right, and spent the rest of the day on Pompion.

Heading West towards the mainland, the final place I camped was Laughing Bird Caye.  I believe this is a popular destination for local outfitters to lead groups of kayakers, but there was no one there when I visited.  I hung out for the afternoon and did some snorkeling.  It's always, if you'll excuse the pun, "breathtaking" to stick your face beneath the flat suface of the water and suddenly this lively, brightly colored world of fish and corals opens up before you.  Belize, by the way, is considered one of the premiere scuba diving locations in the world.  If eco-tourism can become a significant factor in the Belize economy, it will create an incentive to preserve the country's natural treasures.

I arrived in Placencia none the worse for the wear.  The town is located at the tip of a long, narrow peninsula, and has a friendly, relaxed atmosphere, with none of the paranoia I felt while in Belize City.  Placencia made a good base for exploring the nearby Cockscomb Basin jaguar preserve.

I then traveled to the town of San Ignacio, in the central part of Belize near the Western border.  I visited the Mayan ruins of Cahel Pech.  I took a tour to visit the Rio Frio caves, saw the Hidden Valley Falls in the Mountain Pine Ridge, and played in the swimming holes of the Rio On.

I arranged for transportion to cross the border into Guatemala for the 35 mile ride to the famous Mayan city of Tikal.  This site has been thoroughly excavated and the temples are quite impressive.  In fact, I think one of the most striking features of these pyramids is that they allow you to climb up above the treetops to get a view of the surrounding landscape.  The Mayan civilization was at its height from A.D. 300 to 900.  Although Tikal was a mighty city in its time, it is now known that it was conquered by a city in Belize named Caracol.  Belize may have been the heart of the ancient Mayan empire, with as many as a million people living within its present-day borders (four times the current number).  The reasons for the demise of the Mayan culture are still not understood, but they left behind some remarkable structures and artifacts.  And their descendants make up part of today's diverse population.

Upon returning to San Ignacio, I visited another Mayan temple site called Xunantunich.  I also rented a vehicle so I could drive to the Blue Hole caves, Guanacaste Park, and the Belize Zoo.  The zoo, in particular, was a treat.  I got to see some of the animals that had so far eluded me in the wild.

My next destination was the Mayan city of Lamanai.  It is located about 50 miles Northwest of Belize City, near the Crooked Tree Wildlife Preserve, a mecca for serious birdwatchers.  Although it's possible in the dry season to drive to Lamanai, the nicest way to get there is to travel by boat on the New River.  Lamanai is unusual for Mayan cities in that it was still occupied at the time of the arrival of the Spanish in the 1500's.

My final tour in Belize was to Altun Ha, which lies near the coast and was a major trading center.  A large, carved jade head (shown at the top of this page) was discovered there, and it's image currently adorns the Belize dollar.

Belize was changing fast when I was there.  It's my hope that they have held true to their ideals of preserving their natural environment.  You can help with that goal by taking a trip there and seeing some of its unique beauty for yourself.