After my ride in a truck, I took the Burril Boom Cut-off to Hattieville. Once again, it was very hot but after I turned onto the Western Highway at Hattieville the wind was at my back. Most of the time, a tailwind is welcome unless it is really hot and today was really hot. With a tailwind there isn't any relief from the heat. It was Sunday and the traffic was fairly quiet. There weren't any commercial trucks, the road was wide, the electrical posts were much farther than usual from road and I wanted to try flying my drone using the follow me mode where the drone will track me as I ride. I got the drone in the air and the gimbal followed me but the drone wouldn't move. Hhhhhmmmmm....I'll have to take a look at the instructions again. Maybe tomorrow...
Hawk
I got checked into a sweet cabana at the Cheers hotel for $60. It was beautiful, big and very comfortable. The hotel is run by a Danish woman and her daughter. Aside from the Belize Zoo there really isn't anything else in La Democracia. It's the halfway point between the Guatemala border and Belize City. Most of the customers are taking a break from the drive between here and there. The food in the restaurant is good and good value. They also offer the best wifi I've had in probably 3 weeks.
Tapir
Jaburi stork
In the morning after breakfast, I pedaled back 2.5 miles to visit the zoo. I've heard lots of people swoon over this zoo. I love animals but I'm not a big fan of zoos. Especially American zoos where animals are kept in cement enclosures with little plants. This zoo is totally different. It is actually a sanctuary for rescue animals and all the animals are local. There were jaguars, ocelots, hawks, tucans, macaws, cuatis, monkeys, tapir, crocodiles and storks that had been brought to the zoo for lots of different reasons. Many had been pets and then abandoned. A few had been in injured in fights. Some of the jaguars had been killing farmer's cattle but jaguars are endangered and it is illegal to kill them. So, instead of the killing the jaguars, the farmers bring the problem cats to the zoo. All the animals are gorgeous and it was especially cool seeing jaguars close up. The zoo has an intern program and Sarah, from England, was walking around checking on the animals before her shift. She gave me all kinds of information. It was like getting a private tour. One of the jaguars is named Sylvia I decided she is my spirit animal. All the enclosures are big and have been built into the jungle. There's no cement. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the zoo and made a nice donation on my out.
Jaguar 'Junior'
Cuoti
Cuotis are big diggers
Marga and Michael of Monkey Bay Sanctuary
I returned to the hotel, got Myrtle packed up and headed down the road. Next to the hotel is a huge animal sanctuary called Monkey Bay. I learned about it from a friend in Guanajuato. I wasn't exactly sure if it was the kind of place where I could show up unannounced but as I approached, Marga, the owner drove in. She stopped to ask me about the trike. I introduced myself and told her who my friend is in Guanajuato and immediately she invited me in to see the sanctuary. Marga and Michael have over 1,000 acres set aside for no development and a safe place for the animals of Belize. Marga gave me a quick tour. They have been working on the sanctuary since the late 70's. There is a study abroad program, cabanas, hostel type rooms and a huge beautiful campground. They were getting ready for a big meeting so I didn't stay long but would love to return to spend more time.
Ride to Belmopan
Reflection in a building
By now, it was late morning but I didn't have far to ride. My destination for the day was the capital of Belize, Belmopan. After hurricane Hattie in 1961 devastated Belize City, the capital was moved to Belmopan. Aside from some government buildings, this feels like a small town surrounded by farm land. I got checked into a hotel for $50. They offered a $12 discount for paying cash. The hotel had a restaurant and once I got settled I didn't leave the hotel until morning.
In the morning, I rode over to the market. I've noticed that the markets in Belize are open very early. Sometimes as early as 4 am. I had a fabulous breakfast of eggs, beans and tortillas for $3. Unfortunately, the coffee at the markets is always Nescafe. As I hit the road again I started seeing lots of cyclists on fancy bikes and full kit. There is a big cross country bike race every Holy Saturday that starts in Belize City and goes to San Ignacio and back. This race has been happening for 80 years and the route is close to 180 miles for the day. I had many fun interactions all day. And because there were so many cyclists, the traffic was extra courteous. This stretch from Belmopan to San Ignacio was the hilliest of the tour so far. Most of the hills were very gradual but there were a few short hills that were probably around 12%. Ouch! Luckily, I got my cycling legs back and my glutes are strong again. At some point, I needed to pull off the road to pee. I always look for some privacy and pulled onto a dirt road that was the entrance to a large Mennonite farm. The farm was so beautiful I decided to take out the drone for a quick flight. This is something I'm hoping to do more of.
Selfie from the air
I arrived in San Ignacio dripping in sweat at a very reasonable hour. It was holy Thursday and I made sure I was in a good sized touristic town for the Semana Santa holiday weekend. The holiday goes through Monday and many people will be traveling. Finding accommodation can be tough. Most everything will be closed on Good Friday and then Easter. Monday will also be a Federal type holiday. The country won't get back to normal until Tuesday.
Drone and trike
My first stop in San Ignacio was the big market. I had a wonderful meal with watermelon juice. The family running the 'cafe' recommended a hotel and I pedaled over. I was really surprised they would recommend a resort. I was about to turn around but then thought why not check it out. They had a cabana for one night for $65, but nothing more. It was super cute and comfortable. I dropped off my bags and then took a spin around town to find another room for the rest of the time I needed to spend in San Ignacio. Some the hotels looked kind of sketchy and many were already full for the weekend. I finally found a room at Martha's that was a really nice place for $50/night.
Arriving in San Ignacio
Arriving at Martha's
San Ignacio is a good sized town and there are lots of interesting to do. There are lots of adventure tours that include boulder scrambling in caves. Some tours are more adventurous than what I can handle but there are 2 Mayan ruin sites very close, an iguana sanctuary, a local fair starting on Saturday, swimming in the river that runs through town and also really cool looking kayaking cave tours. I was also looking forward to seeing the big bike race. My hotel has better wifi than most of the places I've stayed for the last couple of weeks. I have a ton of photos and video to go through, a few videos I am thinking to make as well as getting my blog updated. There will be lots of do over the next 4 days to keep me busy.
A Walk around San Ignacio
Next route through Guatemala back into Mexico
This is my last stop in Belize and so I also need to figure out what's needed to cross into Guatemala. Looking at the weather, the forecast for the next week is right around 100 F and 85% humidity. This is too hot for cycling. San Ignacio is only 10 miles from the border with Guatemala. Right now, I'm thinking of riding to the border and then getting transport to Tikal which is about 2 hours away. I'll probably also get transport from Tikal to the Palenque Mayan ruins in Mexico. It's an idea, we'll see how it all works out.
Cool! Can't wait to see the Air tracking you!
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