Belize - December 25th, 2007

On Christmas Day we spent a full day out in the Bay of Honduras.

We left Machaca Hill around 8:30 AM to meet our two guides, Joevani (sic) and Dario on the outskirts of Punta Gorda. After some introductions and brief preparation we got into the outboard motor fiberglass boat - called the Permit - a little after 9 AM.

Our destination for the day was the Snakes Cayes about 10 to 15 miles off the coastline.

As we got close to the Snake Cayes our guides gave us two fishing poles to troll for permit and barracuda. Trolling involves running the boat at slow speed and using poles that are a lot stiffer than those used for fly fishing.

We made our way to the center part of the Cayes to a small 1 acre island that housed the ranger station. There we met the head ranger, George and he gave us a thorough introduction to the Cayes using a pointing stick and map hung on the wall.

After paying permit fees for use of the reserve we left the island to go to West Snake Caye where we had lunch and snorkled.

Christmas dinner back at Machaca Hill was buffet style. I brought out the wine that I had packed from the states, Rich got to carve a ham and the dinner was nice for the occasion. A local band was even hired by the lodge to play for about 2 hours. The were a reggae/ska band and even played classic hits like Crazy Bald Head.

Although we really didn't have a formal Christmas celebration it was a very nice day nonetheless.

Belize - Sunday, 23rd of December, 2007

Belize Trip - Day 1

I left for Belize at 1:45 AM from Denver International Airport (DIA) . Kary dropped me off around midnight and the flight left on time for Atlanta. Arrival at Atlanta was around 6:15 AM E.S.T. I was pretty bushed from the flight so I tried to get some rest by sleeping on the floor near the gate for the flight to Belize.

Six hours to wait for another flight is a long time and the carpeted floors with the hustle and bustle of an airport didn't allow for a lot of sleep. I wish airports would have some sort of nap rooms where a door can be closed for peace and quiet. Unfortunately, that's a pipe dream since I imagine that there are plenty of reasons not to have nap rooms for temporarily stranded travelers.

The flight to Belize was uneventful and I got into Belize International Airport at 3:20 PM. The heat and humidity were a welcome change from Colorado. I was happy to have my checked bag arrive with me and going through customs was uneventful; although the first line I got into to get my pasport stamped was for locals only.

Crystal Auto Rentals was an easy find at the airport since it's about 200 feet from the exit.

I finally left Ladyville around 4:30 PM on my way to Punta Gorda. I was hoping to arrive at Machaca Hill Lodge about 8:00 to 8:30 PM. The drive was quite nice and I took some rest stops for pictures. The final drive time was about 4 1/2 hours since I didn't arrive until a little after 9 PM.

Total distance using the Western Highway to Humingbird to the Sourthern Highway and finally Punta Gorda was ~203 miles.

Lisa has fortunately saved some dinner for me so I was grateful to sit down and have some food.

I was proabably in bed and sleeping by 10:30 PM. I slept well that night after being 20 hours in transit.