The race to Lamanai

The New River is a twisty, meandering tributary that cuts through much of Belize. Along its shores nest hundreds of species of birds and an odd croc (yes, croc, not gator). The New is also the most direct route to one of Belize's most renowned historical sites: Lamanai.

Lamanai was established around 300 B.C. and was occupied all the way up to the 17th century by Mayan peoples. Lamanai itself means "submerged crocodile," which seemed logical, as the ruined state gives it a much lower profile than it must have had in past centuries.

I've slapped a few clips together from our excursion. If you look closely, you may see the group of Mennonites on tour.

The crossing

Twenty or so miles north of Orange Walk lie the ruins of Cerros, an ancient Mayan outpost overlooking the natural harbor near modern-day Corozal, Belize. The only way to get there is with a 4x4 with plenty of ground clearance. As soon as you get off the beaten bath, you get on the battered path, resembling Verdun at around 1917. It's slow going unless you want to blow a tire, and that would be quite a pickle given the seclusion.

About three miles in (that's about twenty minutes), we came to what looked like an insurmountable barrier: the New River. All we could see on the other side was an illegible sign and what looked like a wrecked barge.

While contemplating whether to turn and head back, we noticed the barge getting ever so slowly closer. Faint cheesy melodies from a low-amp boom box betrayed the presence of a crew.

It was a makeshift ferry, cranked back and forth across the river by two diligent locals. You pay a small fee for passage, and they'll get you across. But one of the gents had no qualms about handing over the cranking duty to an overly ambitious gringo.

After disembarking, we headed on toward Cerros...strangely, the ferry was the highlight of the trip. A week later we learned that only a few days after our crossing a couple had forgotten to put on their parking break while on the same ferry. Let's hope their insurance covered that mishap.

Tris learns to fish

Kate's brother in Belize, Tris, learned to fish on an outing with his grandfather. We sat back and enjoyed the lesson. Although you don't see the action so much here, Tris ended up catching more than anyone on the boat. The catch got cooked up a few days later back at an Orange Walk BBQ - Marie Sharp was again a most welcome guest.

Tris's grandfather is a versed outdoorsman. He's less the trapper-woodsman and more the jungle trekker, who decades ago led hunts through the rain forests of Central America. He had some valuable fishing tips to impart his grandson.