On the way out of St Herman's cave.
We took to the road with Judi and Duane and headed to the Cayo district. That's in the central/western part of the country. This area is a lot more mountainous and jungle like. So beautiful! We looked at a couple of pieces of property for sale. Fairly promising but we'll check up on it again later. This was time to be tourists!
We spent the night in the Belizean capital, Belmopan and then we drove down the Hummingbird Highway. This is where you get into the real jungle. We stopped at a national park that has a massive cave and a swimming hole. The cave was great. We paid a small entrance fee and rented some flashlights and off we went into the darkness. We had the place all to ourselves and you don't even need to take a guide. Inside the cave we saw piles of bird feathers. After we got out, we asked the manager about them. Turns out that a large (3 foot) vampire bat has moved into the cave recently. He asked if we saw it! We didn't but it's a good thing he didn't mention the bat before we went in!
We spent the night in the Belizean capital, Belmopan and then we drove down the Hummingbird Highway. This is where you get into the real jungle. We stopped at a national park that has a massive cave and a swimming hole. The cave was great. We paid a small entrance fee and rented some flashlights and off we went into the darkness. We had the place all to ourselves and you don't even need to take a guide. Inside the cave we saw piles of bird feathers. After we got out, we asked the manager about them. Turns out that a large (3 foot) vampire bat has moved into the cave recently. He asked if we saw it! We didn't but it's a good thing he didn't mention the bat before we went in!
The inland Blue Hole national park.
After St. Herman's cave we walked into the Blue Hole. This is the inland Blue Hole, not to be confused with the ocean Blue Hole. Same idea though. It's a collapsed cave that has an underground river running into it. It's created a perfect swimming hole. The water is crystal clear and we had the place to ourselves! It was so refreshing after the cave hike.
Junior with a treat from his handler.
The next day we visited the Belize Zoo. This is such an amazing little place. They call themselves the 'best little zoo in the world!" It's pretty hard to argue. Everything is small scale and the animals are kept in very natural habitats. It's easy to have a very close encounter. One of the handlers walked around with us and brought snacks for the animals. So everywhere that we went the animals came to the fences. This is a picture of Junior. He's a young jag that was born in the zoo. We saw him three years ago when he was just a cub. I loved seeing him again. Such a beautiful animal.
The zoo is a rescue shelter. They only take injured or problem animals that would otherwise be killed. They don't take anything from the wild or other zoos. It's a very worthwhile cause and a great way to educate people. I love it!
The zoo is a rescue shelter. They only take injured or problem animals that would otherwise be killed. They don't take anything from the wild or other zoos. It's a very worthwhile cause and a great way to educate people. I love it!