A Day of Adventures

Today I walked the river trail back to the road and headed over to the ferry that takes you across the Mopan river and then it's a little less than a mile walk up to Xunantunich. I ran into a couple of guys fro the resort that were also touring the area so we ended up doing a lot of the site together. I asked them if they would take a picture of me when I climb up to the top of the largest building and they said, "You're going to climb all the way up to the top of that big thing over there?" I didn't think it was that big but, they couldn't believe I was going to do it. They agreed to wait for me to get up to the top so they could take my picture. They were making chicken noises at each other egging themselves about being too chicken to go up there themselves. By the time I got to the top, I saw that one of them, Tracy, had made it half way up. So I guess I shamed them into doing it as well. They took my pictures and then I had to run back down to get my camera because i wanted to take pictures from the top. So, I ran back up and David, the big round guy, started up after me. I guess he didn't want to get left behind. The ruins were interesting but, I'm not that big on ruins myself. So, I took a few more pictures just so I could say I'd been to them, ate my lunch I packed and headed back. David and Tracy went back with me. As we got close to the ferry, free to cross, I saw this iguana in a tree that I had tried to take a picture of on the way up but, it got scared off by a car before I could snap the picture. So, I was trying to take a picture of it again, when all of a sudden there was this huge crashing commotion up the hillside next to the road. Out ran this iguana and a huge male iguana running right after her right out into the middle of the street in front of us. They suddenly realized they weren't alone and the male stopped and posed for pictures. It was great! And so funny to have them running around like that. They really remind me of squirrels. They act just like them. Scrabbling around in the trees, jumping from branch to branch and chasing each other around.

01 Ferry Crossing

David and Tracy decided to float the river back and I walked back on he river trail. At one point, I ran into a herd of cows that found me a little too fascinating. The herd kept following me and were getting closer and closer. I didn't want to turn my back on them and I kept trying to stay out of there way so I wouldn't threaten them. I stopped one time and yelled at them which caused them to scatter and run away but, they came right back. Since they had calves with them I didn't think I wanted them too close. They made me get off the trail by quite a bit before I was able to slip through the barbed wire and out of their pasture. By that time, I was a little disoriented as to where I was. I saw what I thought was a house and decided I should go around it. There was this little creek I had to get across so and I thought I could jump across, no problem. I took a flying leap and my left foot sunk knee deep in clay, like quicksand. With the momentum of the jump my foot came out without my boot and then my right foot sunk into the clay down to the knee. So, now I'm standing in clay up to my knee with my right foot and my let foot is balancing in the air sans a boot. I'm afraid to put it down for fear it will sink in again. While balancing like this, I'm digging into the clay trying to find my other boot. I finally pull it out, filled to the top with clay. I managed to put my foot down somewhere where I didn't sink in too deep but, I can't pull out my right foot. I finally make one big tug using my hands to pull my leg out and manage to get myself back down to the creek. I'm scooping the clay off my legs, it's about an inch thick all over me, and washing it off in the creek when Dave's goose buddy comes over and starts hissing at me. Apparently this is his swimming hole and he didn't like me butting in on him. That's when I realized the house I was trying to skirt was actually the resort. I finally get as much clay off my body and out of my boot to get it back on. The whole time, I'm having a hissing, yelling match with the goose who keeps insisting I leave and I keep explaining to him that I would leave as soon as I could. I plodded and slopped my way back to the cabana and presented my messy self for Dave's enjoyment. I think I beat him at getting dirty. I had clay all over my pack, on my clothes, caked thick on my boots and all over my body. I looked like I rolled around in it. Dave enjoyed his opportunity to laugh at me for once.

02 National Flower

While I was having my adventure, Dave was playing with his ham radio. He has his antenna thrown up over a limb behind the cabana. Yesterday, he got a contact that we think is in Spain but, we don't have a way to verify it. His guys call sign is EAGUN and he said he was on Mallorca Island. We first thought it was around here because we stayed in a hotel called Mallorca, but when Dave looked it up in his Desktop Reference Call Book, the call signs that start with EA are in Spain. So if Alex or Al have a chance to look this up and verify it for Dave, they can email me and I can let him know. Today he made a contact but, he got an RST report that was really poor, 119, meaning the guy could hardly hear Dave and they never made a firm contact. Dave can receive a lot of stations, but they don't seem to hear his transmissions. He's thinking about writing an article about what not to do when you take a trip to Belize for one of the ham radio magazines. ;-0

03 Xunantuniche

04 Me On Top

05 Close Up of Me at the Top

06 Mayan Hieraglyphs

07 Mr. Iguana