Jeepers Batman!
Trip Start
Jan 01, 2007
1
33
141
Trip End
Ongoing
Lanquin,
Guatemala
Monday, February 19, 2007
We left Antigua on Monday and took a private shuttle that picked us up from our Black Cat Hostel and took us directly to the El Retiro Lodge in Lanquin. A 7 hour trip, without any transfers. The large shuttle was operated by El Retiro and was equiped with CD player, DVD player, and capacity for 25 people. We were the only passengers, so we could spread out and take a nice cat nap! It cost 160 Quetzales per person (about $21 US), which is expensive for Guatemala but well worth the convenience of not having to transfer and being able to avoid Guatemala City (which is supposed to be very dangerous even in daylight hours).
After 7 twisty and turny hours, we arrived at El Retiro at 5pm. El Retiro is a real treat of a retreat (:-)). The town of Lanquin itself is very tiny and tucked in the bottom of a steep river valley and mountains
1 - Rafting down the Rio Lanquin
. El Retiro is comprised of over a dozen thatched roof cabanas spread out along the Rio Lanquin (river). It is a really beutiful and serene setting along the beautiful river. Though the loud music from the bar all night long took a bit away from the peacefulness, and the young staff´s personalities gave it a fraternity-house like feel. We stayed in a private cabana for 100 Quetzales per night (about $13 US) that had a double and single bed and a hammack out front, with a gorgeous view of the river and hillside. The bathrooms are shared and another story to themselves. They are Eco-Toilets which use no water. Instead, you climb a couple tall steps up to the throne and take a seat. After doing your business, you toss a scoopful of a lime-ash mix onto your leftovers that are far below in order to control the stench. I think the lime disentigrates the leftovers over time. Also, inside the squater, there is a separate section for #1. A sign on the wall encourages you to try to aim #1 into the front section of the toilet and aim #2 towards the back. Your #1 is siphened off somewhere else (in the organic veggie garden perhaps?) As always in Latin America, the toilet paper goes into a trash can next to the squater.
The next day, we went tubing on the river
10 - Rafting on the Rio Lanquin
. For a total of 20 Quetzales (about $2.50 US) per person, you get a ride up river in the back of a pick-up truck, rental of an inner tube, and admission to the river. We met up with a group of sport fisherman guides from Alaska (Andre, Aaron, and Mark) and had a blast tubing down the river together. The water was chilly, but refreshing. It was absolutely beautiful, too. Later that afternoon, we went on a tour of the Lanquin Caves organized by our hotel. Our 14-year old guide Marcos led a group of us on a tour of the various rooms in the cavern. Our group consisted of our sport fishing buddies (Andre, Aaron, and Mark) and Rob from Holland. Marcos led us off trail into some rather tight holes and openings that even Spiderman would have a difficult time climbing around. At one point, I paniced a bit because we had to shimmy our bodies and hang across a vertical rock face a couple yards to the next opening.
After the tour, we relaxed outside waiting for the sun to set. Then we returned to the cave opening, took a seat inside the cave, and waited for the grand finale - Bats on Parade. A few bats started flying out of the cave, and then within a few minutes THOUSANDS of bats flew around, over, next to, and beside us to get out of the cave. They fly so fast that you can hardly see them, it kind of looks like a shadow instead
2 - Aaron rafting down the Rio Lanquin
. It was a wild experience! The next day, Wednesday, we went on another tour organized by our hotel, an all-day trip to Semuc Champey and the nearby caves. Teva-like sandals are needed for the cave tour and I only had flip-flops. Dafna from Israel, a sweet girl we met at El Retiro, lent me her shoes for the day. Thank you Dafna!
We first stopped at the cave and each swung on a super long swing across the river (see photos). Then we changed into our swim gear and sandals and headed into the cave. Frank opted out of this excursion and went for a nice stroll along the river (Rio Cabahon). Our guide handed us each a candle and we headed in. The Cave is a wet cave 30 kilometers long, with a river flowing through it. At first, I was a bit frightened by the thought of climbing through dark rooms and holes so far in. The river flowing through it gave it a calming effect for me. The coolness of the water, and the sound of the waterfalls and flow was relaxing. For most of the trip, we wadded through 3-feet deep water in the pitch black, but in some parts it was deep enough that we had to swim while holding the candle above water. Moving from one room to the next required us to climb up wobbly ladders and shimmy through some tight spaces. At one point, we had the option of climbing up a waterfall using a rope up the waterfall itself, or to climb a ladder next to the waterfall
3 - Mark rafting down the Rio Lanquin
. (I opted for the ladder!). On the return trip, we came to a point where the river narrowed and dropped into a small dark hole into an abyss. With the aid of our guide, we each steadied ourselves over this small dark opening (about 2 feet wide with crooked and jagged walls) and lowered ourselves down the waterfall, not knowing what was under us or where we would land! We then swam and waddled our way out of the cave. It was such a cool and exciting experience! Highly recommended!After caving, we walked up the hill towards Semuc Champey. On the way, we crossed over an incredibly high bridge (over 30 feet) over the Rio Cabahon, and several daring folks from our group jumped off the bridge into the water below.
Along the walk up the hill to Semuc, we stopped at a couple houses along the way to sample the chocolate. Not a piece of milk chocolate, but the actual chocolate plant! We bought one of these fruits and cracked it open. Inside, each of the chocolate pods is covered in a juicy sweet pulp that can be sucked off. It was really tasty! Another house had several chocolate pods (pulp removed) drying in the sun. Check the photos for pictures.
We then made our way to Semuc Champey, which should be one of the Wonders of the World
4 - Andre rafting down the Rio Lanquin
. First we grabbed lunch and hiked a mile up the incredibly steep gorge wall to a view point (Mirador). We ate lunch and enjoyed the view of the pools of Semuc Champey (see photos). Then we clambered our way down the hill to go for a long dip in the pools.What is Semuc Champey? The fast flowing Rio Cabahon plunges deep into a cavern and continues through that cave system for about 300 meters. Some of the water flows above the cavern, forming a limestone bridge with a series of pools and waterfalls. At the end of the 300 meters, the water from the bridge falls about 10 meters to meet up with the rushing river from the caves underneath and continue on.
The pools are gorgeous - crystal clear with varying hues of green and blue. The water was a great temperature to swim and relax, not too warm or too cold. We swam in the lakes, explored each section, and showered under the falls. It was gorgeous.
And only slightly dangerous. For me, at least! As soon as we got to the first pool, I managed to step into a small puddle that several bees were hanging out in. One got caught between my middle toe and my shoe and just kept stinging me
5 - Frank rafting down the Rio Lanquin
! I screamed loud enough for Panama to hear! The more it stung me, the more I screamed! Finally I realized what happened and kicked the now dead bugger out of my shoe. Then relaxed in the pools for several minutes to recover. That night, we returned to the El Retiro for their famous Wednesday night BBQ. All you can eat with BBQ chicken, lentil salad, salad, rice, mashed potatoes, quesadillas, eggplant, etc, etc. Yummmmm....
The next morning, we packed up to continue our journey north-east to Flores & Tikal. Check out the next journal!
Cheers!
Kay
Comments
semuc champey
WOW! That looks fantastic! You've just rerouted our trip to Flores for us. Thanks for the beta!
Daiksan