Downing
Contributor
This was at least my seventh or eighth trip to Belize, and once again it did not disappoint. My wife, Carol, and I spent five days in Placencia diving with Splash Dive Center. Then we drove down to Punta Gorda for three nights, the first at Garbutts Fishing Lodge, the second two at Belcampo. Then we headed for the Cayo and spent three nights at the San Ignacio Resort Hotel. My wife had to return to work earlier than I did, so I dropped her off at the airport in Belize City before returning to Placencia to dive my brains out until it was time to return home.
Since Carol hadn't seen southern Belize before, I took her all over the place, from Hopkins (she liked) to Dangriga (not so much) to Punta Gorda (she liked) to San Ignacio (she liked a lot). Although she says she's still adamant that she's not going to retire there with me, I think I may have put a chink in her armor, especially if I focus around the Cayo area. We clambered over a couple of Mayan ruins: Lubaantun, the supposed site of the Crystal Skull, cough cough, and Tikal, on a day trip from San Ignacio into Guatemala. We kayaked on the Rio Grande, and toured a working farm, a butterfly farm and the world famous Belize Spice Farm and Botanical Gardens. We ate at one of my favorite cafes, Colemans, in the Toledo District and discovered another favorite in San Ignacio, the Guava Limb. I drove the dirt Coastal Highway (45 miles?) after dropping off Carol and got more adventure than I bargained for when I ran into a serious downpour.
As for the diving, this was the year that the "rainy season" finally lived up to it's name. It wasn't so much the rain as the wind that kept us from diving a total of six days, two the first week, two in Punta Gorda and two more once I returned to Placencia. But I still managed to get in about 20 dives, and several of them were the most spectacular I've ever done. We watched a huge sea turtle chow down on a reef. It didn't just nibble, this turtle rocked the reef so hard that I thought for sure that a large barrel sponge next to the turtle would come crashing down. On another dive I saw four or five turtles and so many rays that I lost count. There were several dives where we saw at least one shark, one turtle and one ray, the "Grand Slam." I was bitten by a Remora (didn't hurt but was a definite surprise). Water temperature was consistently 84 degrees, so as usual I didn't bother with my 2mm shorty. Visibility was excellent. My final two diving days my guide, Marco, and I went Lion Fish hunting. It's trickier than you might think given that you can swim right up next to them, but I got my fair share. I'm not a fan of killing for the sake of killing, but with Lion Fish I'm willing to make an exception.
Before I comment on Splash, I want to give my usual disclaimer that over the years I've become very good friends with Patty and Ralph, the owner/operators. If I saw some breach of dive safety protocol or had some sort of problem with the staff, I would talk them about it first before I posted it here. But one of the reasons I always dive with Splash is that they provide consistently great service. The boats are well maintained. I bring my own gear, but the rental gear I see others using is always in good condition. The staff, many of whom came up through the Splash "Kids Club," are very professional and put a premium on customer service. There may be some dive operations out there that are just as good, but I can't imagine there are any that are better. You're well taken care of from beginning to end. I dived nitrox 32% every day.
On one of the non-diving days my last week, Marco and I drove up the Hummingbird Highway in search of "the spot." Believe it or not, there is a spot on the Hummingbird Highway where if you're driving downhill, you can stop, put the car in neutral and you'll roll back up over the top of the hill. Marco showed it to me last year but it was dark and I couldn't find it for Carol. This time we found it. Some really smart enterprising person--I deny any knowledge--marked "the spot" with a spot of red and yellow spray paint, easily obtainable in Dangriga from what I hear. So if you're headed towards coast with Belmopan at your back. look for this just after you crest a steep hill as you approach the Mile Post 29:
The spot marks "the spot."
This is what you'll see in your review mirror:
MP 29 is up ahead on the left.
Pull your car up to the spot so that you can just see it in front of your hood. Put your car in neutral. Be sure to keep checking your review mirror. Because of the hills, you can see cars coming from a long ways away. Have fun!
Since Carol hadn't seen southern Belize before, I took her all over the place, from Hopkins (she liked) to Dangriga (not so much) to Punta Gorda (she liked) to San Ignacio (she liked a lot). Although she says she's still adamant that she's not going to retire there with me, I think I may have put a chink in her armor, especially if I focus around the Cayo area. We clambered over a couple of Mayan ruins: Lubaantun, the supposed site of the Crystal Skull, cough cough, and Tikal, on a day trip from San Ignacio into Guatemala. We kayaked on the Rio Grande, and toured a working farm, a butterfly farm and the world famous Belize Spice Farm and Botanical Gardens. We ate at one of my favorite cafes, Colemans, in the Toledo District and discovered another favorite in San Ignacio, the Guava Limb. I drove the dirt Coastal Highway (45 miles?) after dropping off Carol and got more adventure than I bargained for when I ran into a serious downpour.
As for the diving, this was the year that the "rainy season" finally lived up to it's name. It wasn't so much the rain as the wind that kept us from diving a total of six days, two the first week, two in Punta Gorda and two more once I returned to Placencia. But I still managed to get in about 20 dives, and several of them were the most spectacular I've ever done. We watched a huge sea turtle chow down on a reef. It didn't just nibble, this turtle rocked the reef so hard that I thought for sure that a large barrel sponge next to the turtle would come crashing down. On another dive I saw four or five turtles and so many rays that I lost count. There were several dives where we saw at least one shark, one turtle and one ray, the "Grand Slam." I was bitten by a Remora (didn't hurt but was a definite surprise). Water temperature was consistently 84 degrees, so as usual I didn't bother with my 2mm shorty. Visibility was excellent. My final two diving days my guide, Marco, and I went Lion Fish hunting. It's trickier than you might think given that you can swim right up next to them, but I got my fair share. I'm not a fan of killing for the sake of killing, but with Lion Fish I'm willing to make an exception.
Before I comment on Splash, I want to give my usual disclaimer that over the years I've become very good friends with Patty and Ralph, the owner/operators. If I saw some breach of dive safety protocol or had some sort of problem with the staff, I would talk them about it first before I posted it here. But one of the reasons I always dive with Splash is that they provide consistently great service. The boats are well maintained. I bring my own gear, but the rental gear I see others using is always in good condition. The staff, many of whom came up through the Splash "Kids Club," are very professional and put a premium on customer service. There may be some dive operations out there that are just as good, but I can't imagine there are any that are better. You're well taken care of from beginning to end. I dived nitrox 32% every day.
On one of the non-diving days my last week, Marco and I drove up the Hummingbird Highway in search of "the spot." Believe it or not, there is a spot on the Hummingbird Highway where if you're driving downhill, you can stop, put the car in neutral and you'll roll back up over the top of the hill. Marco showed it to me last year but it was dark and I couldn't find it for Carol. This time we found it. Some really smart enterprising person--I deny any knowledge--marked "the spot" with a spot of red and yellow spray paint, easily obtainable in Dangriga from what I hear. So if you're headed towards coast with Belmopan at your back. look for this just after you crest a steep hill as you approach the Mile Post 29:
The spot marks "the spot."
This is what you'll see in your review mirror:
MP 29 is up ahead on the left.
Pull your car up to the spot so that you can just see it in front of your hood. Put your car in neutral. Be sure to keep checking your review mirror. Because of the hills, you can see cars coming from a long ways away. Have fun!
