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Wild South

Ultimate Adventure - 9 Days / 10 Nights :

Best of Belize: Maya Mountains to Glover's Reef

An extraordinary journey through Belize packed with adventure and excitement; you’ll sea kayak, snorkel, dive, hike through the rainforest, explore Mayan ceremonial caves, and descend an incomparable tropical river through canyons and lush rainforest. On each stage of the trip you’re teamed with the best guides in Belize – individuals whose knowledge and experience enable you to see and do what you never thought possible.

We begin with two days of sea kayaking based from an island lodge along the Southern Barrier Reef, then on to our marine Basecamp at Glover's Atoll for two more fantastic days of snorkeling, kayaking, and optional diving.

Returning to the mainland, we now travel west from the coast deep into the Maya Mountains. Here, the rainforest covers the land and the ancient traditions of the Maya are still strong. On this next series of adventures, we descend into the Actun Tunichil Caves to explore underground rivers and astounding burial chambers, with pottery, stone tools, and carved altars that have lain 'as is' for thousands of years. Then we embark on an exhilarating four day paddle trip into the rainforest valleys of the Moho River in the ‘Wild South” of Belize.

Although no previous experience or special skills are needed to participate in the Ultimate Adventure, you should be in good enough physical condition to paddle up to 10 miles a day or hike with a light pack for three or four hours.

The Setting...

On this adventure, we experience the very best that Belize has to offer. From the Belize International Airport we take you directly to our accommodations situated alongside the Tropical Education Center and Belize Zoo. From here we journey into the Cayo to visit an ancient Mayan ceremonial cave, then travel east to the main Barrier Reef and beyond to Glover's Atoll. The Barrier Reef, which runs 185 miles (300 km) long, 10 to 25 miles (16 to 35 km) offshore, is the longest continuous reef in the Caribbean Sea and the second longest in the world. Spread along the reef are over 200 cayes, ranging from small sand-fringed islands perched along the reef's edge to larger islands of mangroves and coconut palms.

After two nights on the main reef, we travel by motor launch twenty miles further offshore to Glover's Atoll - a remote ring of corals and small islands rising from the deep waters of the Caribbean. Glover's Atoll, with an unparalleled diversity and abundance of marine life and with reef strewn waters, offers some of the best snorkeling in Belize. Our island Basecamp is the perfect setting from which to actively explore the surrounding waters which contain over 700 patch reefs. The waters of Belize have long been known as the richest in the Caribbean and Glover's is one of the best in Belize!

After our exploration of the Barrier Reef and Glover's Atoll we return to the mainland and travel into the deep south of the Toledo district to luxuriate at one of the finer lodges in Belize - The Lodge at Big Falls. The next day, we travel by van and four-wheel drive to our river put-in. We begin our river journey by teaching river safety and paddling techniques before paddling into some of Belize's most remote and pristine wilderness. Once on the water, we are immersed in the experience of traveling by day and camping at night in the tropical rainforest. Our last night's accommodation is at Belize Biltmore Plaza where we enjoy a dip in the pool, a comfortable room, and a hot shower. The next morning you are free to make your way back to the Belize International Airport or to travel further in Belize.

I think that you put together an amazing experience. I did things I never would have done (river drops, eating a local meal in a one room house), and in general expanded my horizons both physically and mentally. It was great.

Kate Hopkins
Ultimate Adventure
Mar 18 2010

Typical Daily Itinerary:

Day 0 : Arrive at the Belize International Airport where you will be met by an Island Expeditions' representative and transferred to the Tropical Education Center, adjacent to the Belize Zoo. After checking into our accommodations we enjoy a welcome dinner and have a chance to meet our fellow travelers. We are able to experience the surrounding tropical pine savannah habitat through a network of trails and raised wildlife viewing platforms. We also have a unique and exclusive nocturnal tour of the Belize Zoo with one of the senior zookeepers, which helps us understand the diverse ecology of Belize and is an ideal starting point for the adventure ahead. This day is your day to arrive before the trip starts, meet your fellow travelers, and acclimatize to your new tropical environment.
Transfers from the airport and lodging are included
Accommodation: Lodge
Meals: Dinner

Day 1 : We rise early to start today's extraordinary journey which takes us deep into the Mayan underworld known as Xilbalba (shil-balba). We enter a mythical realm inhabited by spirits and powerful gods, an underworld of untold fears and dreams where Mayan shaman, in supposition to the gods, ventured into darkness to conduct their secretive rituals. As we venture underground into the caves we learn from our guides how the caves played an important role in the ancient Maya civilization and about ongoing archaeological research taking place underground in Belize. After our cave visit we travel the Hummingbird Route to meet up with our motor charter on the coast by the town of Dangriga. We head out to the Southern Barrier Reef and arrive at Paradise Lodge on Tobacco Caye in time to settle in, have dinner, and plan our next two days on the Barrier Reef.
Accommodation: Island Lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 3 : After breakfast and a morning of paddling and snorkeling, our motor charter returns to take us 20 miles east of the main Barrier Reef to Glovers Reef Atoll, a National Marine Park and designated World Heritage site. We land at park headquarters on Middle Cay, with boats rigged and ready to sail. We sail our kayaks along the eastern reef wall to our base camp at Southwest Caye at the southern end of the atoll, surrounded by rich coral reefs and beautiful turquoise waters. Tonight, we enjoy an island feast of mixed grill of fresh seafood and vegetables topped with Belizean coconut baking and tropical fruits.
Accommodation: (Base Camp)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 4 & 5 : Glover’s is one of only four atolls in the Caribbean Sea and is truly one of the most spectacular marine environments in Belize. Due to its isolation from the mainland the waters are exceptionally clear with an incredibly rich reef system that offers some of the best kayaking, snorkeling and diving in the Caribbean. Our days are flexible in order to respond to both group and individual desires and abilities. Activities include: sea kayaking, snorkeling the inner and outer walls of the reef, and kayak sailing. For those who are certified divers, we can also arrange dives on the outer walls. If all this sounds a little busy, you always have the choice of just kicking back in a hammock and relaxing with a good book and a cold drink. On the afternoon of Day 5, we transfer back to the mainland and continue south to our jungle lodge in the Toledo district of Belize to begin the next leg of our journey.
Accommodation: (Field Camp / The Lodge at Big Falls - www.thelodgeatbigfalls.com)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 6, 7 & 8 : The Lodge at Big Falls is situated on the banks of the Rio Grande river in Belize's southern Toledo District, a region of isolated villages lying amongst an unspoiled tropical wilderness. Our location is superb. The lodge property is located on a meander of the river with almost a mile of river frontage. There are views towards the Maya Mountains to the north west while the south eastern bank faces the small village of Big Falls. In the afternoon, we drive further south from Big Falls to our put-in point on the Moho river, stopping for lunch along the way at the traditional Maya village of Santa Theresa. Here, we get a chance to meet your Mayan guides, tour their homes, and experience the life of the modern Maya people.

Once on the river, our guides provide a brief boat and river orientation and we take as much time as we need to learn and practice our new boat-handling skills, enabling us to safely navigate the rapids and pour-overs. We then begin our journey along one of Belize’s most beautiful rivers through some pristine rainforest to our first river camp.

For these next days we break contact completely with the outside world and become a part of the mist-shrouded rainforest as we follow the Moho River through canyons and lush rainforest. Each bend reveals the dynamic nature of the river-from calm, meandering water that reflects the intense green of the jungle to stretches of rapids, pour-overs and spectacular waterfalls as the river descends from the Maya Mountains to the sea. Depending on water levels, some days we may reach our bush-camp by mid-afternoon and switch to land-based activities. Hiking through the forest, birding, plant and animal identification, and photography are some of the many activities we engage in. During the trip with our Mayan guides and North American leaders, we emphasize understanding the ecology of the rainforest, learning about the habits of the wildlife and gaining an appreciation for the rich Mayan folklore which adds so much to our experience in the jungle.
Accommodation: (Camping)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 9 : We continue paddling downstream and arrive to the river pull out in the afternoon, where we are met by IEC staff ready to transport us back to Dangriga and onto a Maya Airways domestic flight to our hotel accommodation to enjoy a hot shower.
Accommodations: (Biltmore Plaza Hotel—www.belizebiltmore.com)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner is NOT Included in this night

Note:
  This is one of our most adventurous trips. It takes place in a remote wilderness region of Belize. Participants need to be in good physical condition and ready to handle the unexpected. Weather conditions can greatly affect water levels and hiking trails into the river and may increase the level of difficulty. We also believe that the remoteness and variability of conditions are what make this trip the best of its kind in Belize. Trip itineraries may vary significantly depending on water levels.

Highlights: howler monkeys howling and the cats at the Belize zoo. upside down jelly fish at mangrove island and Mannys story about them. being guests in the homes of Mayan families.think about those people every day. the jungle river trip was the best experience ever. and great group we travelled with.

Lesley McCallum
Ultimate Adventure
Feb 11, 2010

In conclusion: This is the best trip that I have ever been on. I had fun every day and a permanent smile on my face. I will be recommending this trip to my friends who are active and love the outdoors.

Jacque Small
Ultimate Adventure
Dec 24, 2009

Accommodation...

On 'Day 0', we will be spending the night at the Tropical Education Center, in cabanas set amongst the pine forests. The Education Center and Belize Zoo harbors Belize's largest collection of tropical animal, a fantastic interpretative center, and has a great network of trails and wildlife viewing platforms, perfect for exploring the pine savannah setting.

On Days 1 and 2 we stay at Paradise Lodge, on Tobacco Caye, a small Belizean owned lodge with a beautiful view over the central Belize barrier reef. These rustic cabanas are clean and comfortable with ensuite bathrooms. Each cabana is perched over the waters edge, giving you unobstructed views of the Belize Barrier Reef, and unparalleled access to kayaking and snorkelling.

On Days 3 and 4 at Southwest Caye on Glovers, we are "base camping" in tent-walled cabanas. These spacious safari-style tents have ample headroom and are outfitted with wood floors and wood-framed beds. On the island, we have a fresh-water collection system for drinking water, access to fresh-water showers, modern composting toilets, a fully-equipped kitchen including refrigeration, with a large dining area complete with resource library and a field marine lab including microscope and hand lenses.

On Day 5 we will be staying at The Lodge at Big Falls, located at the gateway of the Toledo District in the deep south of Belize. (www.thelodgeatbigfalls.com) This spectacular resort is nessled in a unique bend in the Rio Grande River, and houses a restaurant / main lodge, and a number of small cabanas. Our accommodations for the evening are beautifully furnished, thatched, roofed cabanas, outfitted with ceiling fans and hot water showers.

On Days 6, 7, 8 we are camping in the remote wilderness of the Upper Moho River, on the western boarder of the Toledo District. We will be keeping our weight and volume to a minimum, carrying our gear in the kayaks from camp to camp. We stay in three-person Mountian Hardwear tents, which provide ample room for two people and gear. As we travel down the river, we use established bush camps, but give ourselves the flexibility to adjust our schedule for different conditions.

On the final night, we will spend the night at the Biltmore Hotel (www.belizebiltmore.com). This is a clean and comfortable hotel outside the city center. You have a chance to get a good night’s sleep after your adventure, maybe take a dip in the pool and prepare to fly out or continue on independently.

A Note About the Ecology...

Flora...
The Belizean coast is a rich combination of coral reefs, sand flats, mangroves ranges and coral sand islands. The barrier reef structure shelters the Belizean coast from the open waters of the Caribbean Sea. It acts as a huge breakwater to the incoming swells, which as they break on the reef erode the corals and deposit coral sand. From this action, we get beautiful, sand-fringed islands and remarkable shallow water patch reefs. Also, this "breakwater protects the diverse ecosystems of the mangroves and turtle grass, which cover much of the coast. These mangrove forests growing out of the sea provide rich feeding and nursing grounds for many marine creatures and countless birds.

Broadleaf rainforest covers approximately 60% of Belize's wooded area. The year-round growing season, plentiful precipitation during the rainy season (May- November) and millennia of evolution has yielded this area with a complex and tremendous diversity of plant life. A spongy mass of roots, fungi, bacteria and microorganisms carpets the forest floor, which rapidly breaks down any organic matter. Each plant fulfills its own ecological niche, as the continuous recycling of the decayed plant matter fuels new growth. With this rich nutrient cycle a diverse range of plant life, from the huge buttressed ceiba trees to the smallest of fungi thrives. High above the forest floor is the enchanting world of the broad-leafed canopy. The canopy may tower 100 ft and more, with massive hardwoods like santa maria, mahogany and sapodilla trees forming a broad canopy and in turning supporting many species of Epiphytes (air plants). This habitat provides for a unique community of wildlife and many species will spend most of their life inhabiting the roof of the rainforest.

Fauna...
While traveling along the barrier reef, we will have the opportunity to view a variety of sea-life and tropical birds. Paddling from cay to cay and over the many patch reefs, we have we will see fish like barracuda, bonefish, angel and parrot fish, stingrays, conger, moray eels, goatfish, just to name a few. Trailing a fishing line from our kayaks, we also may get a chance at a tug from barracuda, grouper or snapper. Birds do well on the cay's, we will see osprey, royal terns and brown-footed boobies, frigate birds, mangrove warblers, and sapsuckers. Throughout the barrier reef and along the coast, there are nesting sites for loggerhead, green and hawksbill turtles; if we're lucky, we may see them while out snorkeling. We will definitely have a chance to see and sample the main staple for Belizean fishermen, the spiny lobster (in season) and the queen conch, a Caribbean delicacy.

  In the rainforests of Belize we have great opportunities to view wildlife. Hiking or paddling we see iguanas resting in the branches of fig trees, we may hear the grunts and snuffling as a herd of peccary(wild pigs) passes close by. Large tropical birds are frequently sighted. We see toucans with their oversized bills, flying ungainly from one fruiting tree to the next. High overhead loud, raucous squawking alerts us to the presence of scarlet macaw in the river valley. Once in view, the size of the bird and the splendor of their red and blue plumage is unmistakable. There is also a multitude of falcons, hawks and vultures scavenging and hunting from the sun-bright upper canopy down to the mottled light of the forest floor. Also, found in the southern Belizean rainforest are a number of often bizarre mammals, the largest being Belize's national animal, Baird's tapir- locally known as the mountain cow in Belize is an animal unique to the New World tropics with a large hippopotamus-like body and a long snout, much like the fabled aardvark. The tapir, along with the white-lipped and collared peccary, the jaguar, and the puma are some of the larger mammals that inhabit the river valleys and forests where we travel.

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