Planning
In late 2023, my brother-in-law suggested that we do a family bird-watching trip to Belize. Sounds like a great idea! While on the phone, we both bought airline tickets, so we then had a couple of hard constraints for the trip, and a 17-day trip duration. "I'll make the arrangements" he said. "Great!" I said.
A few weeks later, he called and said he'd found places for us to go, based on birding trip reports he'd been reading. "We'll be staying at seven places during the trip!" What?!? "How about bring that number down to three or four?" was our response. On the next call, "We're down to nine places to stay." That's the wrong direction.
We had a long discussion about cameras and optical gear. Carol and I upgraded our phones to iPhone 15 Pros, with great optics in the phone's handheld form factor. Neither of us wanted to lug an SLR around, as brother-in-law intended to do. As it turned out, they each brought an SLR, had a huge bag for camera and spotting scope gear, which they mostly never opened throughout the trip.
From the West Coast to Belize
Brother-in-law and sister-in-law arrive at LAX, and rent a car to bring themselves and their luggage to our house for the night before the longer trip to Belize. Oops - they and their stuff have completely filled the car. "How did you imagine that we'd get to the airport with you tomorrow if the car is filled with your stuff?" Oh, well, that thought didn't occur to them. We wound up cramming their (seven) pieces of luggage into the trunk, and we sat in the back seat with our (two) suitcases on our laps. The women sat with the luggage at LAX while brother-in-law and I returned the rental car and shuttled back to the terminal.
The flight from LAX to Belize was uneventful and mercifully short. As the plane was descending towards the runway, we could see a number of long, narrow bodies of water surrounded by forest and savannah. We breezed through Belizean immigration, and emerged outside the airport terminal to find our van and driver waiting to take us to our first stop, Seaside Chateau, in Ladyville, about halfway between the airport and downtown Belize City.
First Stop: Seaside Chateau
Seaside Chateau is located on a point of land adjacent to the Belize River, and right on the oceanfront. Construction on the Haulover Bridge made accessing the hotel a little challenging for our driver, but soon we were getting our room keys and wandering the grounds.
The proximity to the river, and the woods on either side, made birdwatching easy for Carol and her brother; his wife and I made our way to the veranda restaurant. The weather was warm, with a delightful breeze coming off the ocean. Later that evening, I wandered out to the beach, climbed onto a picnic table, and took a photo of the Orion nebula with my iPhone. The nebula in Orion's belt came out clearly in the photo - absolutely amazing.
Second Stop: Birds Eye Lodge
After breakfast and a little birdwatching the next morning, a new van arrived. We met Michael Tillett, with whom we were to spend the next week or so. He first drove us to the Digi store near the airport, so that we could get our phones set up for Belize. Then, he drove us to Bird's Eye Lodge in Crooked Tree, about 30 miles away. As we got settled in, we observed that the furniture and facilities on the ground floor were made of concrete and tile - not a problem, but unusual. Northern Lagoon was fifty yards away, but evidently water levels occasionally rose to impinge on the lodge. Not while we were there, fortunately.
Meals at Bird's Eye are buffet affairs. We met the charismatic bartender, found our assigned seats, and settled in for a pleasant dinner.
Early the next morning, Michael met us at the dock, and led us on a wonderful lagoon tour on one of the lodge's motor launches. Iguanas in the trees, crocodiles in the water, and birds everywhere greeted us as the sun rose. A few hours later, we returned to the lodge for lunch and a slow afternoon. Brother-in-law was not feeling well, and tested positive for Covid, a portent of things to come.
Brother-in-law felt worse the next morning, so he stayed behind as the rest of us got in Michael's van for a trip to Lamanai, a protected Mayan archaeological site just a few miles west of Crooked Tree, but inaccessible by car without an hours' long drive north, west, and south. Fortunately, he knew the route, and we arrived at around 8 am to meet Mauricio Aguilar, a local Mayan naturalist.
He and Michael walked us through the site, telling us about the Mayan history, pointing out the birds of note, and generally being extremely informative and helpful. The ruins there are partially excavated, with a number of pyramids and other structures cleared of forest growth and exposed to our view. I had read up a little on Lamanai beforehand, and specifically asked to see the Temple of the Masks and Jaguar Temple, which Mauricio and I did while Michael walked with Carol and our sister-in-law. On the way back to Bird's Eye, we stopped in Gunea Grass, a Mennonite community, for ice cream at a farming supply store.
That evening, the rest of us started to feel a little off.
The next morning, Michael again drove us to another outing - to a howler monkey sanctuuary west of Belize City on the Belize River. Brother-in-law was feeling better, so he came along. Michael regaled us with stories about the annual canoe race from Belmopan, the country's capital, to Belize City, passing through the howler monkey sanctuary.
Third Stop: Beck's B&B
That afternoon, we needed to leave Bird's Eye, as they had been overbooked for one night during our planned stay. We moved a mile or so to Beck's Bed & Breakfast, a delightful place with only a few rooms.
The center courtyard is alive with birds and flowers, almost negating the need to go elsewhere for birdwatching. The next morning, I stayed in bed (with what I can only presume to be Covid) while everyone else went birdwatching in the savannah west of the B&B, again with Michael.
Fourth Stop: Birds Eye Lodge
That evening, we moved back to Bird's Eye for the remaining nights of our stay. The next day, we all piled into the van, and drove to La Milpa, another protected cultural and archaeological site, closer to the Mexican border to the north. We ran into Mauricio again as we arrived at about 7 am; he was to meet a couple of school busses full of elementary school students to show them around. He and I chatted a bit, and I decided to hike to the ruins, about three miles away from the area where the rest of our group was enthralled with birdwatching. I got about halfway there, and hearing the clatter of the school busses making their way up the jungle two-track, moved off to the side of the path. Mauricio got the driver to stop for me, so I had the pleasure of riding the school bus with sixty or seventy cheerful middle-schoolers. Once we arrived, Mauricio suggested quietly that I set out for the ruins ahead of the kids, which I did. These ruins were engulfed in jungle growth, but as I made my way around the central plaza (covered with vines and other plants), I found a number of entrances into the underworld of the ruins. I hiked back to the birdwatching area, but again was picked up halfway back by Michael and the rest of our party, for the drive back to Crooked Tree.
The next morning, we packed up for our next big move. We settled up with the Birds Eye Lodge owner, and Michael again drove us, this time through a shrimp farm (more birdwatching) and then to the water taxi terminal for our boat ride to Caye Caulker.
Fifth Stop: Coral View and a Broken Ankle
On the hour-long water taxi, brother-in-law and I chatted with a couple who were going to visit her family on the island - very pleasant! We exited the water taxi, and I walked to the place where I'd arranged to rent a golf cart for our stay. Back to the water taxi terminal, and loaded everyone into the cart for the trip to Coral View, which turned out to be right around the corner from the cart rental place.
We unloaded into our rooms, then brother-in-law and I walked down the beach to find an ATM and pay for the balance of our next day snorkel trip. We did both, but on the way out of the snorkel shop, I slid down the sand-covered steps and turned both ankles. Whiteout! The snorkel shop proprietor urged us to move away, as he had other customers arriving, so I limped over to a nearby outdoor restaurant, and watched my ankles swell and blacken. A pina colada did nothing to ease the pain.
The pleasant couple from the water taxi wandered up, looked at my ankles, and immediatly suggested that I go to seek medical attention. They called over a local policeman who told us where the clinic was, pulled over a golf-cart taxi, and drove us back to the hotel, which was on the way to the clinic. We got the keys to our golf cart, and drove to the other end of the island, where we found the clinic on the 2nd story of a building. No elevator, only steps, which I painfully climbed.
"I think I've sprained my ankles. Maybe fractured one." "If you were able to walk in, you didn't break anything" was the response. "Do you have an X-Ray to confirm? The only way in to the clinic is to climb the steps, so I don't think that's much of a differential." "Sorry, we don't. I don't think there's one on the island." As it turned out, I had fractured the fibula in my right ankle.
They gave me a big shot of painkiller, five-day's supply of Naproxen (long enough for us to get off the island), and said "go get pressure bandages from the pharmacy." Thanks.
We made our way around the island that evening on the golf cart, and I used walking sticks that we'd brought for Carol. Painful.
The next day, brother- and sister-in-law went snorkeling (and had a great time) while Carol and I lounged at the hotel pool. That afternoon, we went out to dinner again, and fed tarpon off a dock on the west side of the island.
Sixth Stop: Black Rock Lodge
The next day, we left our golf cart at the hotel, and got a lift back to the water taxi by the hotel staff. Once back in Belize City, we were picked up by a driver from Crystal Car Rental. The four of us, plus our luggage, plus the driver, barely fit into the Jeep that we had arranged to rent for the rest of our trip. We dropped him off at the rental agency, paid for the rental, and we drove westward to San Ignacio and Black Rock Lodge. We stopped in Belmopan, Belize's capital city, for lunch, found an ATM in San Ignacio, and got to Black Rock Lodge a couple hours later.
What a delightful place! It's on a bluff overlooking the Macal River and a national park across the way. The hillsides are alive with birds, howler monkeys, and all sorts of other wildlife. Our open-air cabins were great, though we thought it would be too warm and humid to sleep well, an unfounded fear.
The restaurant and gathering place for the lodge is on a wide platform with a high thatched roof. The platform overlooks the river and the hillsides. The accesbility of the bar, and spotting scopes, makes birdwatching really pleasant. Our naturalist there, Isaias Morataya, turned out to be the top birder in Belize. He accommodated my ankles and our general lack of mobility by bringing folding camp chairs along on our walks, and conducting outings in his pickup truck. I stayed behind on a couple of the trips (ouchy ankles), but went on a walk and on two drives.
We finished up our stay at Black Rock Lodge, and made our way slowly back toward the main road. After a stop for lunch at Sweet and Sour in San Jose Succotz, on the Guatamalan border, we took the ferry across the Mopan River to visit the ruins at Xunantunich. We found a guide who walked us around the site, and then took us to his wife's gift shop just across the river, where we stocked up on souvenirs.
Seventh Stop: Nabitunich
Our next stay was at Nabitunich, within sight of the Xunantunich ruins. This is an old farm property to which the proprietors, Dominick and his wife, have added some cottages. Absolutely beautiful grounds, very pleasant site with an easy walk down to the river, and the jewel of the place, Dominick, is a wonderfully engaged conversationalist. We observed him speaking many different languages with his guests, as he moved from table to table at dinnertime and at breakfast. He asked us where we were from and what we did for our careers, then spent fifteen minutes asking Carol some very perceptive questions about the drug development and approval process in the United States. I firmly believe that he could engage in equally deep conversation on pretty much any topic.
Dominick didn't accept credit cards for our stay, but gave us his PayPal ID. "Don't worry about paying for your stay until you get home." Wow. We did, however, pay him via PayPal as soon as we got to our next stop with solid WiFi.
Eighth Stop: Parrot Cove Lodge
We drove back through San Ignacio (with stops for gas and ATM), and made our way to Hopkins via the Butterfly Highway. On our way west, we had seen mountains on the southwestern horizon; the Butterfly Highway traverses these mountains back towards the coastline.
Hopkins is a centuries-old town populated by the descendents of a shipwreck. Most people speak Garifuna first, but along with all other Belizeans, attend school in English.
We drove through the town to the hotel district on the ocean, and found Parrot Cove Lodge right there on the beach. We had nice rooms next to the salt water pool and close to the restaurant, Chef Rob’s Gourmet Café. We were treated to incredibly friendly service from the hotel and restaurant staff all the while we were there. We ate all of our breakfasts there, and split our dinners between the on-site restaurant and Bahay Fiesta, a Filipino restaurant across the road.
We experienced some of Belize's notorious power failures while there, but the hotel fired up its generators, leaving us none the worse off.
Again, Carol and her brother enjoyed birdwatching jaunts along the coast and inland marshes while sister-in-law and I relaxed at the pool or at the restaurant. We were awakened in plenty of time for them to greet the dawn; the Parrot of Parrot Cove Lodge would wake up around 5 am and start to make conversational noises in the pool area, eventually getting so loud that we'd all wake up.
By this time, our SIM cards had run out, and needed to be recharged. The Digi agent was at one of the two large-ish grocery stores in Hopkins. I found one that looked likely, went in, but was somewhat rebuffed by a gruff proprietor. OK, on to the next grocery store, the right one, who happily recharged our plans. This one had local staff, lower prices, and a much more relaxed atmosphere. I did a little grocery shopping there to reward them.
Ninth Stop: Seaside Chateau
After our very pleasant stay at Parrot Cove, we packed back up, and drove up the "Coastal" highway (still quite a ways inland). No traffic lights, but the road has speed bumps every mile or so, getting people to slow down near villages and bus stops along the way. Next stop was the Belize Zoo, which mainly rehabilitates animals injured on the highways. Tapirs, jaguars, spider and howler monkeys all make up the small collection.
After our visit, we continued to Seaside Chateau for our last night before departure. The next morning, I drove brother- and sister-in-law to the airport to catch their earlier flight, then went back to get Carol and our luggage. We puttered around for a while, then returned the car to the airport rental office, and enjoyed our flight home.
At LAX
Carol normally gets a wheelchair for her long trips through airports. A driver showed up at our gate with a cart, and gave us a slightly hard time when I asked to get on for a ride, but acquiesced when I pulled my pant legs up to show my black and blue ankles. We were whisked through Immigration, and popped out onto the street for our ride home.
Last Updated February 13, 2025