Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave Feb 20!! Part two.

Here is the last person who got lost in this cave:)

The Crystal Maiden, was a young woman of about 20. It is believed she was clubbed and left for dead, and with the passage of time she has been cemented to the floor in a layer of brown calcite. (To reach her final resting place, you must climb aluminum ladders mounted on a sheer rock face!)

Picture of me taken in the main chamber.

Kat up a ladder:)


Here the group is waiting the climb the ladder to the final chamber.

Skull found in inner chamber

Cave formations, one of which looks like the Statue of Liberty.



Pottery found in the cave

Cave formations.

Fransico, our guide, explains the importance of the artifacts found in the cave.

More pottery found in the cave, considering their age they are well preserved.

Kat and the guests heading through a narrow part of the cave.

Here are a few more pictures of the ATM Cave, this time inside the cave and shows some of the artifacts, skeletons, skulls and cave formations that can be found in the cave. The artifacts have been here undisturbed for over 1200 years!

The Mayans used the ATM cave for various rituals and ceremonies including sacrafice to the gods. Daring not to stumble so that their torches would not get wet or even be extinguished; fearing that the spirits of the darkness would they dared themselves deeper and deeper into the realms of Xibalba, the Maya underworld, to ask their Gods for help. With every step the fear growing more and more, but they must carry out the ceremony. Come with us and discover where their footsteps trod over a thousand years ago.

Actun Tunichil Muknal, the bejweled cave of Belize, displays some of the most spectacular limestone dripstone formations, many glistening with spectacular calcite.
Aside from the geological wonders are the numerous relics of the Ancient Maya Culture. These were ritually deposited in caves, to beckon rains and overcome long periods of drought.

Actun Tunichil Muknal ("ATM")"Cave of the Stone Sepulchre"

Dr Jamie Awe (a relative of Emilio Awe, the owner of Pacz Tours) who is the head Archaeologist in Belize, examined the site in the 90's and discovered many of the artifacts that can be seen today.

Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave Feb 20!! Part one.

Pottery found in one of the chambers.
This image of a monkey can be found on one of the pieces of pottery.

Kat outside the cave entrance.

Me with the cave entrance in the background.

Cave entrance.

Here I am sporting the very flattering and fashionable helmet, did I hear someone say egg head;)

On the trail to the cave.

Crossing the river to the cave.

Kat protecting her Camera whilst crossing the river.

Last Tuesday I headed to San Ignacio with Pacz Tours http://www.pacztours.net/ so that I could take the ATM Cave tour the following Day. This had been one of the tours I had been wanting to do since I arrived in Belize and I was stoked that I was finally going to see this incredible Mayan site for myself.

On arrival in San Ignacio I met a Marine Biologist named Katheryn who works for the Oceanic Society doing Dolphin Research on Turniffee. Over a few beers Katheryn and I soon discovered we were both doing the ATM tour in the monring:)

Actun Tunichil Muknal, the bejweled cave of Belize, displays some of the most spectacular limestone dripstone formations, many glistening with spectacular calcite. It was first discovered in the late 80's and although archaeologists have examined the cave, it has not been excavated in the traditional sense up to this time. Aside from the geological wonders are the numerous relics of the Ancient Maya Culture. These were ritually deposited in caves, to beckon rains and overcome long periods of drought. Over 200 ceramic vessels litter the chamber of Tunichil Cave. The meshing of cultural history and geology forms an unrivalled natural museum, a gallery like one never seen before. Apart from the ceramic vessels there are also a number of Skulls and Skeletons to be found in the chambers of this cave complex.

The ATM cave is one of the top Mayan Sites not only in Belize but in the world and is a breathtaking experience that I can highly recommend to anyone visiting Belize.

Fishing Trip and Dolphin Encounter!

Drinking a beer on the dock at Tobacco Caye.
One of several Barracuda's I caught during the day.

This Barracuda was the first one caught during the day and was actually caught on a jigging line after biting the other fish in the picture, 2 for the price of 1:)

Here Mani is trying to land the biggest fish of the day. His line snapped just as the fish was about to be hauled aboard.

A couple of weeks ago during my day off I went fishing with Alex Usher, Crocket and Mani (one of the NA guides for IEC) and had a long but exhilerating day on the water. We caught a large number of fish, especially Barracuda, most of which we donated to the local hospital.

The highlight for me was when we saw a pod of BottleNose Dolphins nearby who soon came and layed in the bow wave of the boat. A few of the Dolphins were also surfing our stern wave and leaping out of the water, it was a fantastic sight!

Of course, a few beers and Rum & Cokes were downed throughout the day. On the way home we also stopped off at Tobacco Caye and had a couple of drinks to celebrate a successful day on the water:) And as all great fishing tales go, the biggest fish of the day got away!

Friends Kayaking off Dangriga

A few weeks ago 2 of my friends from Victoria popped by for a visit. Trev & Brad ended up going camping on Tobacco Caye with two of the North American guides, Cait & Dave and the four of them ended up paddling back to Dangriga on the Monday. The windy conditions made for a fun trip!