Expedition to Belize

bernardbarbour

Observer
Hey ya'll ! We're going back to Belize. Our 4 month expedition through Mexico, Belize and Guatemala in 2012 was so much fun we decided to go back. We're driving from Augusta, Ga starting April 2nd and will take out time meandering through Mexico with a final destination of Placencia, Belize. Just as we did last time we'll post photos, trip reports and plenty of amazing stories. In addition to following along here and on our blog, we created a facebook page called "On the road in Belize" https://www.facebook.com/groups/1437417786494137/1451356638433585/?notif_t=group_activity . We hope you all will join us in our journey across the states, down the Gulf of Mexico and into the jungles of Belize. Cheers, Bernard Barbour Central America Overland Expeditions. http://caoexpeditions.com/

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ripper1600

Adventure Seeker
Sounds like it should be an awesome trip looking forward to reading about it.


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bernardbarbour

Observer
Central America Overland Expeditions

“You’re driving to Belize?” What?

Posted: March 31, 2014 by Central America Overland Expeditions in Expedition/Travel

I thought Belize was an island ! It’s in South Africa right? When and where are you going to put your truck on the ship?” These are just a few of the crazy questions I get daily when I we tell people we are moving to Belize. Not everyone but many don't know where Belize is. But, I bet you many Belizeans could look at a map and show you where New York, DC or Los Angeles is. So to make the story sweeter after telling them about Belize, I'll add that you have to drive through Mexico to get there. Then the conversation gets real dicey. But that’s another story in itself and you'll have to stay tuned to enjoy our drive through Mexico. So for now lets talk about Belize and our drive.

It’s about 2,700 miles to our final destination of Placencia, Belize C.A. from Augusta, Ga, USA. I googled it, lol. Says it takes 47 hours. Google must think I'm a driving machine, but that ain't happening. We plan to take about 2 or 3 weeks, taking out time seeing all the sites. New Orleans, Houston, Villahermosa, Oaxaca and more. Beside our Rovers don't roll that fast. But we do want to get to Belize in time to see the whale sharks and enjoy the chocolate festival. http://www.chocolatefestivalofbelize.com/toledo.html


The Placencia Peninsula presents a microcosm of the best Belize has to offer. Over twelve miles of untrammeled golden beaches look out onto scores of enchanting cayes (pronounced keys). The world’s second largest barrier reef sits just off shore and beyond that more pristine atolls. It’s an ideal base for amazing diving and snorkeling – including our famous whale sharks, as well as world-class fly fishing and trolling. But marine attractions are only half the story. Across the Placencia Lagoon lay all the wonders of the southern mainland. The majestic Maya Mountains, cascading waterfalls, rushing rivers and the inspiring cities of the ancient Maya.

Located in the Stann Creek District, this small fishing village we find so enchanting and are looking forward to calling Placencia home. There are no traffic lights, no franchises such as McDonald, Starbucks etc. and we'll have to drive 4 hours north to go to Wal-Mart in Mexico. Sounds like our kinda place. It’s laid back pace, friendly people, culture, flora and fauna, we're looking forward to getting to know. Additionally we're looking forward to discovering the Toledo District in the far south as it’s more remote, virtually undiscovered and rarely visited by tourist ( no offense to the people of Punta Gorda ) but we are fascinated by this region of Belize. So stay tuned and enjoy, and if you've ever taken a seriously long road trip, we'd love to hear about it.

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bernardbarbour

Observer
And we're off!

We got off to a great start today. We covered over 400+ miles today from Augusta, Ga to Mobile, Al. Tomorrow New Orleans. Aieee...
 

bernardbarbour

Observer
We're in Texas, but first we stopped for some good road food treats.

No road trip is complete going down I-10 through Louisiana without stopping to get some world famous Boudin.The Best Stop Supermarket in Scott, a 14 time favorite in the Times of Acadiana's "Best of Acadiana" readership poll, is Acadiana's best stop for Boudin, Cracklins, Fried Boudin Balls, and all things Cajun since 1986 and this place certainly didn't disappoint us. We got some hot Boudin balls and ate them before we got out the door. If you're ever in the area we highly recommend stopping there. Hmmmmmmmm......good
 

Broncers

New member
I did a similar trip to your first one. Are you planing on stopping by or have you stopped by Agua Azuel in Mexico? This was one of my favorite places we stayed. We found a guy that ran a small weather station and stayed in his yard for about 4 days. I was extremely disappointed when we first showed up, as there were buses of tourists, but as we went up or down stream 5 mins there was nothing but jungle and the greatest water falls I have ever seen.
 

bernardbarbour

Observer
Thanks Broncers, we did not know about this place but just looked it up. We will have to stop there. We planned a stop in Oaxaca and we see this this would be enroute for us as we continue on to Belize. Thanks.
 

Rovertrader

Supporting Sponsor
Wow, glad to find this thread!! We leave Tuesday for Belize, Guatemala, and Mexico- flying down, driving back!! Would love to get in touch once we are down there- we are in San Ignancio the 15-17th, then down to Antigua to lend a hand at a malnutrition center for kids, and then north bound. There is much discussion about issues outside Tampicco and adjacent areas, and would love to hear your experience on the way down- as we will be traveling as a family this go! I have done the trip a couple times via Rover and motorcycle, but not the whole clan.

Also, second Aqua Azul- just beautiful!! We were on the motorcycles that trip and met a couple from Switzerland who were shocked to see Americans at such a place, aka off the beaten path so to speak...

Enjoy your trip, and look forward to hearing from you!!
Cheers
 

Jeremy P.

Adventurer
My wife and I spent a couple days in Placencia at Captain Jak's during our honeymoon. The village was great; the road into Placencia was rough! I would love to go to Belize again for a longer period of time.
 

bernardbarbour

Observer
Esmeralda to Tuxtepec via Veracruz

Emerald Coast to Tuxtepec:
We stopped at a little roadside restaurant heading out of the Emerald coast for breakfast. We all ate very inexpensively (approx. $40 pesos each), and then got on the road headed to Veracruz. We made good time despite the many little towns that we drove through, all providing speed bumps (topes) to slow us down. The skies were bright and the temperature perfect. The views were amazing. At times, you could see the ocean on your left, and a mountain range to the right. The roads were mostly good, winding through towns, mountains, etc. Elevations changed, but not too dramatically. We passed numerous trucks harvesting, what appeared to be kindling wood, possible for cooking fires, or sugar cane. It is amazing how high they can pack those trucks!
We found a stop off offering a towering view of the beach surrounded by mountains. Very picture worthy. This was probably the most scenic leg of the trip thus far. We tried to capture some of them in pictures, though they do not do it justice. As we neared Veracruz, we stopped to pay a toll. There haven't been many along this route, which we are happy about. Coming into Veracruz, the traffic picked up significantly. The window washers were in full effect. I had to holler at one of them who decided he needed to sit on my hood to reach the middle, after I told him, “No”. We stopped downtown on the oceanfront and took pictures and toured the area. Next we found a nice grill restaurant that offered great burgers. The staff was very friendly, and enjoyed “practicing” their English. Tammy had four years of Spanish in high school, and speaks the most in our group. I learned the crash course method after spending four months in Mexico in 2012. I have also practiced with Rosetta stone which helps. We all laughed as we took turns learning new words in each language. We stopped on the oceanfront in the downtown area. There was much activity such as street vendors, work out stations, artistry, and sculptures. Its a culturally, and visually stunning town. We really enjoyed our time there.
Back on the road we decided to head to Tuxtepec, where we would be in at a good starting point to head into Oaxaca the following day. The road we were going to take into Oaxaca is full of switchbacks, and mountains, so we wanted a fresh start. As we Left Veracruz, we were hit with another cuota (toll road). The roads were in great shape, although a little bumpy, allowing us to make good time. The route was fairly ordinary, but the time went by quickly. By the time we made it to Tuxtepec, we had been through several more cuotas. These fees were starting to add up, the highest fee being just over $11.00 U.S. We made it into Tuxtepec, found a place to stay, and tried the internet. It had a strong signal, but no internet access! Uhhggg! This is getting old! We are wearing out the McDonalds. At least the wifi there is fairly steady.
Next up: Oaxaca! I love this town. We will be there for 2-3 days, hanging out at a known overlander hangout, Overlander Oasis. We most likely will be there with other overlanders traveling the Pan American highway. Stay tuned!
 

bernardbarbour

Observer
My wife and I spent a couple days in Placencia at Captain Jak's during our honeymoon. The village was great; the road into Placencia was rough! I would love to go to Belize again for a longer period of time.

Crawlnjeep, anytime you decide to come back we will be here. We love Placencia. Our plans for now are to stay here for at least 3-5 years. Cheers and thanks for your message.
 

bernardbarbour

Observer
Wow, glad to find this thread!! We leave Tuesday for Belize, Guatemala, and Mexico- flying down, driving back!! Would love to get in touch once we are down there- we are in San Ignancio the 15-17th, then down to Antigua to lend a hand at a malnutrition center for kids, and then north bound. There is much discussion about issues outside Tampicco and adjacent areas, and would love to hear your experience on the way down- as we will be traveling as a family this go! I have done the trip a couple times via Rover and motorcycle, but not the whole clan.

Also, second Aqua Azul- just beautiful!! We were on the motorcycles that trip and met a couple from Switzerland who were shocked to see Americans at such a place, aka off the beaten path so to speak...

Enjoy your trip, and look forward to hearing from you!!
Cheers

Rovertrader please look us up. We in Oaxaca tonight and will be at the Chetumal border in 3 days or so. We will be in Placencia by the 16th at the latest. Good to hear from you. Hope we can meet you.
 

bernardbarbour

Observer
Day 13, Sorry this thread is going to jump around a few days

Some days we don't have internet and get behind. So I'll do my best to get you all back up to speed. Day 13 (corrected) We woke up early to the loud call of the roosters roaming around the orphanage. There was one brave soul that decided to parade around under our tents, "Cock-A-Doodling" at the top of his lungs. We could help but laugh out loud as it continued with the wake up call at 6:30 am. "Choot em"! I yelled. Bernard got out of their tent and chased some roosters around trying to get a photo and mainly just trying to aggrevate them back. They dont realize how much we like chicken, fried chicken, grilled chicken, chicken tacos, chicken tonight....I guess we now know what the term "up with the chickens" truly means.
We were up and had the tents put away and in the Rovers before 7 pulling out of the driveway. The kids were scheduled to be in school so we wouldnt have a chance to see them. We made several remarks that what a short day we had planned as far as traveling goes. It was suppossed to be only 4 hours to Villahermosa where we had reserved hotel rooms. "We will be showered and ready to eat before noon", Angela said. Tammy agreed, "I can handle 4 hours, Im ready for a shower". This was not to be the case.
We jumped on the highway and was sailing along at great speeds, 50-60 mph, no problem. As we neared the exit to the road we saw on the map 187 North, it was clear the scenery was about to change again. The landscape was very lush, rivers and streams were bursting over the sides. The sun was bright, and we were on a two lane quiet road. What a nice change of pace compared to the desolate, desert feeling we had seen in other areas. The speeds were slowed to about 30-40 mph, because the roads were winding and even climbing up some hills. Checking the elevation, we were only about 500-600 feet up, but the hills still made for a slower pace. There was no oncoming traffic, at all and about one vehicle we could see occasionally ahead.
All of a sudden, we rounded a corner and there were several cars brake lights shining. We came to a halt. It looked like possibly a police stop as there was a Federale car quite a ways ahead, but due to the traffic now, it was hard to tell. We put the car in park and prepared to wait our turn for whatever lie ahead, but we never moved. Well at least not for nearly 25 minutes. People were getting out of their cars, some talking, others just standing. Suddenly, traffic from the other direction began to flow. No wonder there wasn't any oncoming traffic, it had been held up here. After closer examination, it appeared there was a wreck or tuck turned over. When we finally got our turn to go, we slowly drove by the scene of a truck that apparently lost control and rolled backwards into the ditch, spilling his load. What a mess. Diesel was pouring from the truck, being captured only by a 5 gallon bucket being emptied every now and then. Everyone seemed ok, but it was going to be a slow process and wow, where did all the traffic come from on this little two lane road?
We finally passed the wreck and got back up to decent speeds again for a half hour or so. Then traffic began to slow again, as we were climbing and winding our way through the hills.Bernard was right in my rear view mirror as I slowed down quickly due to rounding a curve and finding a girl flagging traffic down for construction. Heavy equipment was clearing the road, and working on the shoulder. I hugged the inside rock wall of the large mountain that loomed next to us, to keep a safe distance from the workers. We have had the windows down on the entire trip to reacclimate ourselves to the heat. Going from 60 degrees when we left to degrees now, it is taking some time. The rear window on the passenger side was down, when Angela and I heard at the same time, a heavy rustling sound! We both immediately knew something was coming down the mountain at us. I saw out of the corner of my eye, dust, gravel and debris falling. All of a sudden, A loud thunk, and then impact enough to shake the Rover. I quickly mashed the gas and swerved to the left. i looked in the mirror, Bernard also had swerved to the left. The road was uneven and rough. Paranoid. I felt like the rear wheel was wobbling and bent, so we pulled off to the side to inspect. I asked Bernard where it had hit. He said the boulder fell and hit the rock slider on the lower frame rail. We looked everything over. It seemed fine. We were just a little shook up, hearts still pounding, thinking of the possibilities. I installed the rock sliders before we left for this trip. They were intended to protect the body and frame from crawling over rocks. I never dreamed it would protect us from rocks falling from the sky! Angela said, " I will never give you a hard time about installing rock sliders again". Fortunately Bernard was able to avoid getting hit. Wow, what else can we expect to encounter on this trip?? The rest of the trip to Villahermosa was uneventful. We finally arrived a little later than planned, but got a hotel for a much needed down time, as I was fighting a headache, and Tammy was not feeling well. Unfortunately, there were not many pictures taken as we were busy fighting to survive! Headed to Gringo Dave's campground in Chetumal next. We are almost out of Mexico ready to cross the border into Belize!
 

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