Macal River Camp

Our leetle morning friend the scorpion!

At the airport in Belize City, we met our driver Juice and piled into what would become our much loved white van with all of our baggage stowed at the back to begin our three hour journey from Belize City to the Macal River Camp. Amazingly, everyone had arrived on time and had not been separated from their luggage.  Julia Prince had been the final arrival of the group, flying in around 4pm. As we headed out across the tropical savannah and into the jungle, the sun began to set.  This was our first acquaintance with the Belize landscape, its road bumps at every town, its people waiting at the bus stops, its fluorescent Belikin signs at every bar and convenience store, and its houses of many colors.

Along the way, we passed through San Ignacio and got a little peek at Martha’s Inn standing taller than its neighbors and overlooking a park.  Our excitement heightened.  This would be our home in two and a half months when our days of perpetual travel would come to a close.  We moved on into the night and made our way up the steep and bumpy road to the Macal River Camp.  The van was only capable of going so far until a pickup had to come fetch our luggage and we walked the rest of the way.  When we reached the palm thatched awning at the center of the camp,  we were reunited with our belongings, met the manager Docio and his family, and were fed our first delicious three course meal.  After dinner, we made ourselves at home in our casitas with their kerosene lamps and found our way to the outhouses and showerhouse by flashlight.  Each casita had a porch with a hammock and four cots.  The windows were screened, and the wet and humid weather had dampened our beds.  After our long day of traveling, we were happy to sink into them and listen to the sounds of the jungle, which could be a little unsettling at times.

Jordan learning about flora and fauna at the natural history museum

In the morning, we got our first real look at our surroundings and were greeted by the sound of a troop of howler monkeys from the tree tops at 7AM.  The whole camp came alive.  For a second we wondered whether we had been dropped in Jurassic Park.  They continued on with their territorial whoops for an hour as we prepared for breakfast, which would be declared by the ringing of the 8:30 bell. We returned to the open-air, thatched roof dining hall and marveled at its beautiful architecture, its simple and practical design.  We sat as families at three tables and shared beautiful platters of freshly cut banana, papaya, pineapple, and watermelon before receiving our main course of tortillas, beans, and eggs. 

  Diana, Jordan and John washing dishes after lunch

Our days at the Macal River Camp passed quickly.  We walked the jungle trail alongside the steep bank of the Macal River several times a day to reach the sister resort, Chaa Creek.  There, we checked out their Natural History Museum, Blue Morphos Butterfly Farm, and Medicinal Trail.  And, when we had a little free time and needed to cool down, we would dive into the infinity swimming pool there.  

There were moments in the first few days that felt unreal, as though we were a part of the Animal Kingdom in Disney World. When we saw turkey vultures hovering in the sky above the Macal River, flocks of egrets launching off of trees into the sky and smelled the river water, reality began to sink in. After our first day of classes on Sunday, we went out onto the Macal River with our Ridges to Reef professor, Colin Young. This was our first experience out in the field for class and it was absolutely spectacular. Using the canoes provided by Chaa Creek, we paddled upstream on the Macal River, listening to Professor Young identify birds, plants and reptiles. If you’ve ever wanted to meet someone who knows everything about everything, then you should come to Belize and meet Colin Young. At one point we were told to look up high in a tree for an orange body. Once we spotted it, we were told that we were looking at a male Green Iguana basking in the sun. His body was orange, rather than green because it was mating season and his vibrant color is used to attract potential lady friends.  As we progressed up the river on our first paddling excursion, we faced patches of fast-moving waters. Everyone made it past the first one with only a few beads of sweat dripping down their face, but the second was more challenging. As we approached rapids we began our 1,000 strokes per minute with Viking-like effort, but we quickly became newborns single handedly paddling a Dragon boat. The Macal River won the battle.  As we made our smooth voyage back, Belize continued to reveal its natural wonders including limestone rock faces, a gigantic Ceiba tree (sacred Mayan tree), and riparian vegetation on the banks of the river.

Class on the Macal River

Storm and Dan learning from their tour guide about Belize's flora at the Botanic Gardens Storm and Dan learning from their tour guide about Belize's flora at the Botanic Gardens

On our third day at Chaa Creek, we went on our second canoeing excursion on the Macal River to the Botanic Gardens. After our first canoe trip, we knew to get out of our canoes when we hit the rapids, rather than be pulled like lifeless ducks down the river. There was something really amazing about paddling up the river to get to our destination, rather than having to rely on our bus to get us there. Lucky for us, the sun decided to shine down onto us as we paddled up the river, which was very unusual for the frequent rainforest downpours we had been experiencing. It was was the first full day that our pasty Vermont skin experienced the hot tropical sun.  Mother Nature definitely wanted us to feel her warmth! When we arrived at the Botanical Gardens, we were greeted by a monumental off-white limestone rock face. Feeling tiny doesn’t even begin to describe what it felt like looking up at the formation. Once we walked up the stone path to the Botanical Gardens, we were greeted by our two tour guides who provided us with very interesting information about the flora of Belize.

The gang during Meg's Intercultural Competence class

We learned that there are around 300 native species of orchids in Belize, which are primarily located on trees along river banks. We were able to see several orchids high up in the trees during our canoe on the Macal River. Orchids are epipyhtes, plants that have a mutualistic relationship with trees.  Another tree that we were shown was the Guanacaste tree. It’s a very fast growing tree, with a short lifespan of about 100 years. The Guanacaste tree has “tanks” on them that store water that animals use as a source of water. We were also shown the Bay Leaf Palm tree, which is the most common palm leaf used for roof thatching. Belizeans believe that constructing a roof within 3 days of a full moon is the best way to ensure that the roof is long lasting. 

After a packed five days at Chaa Creek, we finally had to say good bye to our riverside jungle oasis to move onto our second destination in Belize. From the delicious food, howler monkey alarm clock, canoe trips on the Macal, introduction to our three teachers, incredible wildlife and the heart warming hospitality of the family running the camp, our commencement of life in Belize for the next three months couldn’t have been sweeter.

Submitted by Alyson Wall and Heather Snow