Amérique centrale - 2- GUATEMALA 26 jan...12 fev 2019
Trail photos
Author
Trail stats
- Distance
- 917.16 mi
- Elevation gain
- 71,211 ft
- Technical difficulty
- Moderate
- Elevation loss
- 71,611 ft
- Max elevation
- 9,937 ft
- TrailRank
- 29
- Min elevation
- 0 ft
- Trail type
- One Way
- Time
- 17 days 5 hours 58 minutes
- Coordinates
- 28409
- Uploaded
- November 5, 2019
- Recorded
- February 2019
near Buena Vista, Cayo (Belize)
Viewed 366 times, downloaded 11 times
Trail photos
Itinerary description
|
All the details of our journey ....
GUATEMALA
<<< BELIZE
1) North
01/26
Last little restaurant last night, to bid farewell to Belize that we are leaving this morning.
A real tropical rain all night long… downpours !!!
Customs Info
Belize
Fast through customs, it's Saturday, no trucks and little traffic.
(30 mins)
Exit tax: B $ 40 per person
Output buffers
Return the TIP papers
Before going back to Guatemala keep some B $ money, on the other side, they only accept Quetzals… so change them first. Maurice had to go downtown to the bank, we had nothing left!
Guatemala
-Everything starts with disinfection: 39 Q
-Immigration, very fast. 90 days.
- 160 Q for temporary importation. (TIP)
Don't forget the Photocopies
- gray card
-driver's license
-Passport driver
It takes much longer to do all these papers (2 hours), but always with a smile.
No search of the vehicle, just verification of the registration number and VIN number. No question about what we are transporting… ..
No Pb for Kid!
Tax of 30 Q to cross the bridge!.…
Viva El Guatemala.
The Peten.
Not much change in landscape, always the virgin forest and the dwellings in palapas and corrugated iron sheets and flowers.
Unable to enter the Yatxa PN we go directly to El Rimate. Too bad we won't see the crocodiles!
Casa Tonita on the northern shores of Lake Peten. A quiet corner at the start of WE.
01/27
Not so quiet, because a lot of noise last night. Great beautiful, the lake is oil ...
We decide to leave for Tikal, the great Mayan site of the country. First of all, great disappointment we cannot enter the park… no animals are allowed !!! (for Julien and Carole)
On the advice of one of the reception managers, we will leave Gamin in the car, in the shade under the trees, just before crossing the entrance arch and he will take care of finding a car to take us at the park . Phew !!! To come from so far and to turn around, not possible.
Tikal
Monumental site in the heart of the jungle, we will travel for miles in the middle of this greenery to go from one monument to another, seeing monkeys, coatis and birds. (3000 structures over 16 km².)
Huge trees such as the Kapok trees, here a national and sacred tree.
The Mayas arrived here in the 7th century BC and built huge buildings, we will only see part of them… ..
Templo V with its 57 m the second in height of the site. Facades entirely cleared of greenery.
Plaza de los Siete Templos.
El Templo talud –tablero.
Templo III., Just behind temple II.
Gran Plaza, the most impressive set in Tikal.
Two huge pyramids facing each other.
Temple I or temple of the jaguars. (45 m and 9 platforms)
Temple II or temple of the masks. (38 m and 3 platforms)
North Acropolis
Central Acropolis, set of 215m, with buildings nested one in the other with patios. ' Mansions of the nobility.
A completely magnificent set, which has suffered a lot from tropical rains, from the jungle, a lot of stucco has disappeared… but we imagine them as in Uxmal !.
Return to our Kid by taxi, we leave for the peninsula in front of Flores. We find our bivouac well, but no one… open or closed? we sit down and see!
No Pb… but in principle closed. We have a superb view of the island of Flores.
01/28
18 ° pleasant sweetness. We descend from our perch towards the lake to take the ferry. (A significant time saving in km and for 20 Q only)
We arrive directly on the island, right at the supermarket (bank, telephone and supermarket).
Insurance for car 661 Q for 3 months, GUA, SAL, HON, NICA, COSTA)
Flowery road with pink acacias to Sayaxché where we take the ferry once again to cross the river.
Oil palm trees everywhere and little pigs roaming free.
Change of region we leave the Peten and return to the Mayan territory;
Alta Verapaz
The women all wear very colorful long skirts.
Tonight we sleep at the Cuevas de Candelaria.
In a magnificent natural park.
01/29
Cuevas de Candelaria.
After a good walk in the forest with Carlos our guide.
Nearly 80 km of underground rivers crisscross these caves and we will do a very small part of it in complete darkness with just a flashlight, impressive!
Stalactites of all shapes ...
Even the world cup !!!
Little bats hanging from the ceiling.
Garden of greenery at the exit.
It is then a splendid road with breathtaking landscapes through a small mountain range made of sugar loaves covered with tropical jungle. Homes everywhere lost in this inextricable greenery. (Favorite of the day)
At the beginning, a good asphalt road (RN 5) which soon becomes very bumpy track… we are traveling at 15 km / h…
Arrival in Lanquin. Hostal Oasis.
01/30
Semuc Champey waterfalls
The river forms a whole series of waterfalls over approximately 100m, which we will first discover from the viewpoint;
A beautiful lower abdomen of 500 m with a drop of 115 m, straight down the slope.
The view was deserved !!!
Descent of 700 m towards the basins more smoothly!
Back to the oasis ...
01/31
Crossing the village, return to the market.
Coban, we cross the city quickly, without much interest.
The road always splendid. Lots of coffee plantations.
San Cristobal Veraz we bivouacked by the lake in the “Pentencito” ecotourism
It's hard to fall asleep with the sound of frogs….
02/01
14 ° this morning, we are at an altitude of 1400 m and you can feel it.
After San Cristolbal 28 km of a terrible track (RN-7W) with no traffic possible, so in a cloud of dust ...
DSC_0194
Fortunately the asphalt returns to finish our route.
The style of the houses change, adobe walls and roof covered with Roman tiles.
Nebaj
Lost in the very mountainous “Triangulo Ixil” region.
Here the women all wear a red “huipile” skirt and very colorful shirts and even a material on the head that closely resembles the one worn by women in Nepal… (good memories!)
Buses also remind us of this country, as do motorcycle taxis.
Sacapulas, on the football field… for the night.
02/02
Towards Huehuetenango.
Lots of deforestation!
At the edge of the small river, a great little field.
03/02 /
1900 m and this morning it's the second duvet we need, it's 7 ° inside….
100 km return trip in the middle of the Highlands, in the Cuchumatanes mountain range, very rocky and covered with pines and agaves.
A road of great beauty. It is first a nice climb that leads us to a plateau at 3500m. Mongolian landscape ...
Crossing the village, many people for the football tournament. Always only Toyota….
Then the descent to Todos is still Nepal with its terraced crops, all that is missing is rice, replaced here by corn.
Todos Santos
2500 m, not hot!
Populated by Indians "mams". The men, from the old man to the youngest children, all are dressed in the same way, they wear red pants with white stripes and a white shirt with blue stripes while wearing a small straw hat….
The women wear very colorful outfits, but always in greens, mauves and blues, floral or geometric patterns.
Up there we enjoy a great coffee and stock up…. it begins !
Magnificent region, alas a little spoiled by the amount of rubbish on the side of the road.
Return to Huehue in our family camp.
2) South-West
02/04
Route to
Chichicastenango.
We visit the city and of course its very colorful market, although it is not Thursday there are still exhibitors. But hardly anyone!
Fantastic embroidery work… the specialty of the city.
Parking lot at the Maya Inn hotel, impeccable, well-kept and a very good restaurant.
Magnificent interior decor.
05- / 02
Not much more in the fridge and in my crates, so we have to go to Xela (Quetzalténango)… Second city in the country.
.Walmart
Then road to San Marcos, splendid ... lots of fire in the fields and around 4 pm the clouds invade the mountains. Descent to the grandiose lake, 20 km road redone.
06-07 / 02
San Marcos
San Pedro volcano. Camp of "Pierre, Pasajcap".
Maintenance of the car and big bubble in the sun on the shores of Lake Atitlan in a setting of greenery and flowers.
Here, each village is served by boat, the connection by track being too bad !!! We tested for the last 4 km to get to our camp.
08-09 / 02
Lake Atitlan
Another favorite, in front of this lake, surrounded by a chain of magnificent volcanoes.
Volcanoes San Pédro 3020m, Toliman 3158, and the majestic Atitlan 3537 m often capped with small clouds.
The lake located at 1560 m offers us an exceptional spectacle that changes throughout the day, in the morning great calm and clear skies and in the afternoon the clouds accumulate around the volcanoes.
Since this morning, it has been crossed by strong winds and ends up with very white waves.
Solola
Hens also travel! in baskets.
After three nights in San Marcos, we arrived north of the lake.
Panajachel
Very touristy city, nicknamed "Gringoténango", indeed a lot of very white skin. Lots of traffic at the boarding calls for neighboring villages.
We will spend two nights there in the gardens of a large Hotel Tzanjuyu at the entrance to the city. Very quiet, directly on the shores of the lake! Breathtaking view .... (Not too many other possibilities, the only one accepting doggies.)
02/10
Santa Catarina Palopo
Still on the shores of the lake, another small typical village on the mountainside. Here, turquoise dominates, the women wear matching blue-green huipiles ...
A deviation from the main road towards Antigua will take us through at 2400 m a whole area of vegetable crops, peas, beans and carrots… surprising at this altitude!
Antigua
Old colonial town with a lot of charm. Brightly colored low houses.
Many ruins that have struggled to survive after the many earthquakes, but which testify to a past grandeur.
Large pedestrian street on a Sunday afternoon ...
Iglesia de la Merced.
Parque Central.
Afternoon dance. Family reunion, traditional costume.
Cathedral, only the facade remains, behind these are only ruins.
Like most overlanders, we land for the night in the “Policia turismo” park in the city center. Well guarded and free ...
02/11
Quick crossing of the capital Ciutad Guatemala! (not quite, in the middle of traffic, in incredible pollution.) An impressive array of police, security and military personnel. We only came here to refill our propane cylinder.
Out of town to Amatitlan and the Pacaya Volcano Park.
Bivouac in the parking lot. Behind us the volcano is smoking and tonight a red halo crowns its summit.
02/12
Always the same fascination for volcanoes that will push me to climb the Pacaya volcano ... I will make the red trail.
The still active volcano spits lava and a lot of fumaroles. For this reason it is no longer possible to climb to the crater, too bad. I'll see more! I hope .
A nice climb all the same to the lava fields. (Round trip 2h30). Apart from a few security guards who will report my presence at different stations, I won't see many people.
Return to the car where Gamin and Maurice are waiting for me while watching me from afar. We continue on our way.
Still in the coffee fields around the Candelaria lagoon, nice trail too.
Road to our last point in Guatemala before crossing the border. Hotel Las Cascadas 30 km before this one. (free, guarded parking, just consume ...)
§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§
So ends almost three weeks in this country. (19 days and 1500km). Despite the few km, a certain fatigue sets in. Not easy roads, a lot of broken speed (tumulos) so often in 1st and 2nd where a significant consumption of diesel. (Plus 14l / 100)….
Almost always at altitude, very pleasant temperature, in the middle of tropical vegetation. Wonderful landscapes. Incredible variety of local costumes…. We liked it a lot… ..
Smiling people, and we never felt insecure.
El Salvador tomorrow.
SALVADOR>>>
GUATEMALA
<<< BELIZE
1) North
01/26
Last little restaurant last night, to bid farewell to Belize that we are leaving this morning.
A real tropical rain all night long… downpours !!!
Customs Info
Belize
Fast through customs, it's Saturday, no trucks and little traffic.
(30 mins)
Exit tax: B $ 40 per person
Output buffers
Return the TIP papers
Before going back to Guatemala keep some B $ money, on the other side, they only accept Quetzals… so change them first. Maurice had to go downtown to the bank, we had nothing left!
Guatemala
-Everything starts with disinfection: 39 Q
-Immigration, very fast. 90 days.
- 160 Q for temporary importation. (TIP)
Don't forget the Photocopies
- gray card
-driver's license
-Passport driver
It takes much longer to do all these papers (2 hours), but always with a smile.
No search of the vehicle, just verification of the registration number and VIN number. No question about what we are transporting… ..
No Pb for Kid!
Tax of 30 Q to cross the bridge!.…
Viva El Guatemala.
The Peten.
Not much change in landscape, always the virgin forest and the dwellings in palapas and corrugated iron sheets and flowers.
Unable to enter the Yatxa PN we go directly to El Rimate. Too bad we won't see the crocodiles!
Casa Tonita on the northern shores of Lake Peten. A quiet corner at the start of WE.
01/27
Not so quiet, because a lot of noise last night. Great beautiful, the lake is oil ...
We decide to leave for Tikal, the great Mayan site of the country. First of all, great disappointment we cannot enter the park… no animals are allowed !!! (for Julien and Carole)
On the advice of one of the reception managers, we will leave Gamin in the car, in the shade under the trees, just before crossing the entrance arch and he will take care of finding a car to take us at the park . Phew !!! To come from so far and to turn around, not possible.
Tikal
Monumental site in the heart of the jungle, we will travel for miles in the middle of this greenery to go from one monument to another, seeing monkeys, coatis and birds. (3000 structures over 16 km².)
Huge trees such as the Kapok trees, here a national and sacred tree.
The Mayas arrived here in the 7th century BC and built huge buildings, we will only see part of them… ..
Templo V with its 57 m the second in height of the site. Facades entirely cleared of greenery.
Plaza de los Siete Templos.
El Templo talud –tablero.
Templo III., Just behind temple II.
Gran Plaza, the most impressive set in Tikal.
Two huge pyramids facing each other.
Temple I or temple of the jaguars. (45 m and 9 platforms)
Temple II or temple of the masks. (38 m and 3 platforms)
North Acropolis
Central Acropolis, set of 215m, with buildings nested one in the other with patios. ' Mansions of the nobility.
A completely magnificent set, which has suffered a lot from tropical rains, from the jungle, a lot of stucco has disappeared… but we imagine them as in Uxmal !.
Return to our Kid by taxi, we leave for the peninsula in front of Flores. We find our bivouac well, but no one… open or closed? we sit down and see!
No Pb… but in principle closed. We have a superb view of the island of Flores.
01/28
18 ° pleasant sweetness. We descend from our perch towards the lake to take the ferry. (A significant time saving in km and for 20 Q only)
We arrive directly on the island, right at the supermarket (bank, telephone and supermarket).
Insurance for car 661 Q for 3 months, GUA, SAL, HON, NICA, COSTA)
Flowery road with pink acacias to Sayaxché where we take the ferry once again to cross the river.
Oil palm trees everywhere and little pigs roaming free.
Change of region we leave the Peten and return to the Mayan territory;
Alta Verapaz
The women all wear very colorful long skirts.
Tonight we sleep at the Cuevas de Candelaria.
In a magnificent natural park.
01/29
Cuevas de Candelaria.
After a good walk in the forest with Carlos our guide.
Nearly 80 km of underground rivers crisscross these caves and we will do a very small part of it in complete darkness with just a flashlight, impressive!
Stalactites of all shapes ...
Even the world cup !!!
Little bats hanging from the ceiling.
Garden of greenery at the exit.
It is then a splendid road with breathtaking landscapes through a small mountain range made of sugar loaves covered with tropical jungle. Homes everywhere lost in this inextricable greenery. (Favorite of the day)
At the beginning, a good asphalt road (RN 5) which soon becomes very bumpy track… we are traveling at 15 km / h…
Arrival in Lanquin. Hostal Oasis.
01/30
Semuc Champey waterfalls
The river forms a whole series of waterfalls over approximately 100m, which we will first discover from the viewpoint;
A beautiful lower abdomen of 500 m with a drop of 115 m, straight down the slope.
The view was deserved !!!
Descent of 700 m towards the basins more smoothly!
Back to the oasis ...
01/31
Crossing the village, return to the market.
Coban, we cross the city quickly, without much interest.
The road always splendid. Lots of coffee plantations.
San Cristobal Veraz we bivouacked by the lake in the “Pentencito” ecotourism
It's hard to fall asleep with the sound of frogs….
02/01
14 ° this morning, we are at an altitude of 1400 m and you can feel it.
After San Cristolbal 28 km of a terrible track (RN-7W) with no traffic possible, so in a cloud of dust ...
DSC_0194
Fortunately the asphalt returns to finish our route.
The style of the houses change, adobe walls and roof covered with Roman tiles.
Nebaj
Lost in the very mountainous “Triangulo Ixil” region.
Here the women all wear a red “huipile” skirt and very colorful shirts and even a material on the head that closely resembles the one worn by women in Nepal… (good memories!)
Buses also remind us of this country, as do motorcycle taxis.
Sacapulas, on the football field… for the night.
02/02
Towards Huehuetenango.
Lots of deforestation!
At the edge of the small river, a great little field.
03/02 /
1900 m and this morning it's the second duvet we need, it's 7 ° inside….
100 km return trip in the middle of the Highlands, in the Cuchumatanes mountain range, very rocky and covered with pines and agaves.
A road of great beauty. It is first a nice climb that leads us to a plateau at 3500m. Mongolian landscape ...
Crossing the village, many people for the football tournament. Always only Toyota….
Then the descent to Todos is still Nepal with its terraced crops, all that is missing is rice, replaced here by corn.
Todos Santos
2500 m, not hot!
Populated by Indians "mams". The men, from the old man to the youngest children, all are dressed in the same way, they wear red pants with white stripes and a white shirt with blue stripes while wearing a small straw hat….
The women wear very colorful outfits, but always in greens, mauves and blues, floral or geometric patterns.
Up there we enjoy a great coffee and stock up…. it begins !
Magnificent region, alas a little spoiled by the amount of rubbish on the side of the road.
Return to Huehue in our family camp.
2) South-West
02/04
Route to
Chichicastenango.
We visit the city and of course its very colorful market, although it is not Thursday there are still exhibitors. But hardly anyone!
Fantastic embroidery work… the specialty of the city.
Parking lot at the Maya Inn hotel, impeccable, well-kept and a very good restaurant.
Magnificent interior decor.
05- / 02
Not much more in the fridge and in my crates, so we have to go to Xela (Quetzalténango)… Second city in the country.
.Walmart
Then road to San Marcos, splendid ... lots of fire in the fields and around 4 pm the clouds invade the mountains. Descent to the grandiose lake, 20 km road redone.
06-07 / 02
San Marcos
San Pedro volcano. Camp of "Pierre, Pasajcap".
Maintenance of the car and big bubble in the sun on the shores of Lake Atitlan in a setting of greenery and flowers.
Here, each village is served by boat, the connection by track being too bad !!! We tested for the last 4 km to get to our camp.
08-09 / 02
Lake Atitlan
Another favorite, in front of this lake, surrounded by a chain of magnificent volcanoes.
Volcanoes San Pédro 3020m, Toliman 3158, and the majestic Atitlan 3537 m often capped with small clouds.
The lake located at 1560 m offers us an exceptional spectacle that changes throughout the day, in the morning great calm and clear skies and in the afternoon the clouds accumulate around the volcanoes.
Since this morning, it has been crossed by strong winds and ends up with very white waves.
Solola
Hens also travel! in baskets.
After three nights in San Marcos, we arrived north of the lake.
Panajachel
Very touristy city, nicknamed "Gringoténango", indeed a lot of very white skin. Lots of traffic at the boarding calls for neighboring villages.
We will spend two nights there in the gardens of a large Hotel Tzanjuyu at the entrance to the city. Very quiet, directly on the shores of the lake! Breathtaking view .... (Not too many other possibilities, the only one accepting doggies.)
02/10
Santa Catarina Palopo
Still on the shores of the lake, another small typical village on the mountainside. Here, turquoise dominates, the women wear matching blue-green huipiles ...
A deviation from the main road towards Antigua will take us through at 2400 m a whole area of vegetable crops, peas, beans and carrots… surprising at this altitude!
Antigua
Old colonial town with a lot of charm. Brightly colored low houses.
Many ruins that have struggled to survive after the many earthquakes, but which testify to a past grandeur.
Large pedestrian street on a Sunday afternoon ...
Iglesia de la Merced.
Parque Central.
Afternoon dance. Family reunion, traditional costume.
Cathedral, only the facade remains, behind these are only ruins.
Like most overlanders, we land for the night in the “Policia turismo” park in the city center. Well guarded and free ...
02/11
Quick crossing of the capital Ciutad Guatemala! (not quite, in the middle of traffic, in incredible pollution.) An impressive array of police, security and military personnel. We only came here to refill our propane cylinder.
Out of town to Amatitlan and the Pacaya Volcano Park.
Bivouac in the parking lot. Behind us the volcano is smoking and tonight a red halo crowns its summit.
02/12
Always the same fascination for volcanoes that will push me to climb the Pacaya volcano ... I will make the red trail.
The still active volcano spits lava and a lot of fumaroles. For this reason it is no longer possible to climb to the crater, too bad. I'll see more! I hope .
A nice climb all the same to the lava fields. (Round trip 2h30). Apart from a few security guards who will report my presence at different stations, I won't see many people.
Return to the car where Gamin and Maurice are waiting for me while watching me from afar. We continue on our way.
Still in the coffee fields around the Candelaria lagoon, nice trail too.
Road to our last point in Guatemala before crossing the border. Hotel Las Cascadas 30 km before this one. (free, guarded parking, just consume ...)
§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§
So ends almost three weeks in this country. (19 days and 1500km). Despite the few km, a certain fatigue sets in. Not easy roads, a lot of broken speed (tumulos) so often in 1st and 2nd where a significant consumption of diesel. (Plus 14l / 100)….
Almost always at altitude, very pleasant temperature, in the middle of tropical vegetation. Wonderful landscapes. Incredible variety of local costumes…. We liked it a lot… ..
Smiling people, and we never felt insecure.
El Salvador tomorrow.
SALVADOR>>>
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