Here we go again...

La Aurora International Airport, Guatamala City

This is a photo of Roger, Kerry and Perry on the beach in San Pedro, Belize in 2008.

For those who followed last years adventure, bikingtobelize08.blogspot.com here we go again. We have been throwing around some ideas and Kerry has come up with an interesting ride. The plan is to leave Vancouver around November 14 and return on the 28th give or take a day depending on flight and personal schedules. As usual, we will update this space over the next 10 months and daily when we are riding. So far there are 7 riders with 4 of them classified as rookies. Kerry, Perry and myself (Roger) will have to lead the inexperienced for a small initiation fee :-) and warn them of the possible dangers especially on San Pedro, as we would not want anyone to be taken advantage of.

Now.... for our adventure. We have deliberated over it for a while and think we have come up with an interesting plan. It takes in a lot of different elements but not to many hills to go up but, hopefully lots to go down. There will be some rough roads and some good roads and even some dirt roads. We have allowed for several days on the islands of San Pedro and Caye Caulker in Belize, but we can always give up an island day if we need an extra travel day for some reason. Naturally the plan may need to be tweaked a bit here and there depending on flights and connections.


Here is our updated Itinerary ....

Day 0 - Drive to Seattle in the evening after work so this day doesn't really count :-)

Day 1 - Fly from Seattle to Guatemala City, find a hotel for the night. Assemble bikes for the next day of riding.

Day 2 - Depart Guatemala City and ride 132 kilometers to Rio Hondo and spend the night at a hotel. Our first day will be our longest but there is no way to avoid it as there are limited places to stay in Guatemala.

Day 3 - Ride from Rio Hondo 109 kilometers to La Ruidosa and find a hotel.

Day 4 - Ride 52 kilometers from La Ruidosa to Puerto Barrios and catch the 2:00 pm boat (the last one) to Punta Gorda, Belize, find a hotel and take in the Garifuna culture.

Day 5 - Be on the road by 7:00 am and Ride to 102 kilometers to Independence to catch the 4:30 pm ferry to Placentia and find a hotel. Placentia is an interesting place where the main street is a sidewalk that is billed as The world’s narrowest main street. http://www.transitionsabroad.com/publications/magazine/0505/explore_reefs_in_belize.shtml

Day 6 - Ride 90 kilometers from Placentia to Dangriga.

Day 7 - Ride 70 kilometers from Dangriga to Ian Anderson’s Jungle Lodge in Caves Branch.

Day 8 - Take the tubes down the Caves Branch River from Ian Anderson’s Jungle Lodge, http://www.cavesbranch.com/adventures/caving.html and then catch up with our bikes and equipment at Jaguar Paw, ride the 65 kilometers to Belize City and catch the last water taxi to Caye caulker and find a place to stay.

Day 9 - Hang out in Caye Caulker

Day 10 - Catch the water taxi to San Pedro.

Day 11 - Hang out and party in San Pedro.

Day 12 - Hang out and party in San Pedro.

Day 13 - Catch the first water taxi from San Pedro to Corozal Belize, ride to the Mexican border and then on to the Chetmal Mexico bus depot. Take bikes apart, pack them up and ride the bus to Playa del Carmen. This ride would take us 3 days by bike and some of us have already rode it so no need to cover it again. Find a hotel and party in Playa.

Day 14 - Get a shuttle to Cancun airport and catch a plane back to Seattle and then drive home.

As you can see, we have scheduled some island time to enjoy the local customs, menu and beverage options.
Once again, this is not a race and more of a leisurely ride of approximately 650 kms and a little shorter then last year.

If you are up for a unique vacation and can handle the pace...join us, as last year was an unforgettable experience and this should be just as fun.