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Victor Turcios ♦
Belize is known as a jewel to many. With no mega-hotels or concrete jungles, it is popular for its natural wonders and vacation destinations. Whether it be for its astonishing wildlife and marine reserves, deep forests and alluring beaches, or its ancient Mayan cities and inland caves, Belize is where you want to be. For many, Belize is a very short flight away. Connecting from Florida or Texas, you have about a two-hour flight before you land in heaven.
I regard myself as an all-around outdoorsman—an adrenaline-chasing, adventure-seeking tourist in my own country. I’ve therefore seen just about every part of this Jewel, and you should too. Every adventure has been a different experience, but at the top of my list are the breathtaking views and ventures on the Caribbean Sea.
Fringed with the longest living barrier reef of this region, Belize teems with absolutely gorgeous scenery and marine life. Pick an atoll. Pick a patch of coral. Or maybe even the rock structures that lie in the shallow waters out there. Whichever you choose, you won’t regret it.
Recently, I took a trip to North East Caye on the Glover’s Reef atoll, a very small, remote island about thirty miles south-east of Dangriga, and it just took my breath away. Let me paint a picture for you. You pull up to the tiny island a mere fifty feet away from the reef. Cabanas sitting over the water. Yours, like the others, with its own dock. No electricity, internet nor cell reception to create distractions. All I could think was, “This is Belize’s very own piece of heaven.” And for meals, the island is surrounded by everything marine you could ever want. However, since the area is a marine reserve, you’re allowed to catch only enough for a meal. But what a meal you’ll catch! Moving through the shallow, grass-filled waters is like walking down a buffet line where you can pick from among the many huge conchs, lobsters, and sea crabs. And your cozy cabana has a fully-stocked kitchen with a window right in front of the stove where you can clean your fresh catch, toss it directly into the pot, and onto your plate.
Waking up early mornings as the sun rose, I would notice the perfect line in the distance where the sky meets the sea. I’d watch the sun peep over the edge and could practically see the roundness of the earth as the beams blasted through the thinly dispersed clouds in the December sky.
My mornings went on with a cold rainwater shower and then heading out for some good fishing. Glover’s Reef Atoll is a marine reserve, but the beauty about what I do, sport fishing, is that it allows lots of fishing with no harm to the environment. My companions and I chased the early bite of the wahoo until about midday. Then we moved on to some mind-blowing open water dives in the afternoon, swimming with whale sharks, ten-foot-wide manta rays—you name it, North East Caye has it!
The island itself has walkways lined with empty conch shells that the old fishermen of the area had gathered. One tale has it that for every ten conch shells along the pathway some fisherman found a pearl and that more pearls have never been found anywhere else on this planet.
So, come experience it all for yourself. Don’t let the distance keep you away from a journey that promises nothing but bliss. You’ll probably find me on the beach blowing into a shell, calling upon the angels that roam this amazing piece of heaven in Belize’s very own front yard. ♦
Photos by Victor Turcios
Victor Turcios is a pharmacy major at the University of Belize. A lover of the great outdoors, he lives in Ladyville, Belize District, and enjoys hunting and fishing.