Hiking Across the Guatemalan countryside
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The mountains around Lago Izabal are home of many caves. Most are difficult to find and hard to access as there are no roads, not even paths leading there but wilderness. Once, we walked up and down Sierra de las Minas all day searching for a cave we never found.
Our journey started on a Friday afternoon. Together with the FriendShips we sail to Dennis Beach, on the south shore of the lake. We leave the two boats anchored there and we head for the mountains looking for a cave.
The beginning of the long walk.
Noial, maya, Ivo and Daeli walking past a traditional mayan house
Joni stays behind chilling on the beach with Elan and Lovam. The rest of us: Daeli, Noial, Ivo, Viktor, Maya, and I, with Spirit and a random dog that joined us, spend the day hiking through the Guatemalan countryside following a narrow path through the jungle, past a small Mayan village, across rivers, bamboo forests, cornfields, and cow pastures.
Bamboo forest
We meet people carrying wood and people working in the fields and every time we ask them for directions to the cave. “Down the path, across the river, past the orange orchard is the cave”, they tell us, but we lost our way and cannot find it. And it doesn’t matter anyway. The green of the land, the hot smell of the cornfields, the coolness of the river waters, and the spectacular view of the lake shining beneath the mountain is worth it.
River crossing
We return to Dennis Beach before dark, tired, our feet covered with mud, our sight filled with green landscapes.
More photos from the hike
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Cornfield
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Daeli with cows and two dogs
View of Lago Izabal
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A Traditional Mayan House
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Maya and Noial met a family of ducks
Maya and Noial chilling in the stream
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