a little dirt in Belize

[randypower]

My wife and I are burning paid time off in Belize and I managed to get in some riding today on a rented 250cc dual sport Lifan which did the job just fine.

I was told there are virtually no trails in the country. Deep jungle like they have here would grow back over the trail quickly. So I'd be looking at a mix of dirt, gravel, and a touch of sand on a handful of dirt roads. The bike rental owner Emma was brilliant -- Motorbike Rentals and Alternate Adventures, highly recommended -- and hooked me up with Les, another renter who would ride the same day and had some riding experience in the country.

The two of us set out and hit 3 areas today:

• The road to Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Preserve - The Visitor Center has a very old pickup truck with a large tree grown through its bed.
• The road inside Mayan Sky zip lines - they were nice and let us in to explore this road that gets progressively overgrown. Had a few small water crossings, cleared some trees and eventually decided that 4-foot high grass and brush was too deep to continue through. Les saw a big snake (unknown kind) along the way.
• Road to Red Bank - this was wide, fairly open, but narrowed to a big mud hole in the road that was our signal to turn around. Sorry, no pictures of this one.

Les led and rode carefully. We didn't put huge miles in but it added up to a good day's ride, a delicious baked chicken with rice and beans, and I got to see more of this beautiful country and very friendly people.

Cockscomb Basin

Mayan Sky - by the river

 

[synthlegend]

Dang! That looks like too much fun! Wow! Insanely jealous!

 

[SpiritAtBay]

Randy, you are just full of surprises!

 

[Baja_Bound]

What a great trip Randy!

 

[Jarrett]

Good stuff. Thanks for posting.

 

[misterk]

Did you take your riding gear with you?

 

[Jeff S]

I love it. That's a beautiful part of the world! Are you staying in Placencia?

 

[_RG_]

Nice! Very different looking territory. Thanks!

 

[randypower]

Lesson learned: take all your riding gear with you. I brought everything but my helmet. I had it packed in my carry-on backpack but decided at the last minute I wasn't sure it would fit overhead (in the plane, not my noggin ). The rental place had 9 in my size but it turned out to be very difficult to find a good match in style and size/fit.

When everything else is unfamiliar (rented bike, roads, driving behaviors, culture), controlling the known comfort of your own gear helps a ton.