Flores, a little island on the western side of Lake Petén. Flores means flowers in Spanish and this isle showcased its colourful bloom in both natural and art form. It was a pure joy to walk around the cobbled streets, past the brightly coloured houses and in and out of chic Cafés.
We took a water taxi from our accommodation which overlooked the waters from above and enjoyed a dip or two in the lake. We were certainly thankful for the opportunity to cool down because as delightful as this place was, Flores was hot!
As was the rest of this northeastern region of Guatemala. But there is much to see, like Tikal and the beautiful beach town of El Remate.
El Remate is also situated on Lake Petén, but on the other side. Pablo, our good friend from Antigua recommended we stay at ‘Gringo Perdido’ (lost American), and although it was a little expensive, we enjoyed the opportunity to meet Guillermo, Cariño, Alfredo and Titi. These folks from Guatemala City were taking a mini overlanding trip themselves, trying out ‘El Caracol’, a brand new 70s series Land Cruiser – V8 with all the overland bells and whistles. We enjoyed sharing the private dock with them, listening to some reggaeton tunes whilst sipping on some tequila. They were great company and we knew these friendships would last a lifetime. We parted ways the next morning and it was clear we’d ‘meat’ again very soon.
Well, actually, we did bump into them two days later, when visiting the famous Mayan ruins of Tikal. They had arranged a guided tour whilst we were taking our time counting each step up every towering temple. Tikal is just phenomenal. From the campsite itself where toucans, howler monkeys, pezote and wild blue turkeys can be spotted, to the sheer size of the Mayan city. Not only did it take us around six hours to explore the grounds but even Tikal’s ticket entrance lies 17 km away. This Mayan site is definitely the most impressive one we’ve seen so far.
And apparently, there’s even a bigger one just north of the region. This one, called ‘The Mirador’ is set deep in thick jungle and is still only half way through the excavation process. One can get there by foot which is usually conducted during a three-day guided excursion. We were not prepared to do such activity in this heat, so we drove back down to El Remate.
This time we chose the more affordable “campsite” of ‘Restaurante Ernesto’. For a quarter of the price we had paid at Gringo Perdido, we parked up for the night in the restaurant’s parking lot right on lake Petén. And boy was this scene idyllic- a rainbow-coloured pier with hammocks swinging over the calm, still waters. A beautiful sunset swim in the evening and a refreshing sunrise dip in the morning.
Now it was time for a little adventure south to Semuc Champey; the famous river pools in the hilly jungle of Guatemala. We followed the most direct route on GoogleMaps before the paved road suddenly came to an abrupt end. We pulled over and did some research on iOverlander. There were at least two warning signs about this treacherous road, stating it was full of roadblocks with locals asking for money, and that it just wasn’t worth ruining your vehicle for. Each post ended with the same conclusion “I wouldn’t do it again”…we knew, we were on the right track!
The posts were not wrong but our six hours spent on this road was a fun blast. Yes, Richie had to air down the tires, and yes, there were three roadblocks with the locals requesting crazy amounts of money, but a beer and a $2 payment each time got us through their “road repairs”…oh! …and a puncture too! Well, with the quality of this road, that really was inevitable.
The last 10 kilometers from Lanquin to Semuc, for which many people choose to jump in the back of a 4X4 pickup truck over driving their own vehicles, were actually the nicest 10 kilometers of this journey. Can you believe a local had even stopped us on this final stretch to warn us against driving any further! If only he’d known what we’d just experienced on the other road.
Semuc Champey itself was pleasant. We spent two nights camped directly on the flowing river, in amongst the lush, bountiful and rugged rainforest that surrounds, and with just walking distance to the natural pools. Despite the heavy rain, these pools did keep their beautiful turquoise colour. However, the visit itself was a little too touristy for our liking (especially after visiting an equally if not better version in Mexico- Robert Bararrios), and we somehow couldn’t get away from the faint smell of washing detergent that was to be found when swimming through the waters. A few kilometers upstream, the locals were clearly doing their washing.
The next day we headed straight to Cobán. Our friend Guillermo (who we’d met a few days prior) happened to give us a call on route. He and Alfredo were camping south of the city, in a protected nature reserve for birds. Perfect timing- I guess it was time to ‘meat’ again and why not with some pork costillas (ribs). Luckily we’d just hit the supermarket.
Although there was a lot of rain to be had in this foggy forest, we did enjoy the trails that were on offer. The boys took part in a night walk, spotting salamanders, geckos, spiders and frogs- and in the morning the three of us stepped out in search of the famous Quetzal. No, we’re not talking about the currency here but the national bird. This bird is a protected species and is truly remarkable, both in colour and in length. Its tail alone can reach around 50cm. There have been frequent sightings at ‘Rancho del Quetzal’ but unfortunately for us not on this Sunday morning.
So, we decided to hit the road again and drive on to Guatemala City, where Guillermo kindly invited us to stay at his home. This was the perfect stop. Guillermo was extremely generous with his time, driving us around the city in the Land Cruiser, in preparation for Zoe’s birthday. There were certain gifts we were on the hunt for and no better place than the capital to get them. This place is full of strip malls and fast-food restaurants.
And did you know, there was actually a piñata land? Just like a drive-thru, we literally pulled up outside one of the dozen piñata stores lined in their row, wound our windows down, and purchased the beloved Elsa and Ariel. There was one very excited nearly three-year-old sitting in the back seat.
Guillermo’s knowledge of the city was expansive and before we left him a few days later, he made sure our bags were full of meat goodies. We visited Manolo’s Argentinian restaurant and bought Tomahawk, Vacio, Argentinan chorizo, chimichurri sauce and some of Manolo’s specialty salt. Of course, we were not going to leave without sharing, we made sure we grilled some on Guillermo’s wonderful patio and saved some for our next reunion in Antigua. But more of that in our next post.
Thanks for reading, and we’ll ‘meat’ you guys around the world!
