Tues, 23 Feb

Tues, 23 Feb the next step of my adventure, after i leave here, is coming together ..... i'm leaving Glovers Reef Research Station on Fri morning at 6am on the boat to Dangriga ... if the weather is really nice and calm, it could be a 1hr trip .. if it's the way it was on my way out here, it will be a long cold windy 2hr journey. ... i have "sort of a plan" for my next adventure. first i need to go to the Immigration Office in Dangriga, to get another 30 day extension on my visa. Nick and Marie both need extensions too, so this should a case of the little duckie following along ... although, i will be hauling all my luggage! then i plan to take the local bus to Belmopan. Belmopan is the country's capital city. it's inland about 2 hrs. once in Belmopan, i'll take another local bus another hour or so to San Ignacio. San Ignacio is near the western border of Belize and Guatemala. it used to be no more than a 'jumping-off-point' for those travelling to Guatemala to visit the Tikal Mayan ruins. but today, it's more than that because there is so many other interesting things to do in that area. ....jungle adventure camps, canoe/kayak rides down the rivers through the jungle, botanical gardens, cave exploring, and other smaller Mayan ruin sites, lots of beautiful birds and wildlife. so, i'm heading that way, ...to see what i can see .... You may remember me talking about Eddi, who stayed at Madi's with me while in Caye Caulker, .....i've been keeping in touch with her, and she has been in San Ignacio for about 3 weeks. so, i'm going to visit her! by this time she has already seen most of the sites, but i'll get to visit with her again. i'll get to see the interior of Belize, which will be much different from the cayes. i'll miss the sea, but i will return before i head back up north. at this point, .....i'm still planning on 'heading back up north' .... :) it was kind of a slow day today ..... i went out to the lagoon snorkeling for a short time this afternoon on the patch reef in the shallow water ... the visibility was very poor. i saw a cute little Burrfish, he had beautiful irridescent eyes, but i didn't get a picture of him. on the way back, right off the dock i saw this pretty little Yellow Stingray, ....it isn't very big, 8-12in ... but it is so pretty. when it moves, the edges of it's entire body is real 'frilly' in the water ... this is a photo that i got from Marie of an Electric Ray. i have never seen one of these, didn't even know they existed. they have the ability of discharging an electric shock. ... interestingly different from a 'normal' stingray ... in the afternoon i went for a walk and took some photos on the 'fore-reef' ... out my back door ... this is just inside the reef pic looking down the reef to the north ... our resident osprey's were soaking up the last of the afternoon sun photo of our 'dormitories' from out on the reef. i was in the second one, right of the osprey nest. lots of these Spider Lilies all over the caye this 'center piece' was made by the Wildlife Conservation Society folks that were here. and, of course, Wish Willy