Belize Day 3: Cave Tubing


What's a fun way to start your day in Belize?  Go cave tubing. I should explain that cave tubing is floating on inner tubes down a river and through long, dark caves in the middle of the jungle. Our adventure took place deep in the underground world of Jaguar Paw. 

Our guides name was Edgar. He was a friendly guy with a wealth of knowledge about the local ecosystem. He took us over to pick up our inner tubes. There were tubes as far as the eye could see. He said during the busy season, the cruise ship passengers would use up every single tube. The cool thing about traveling in the offseason is that there aren't many tourists. Diane and I were the only ones with Edgar.

I grabbed the biggest tube, slung it over my shoulder, and proceeded to follow our guide through the jungle. We made stops along the way to learn more about the plants and life in the jungle. Edgar's keen eye spotted a tarantula in its hole. He picked up a thin stick, put some saliva on the end, and poked it in the hole. The tarantula grabbed on to it. He slowly pulled the hairy creature out of its nest. Not really comfortable around big, hairy spiders, we quickly stepped back. The female was actually quite beautiful with black and silver fur and red stripe on her back.

Leaving the spider behind, we reached the starting point. The slow moving water was warm as we lowered ourselves into the river. The first cave we floated into was over a mile long. The cave was wide but had a low ceiling. The further we floated in, the darker it got. At one point, we turned off our lights and floated in total darkness. The only sound was of the moving water. This was a tranquil and peaceful experience.

We came out of the cave and into some small rapids. This shot us into the next cave that was completely different from the first. This cave had high ceilings with fascinating rock formations. There were also bats. I learned that it might not be a good idea to flash your light at the them. They tend to get excited and fly at you. Exiting the cave, we were back to the point we started our hike.

Next: Cahal Pech

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