8
Feb

Quetzals the Hard Way – Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve, Guatemala

Posted on February 8th, 2012 :: Posted in bird watching, birds, Central America, Guatemala, Jungle, Mountains

This is a male quetzal, the national bird of Guatemala. And, yes, that tail and those colors are totally real.

Spotting quetzals during our time at Ranchito del Quetzal was eerily easy. All we had to do was get out of bed at first light and stumble down to the restaurant where as many as 10 quetzals at a time dutifully came out to greet us. However, our next attempt to see these technicolor birds, at Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve, was much harder work right from the get-go.

Getting to Chelemhá

First there was the matter of getting to the privately owned and run Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve, a 400 acre (172 hectare) chunk of land in the Yalijux Mountains in the Alta Verapaz region of Guatemala. We’ve driven to many places on the Trans-Americas Journey where we were told we’d need our 4×4 toughness. Often we got to the end of the road and realized that a rental car could have handled the road. Not this time.

We waved goodbye to pavement just a few miles past Ranchito del Quetzal and turned onto a well-graded dirt road. The biggest obstacle on this section was the number of road work trucks and pieces of big machinery since teams were busy prepping this section for pavement. Roughly two hours later we reached the town of Tucuru and turned off toward the reserve.

Road conditions remained perfectly acceptable until we reached the tiny town of Nuevo Vinaroz where the road took a turn for the worse with very deep ruts and seriously big rocks. From here on out the road was quite rough but mostly no big deal as long we drove very, very slowly. More or less three hours into the journey steep inclines were added to the mix as we climbed up above 7,500 feet (2,300 meters) where the reserve is located.

Some sections of the road were so steep that concrete strips had been poured on the ground at roughly wheel width for traction. We actually nearly overheated the engine for the first time on the entire Journey during some particularly slow, steep climbs and we had to pull over three times to let the engine cool down which gave us time to admire our surroundings and not just the road ahead.

Conservation, Chelemhá style

Chelemhá Lodge in the remote Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve in Guatemala.

We reached the reserve about four hours after turning off the pavement and it took about 10 seconds to fall in love. The narrow, three-story, all-wood Chelemhá Lodge seems to spring out of a steep, tree-covered incline–not exactly natural, but totally appropriate.

Opened in 2005, profits from the lodge, which is owned and managed by a conservation group called Unión para Proteger el Bosque Nuboso (Union for Protecting the Cloud Forest) or UPROBON for short, are used to maintain the current reserve, enable the purchase of more land for protection and to fund projects including reforestation (UPROBON has planted more than 40,000 trees so far), local staff training and collaborations with the local Mayan Q’eqchi’ community including an eco-education program.

Supporting land conservation and animal habitat, spreading eco-awareness and enabling the local Mayan community aren’t the only reasons to visit the lodge.

A cloud forest cabin

Chelemhá’s Swiss/German ownership is evident in the simple yet gorgeous and efficient design and craftsmanship of the four room lodge which was made primarily from wood salvaged from fallen trees on the property. The construction has a minimalist, arts-and-crafts look and feel with hand made furniture, handy built-ins everywhere, a central circular staircase and clever nooks and crannies that make the most of the small spaces.

The cabin chic of Chelemhá Lodge in the remote Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve in Guatemala.

Even the candles (there’s no electricity) are handmade using the waxy fruit of the arrayan tree, just as the Mayans do. Shoes are not allowed inside the lodge (bring inside shoes or non-slip socks or slippers) and there’s a stash of rubber boots for use outside when it’s wet and muddy. This is a cloud forest after all.

Meals are prepared in an open kitchen using ingredients grown on an adjacent organic farm by host/manager/conservationist/cook Armin Schumacher, a Swiss man who’s been here for 14 years. The whole place is heated by a big cast iron wood-burning stove which also heats all the water needed for showers and cooking.

Host, conservationist, organic farmer and cook Armin Schumacher with some local, organic plums he was about to turn into delicious cobbler and jam at Chelemhá Lodge in the remote Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve in Guatemala.

Two levels of the lodge have wrap-around decks with feeders on every corner. These attract at least half a dozen different types of hummingbirds. So many hummingbirds visit the lodge that Armin has started collecting donations for the sugar he needs to make the syrup these tiny birds consume at an alarming rate.

Hummingbirds at Chelemhá Lodge.

Chelemhá Lodge with just some of the land that's protected as part of the Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve in Guatemala.

A cloud forest quetzal nest

Hummingbirds are great, but we’d driven up to Chelemhá to see quetzals. The morning after our arrival we got up at 4:30, roused by the dinosaur-like sounds of a troop of howler monkeys and the delicious smells from the kitchen where Armin was busy making an enormous breakfast of fruit, granola, homemade bread, strong coffee, steel-cut oatmeal and eggs.

Hiking up to find quetzals in land protected as part of the Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve in Guatemala.

At 6:00 am local guide Rojeño arrived and we headed up, up, up into the high reaches of the reserve. A three mile (4.5 km) trail switch-backed its way past a few agricultural plots, into secondary growth forest making a comeback now that it’s protected then into dense primary cloud forest. Suddenly we were surrounded by enormous old giants which remind us of the sequoias in California–only here they’re draped in moss and mist.

This is where the quetzals thrive and it wasn’t long before Rojeño pointed out a tree trunk with the top missing. Though it was still rooted in the ground, the tree was dead and hollow. About midway up the trunk there was a round hole and inside that hole was a quetzal nest.

This male quetzal emerged from its nest inside a hollow tree trunk and posed for us on a nearby branch in the Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve in Guatemala.

We staked out the nest and, after about half an hour, a male quetzal emerge from the hole and flew to a nearby branch where he began calling, flicking his elegant tail with every chirp. Incredibly, the bird remained on the branch for another 30 minutes, undisturbed by our picture taking. At times it almost seemed like he was posing.

We saw two more quetzals in the upper reaches of the reserve before descending back down to the lodge, satisfied.

This male Quetzal emerged from its nest in a hollow tree trunk then posed for us on a nearby branch in the Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve in Guatemala.

This horned passalid beetle we encountered on a trail through the Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve was big enough to fill the palm of your hand.

A Guatemalan emerald spiny lizard spotted on a trail through the Chelemhá Cloud Forest Reserve.

A bushy crested jay having breakfast near one of the wrap-around porches at the Chelemhá Lodge in Guatemala.

Organically grown plums from the neighboring farm which supplies food to the Chelemhá Lodge in Guatemala.

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6
Feb

Quetzals the Easy Way – Biotopo de Quetzal, Guatemala

Posted on February 6th, 2012 :: Posted in bird watching, birds, Central America, Guatemala, Jungle, Mountains

Cloud forest Biological Corridor - Alta Verapaz, Guatemala

Welcome to quetzal country in Guatemala.

The quetzal is Guatemala’s national bird and their money is named after it. It’s also one of the most impossible looking species on the planet. The bird has iridescent feathers that change from bright green to dark blue to nearly black as the light shifts. Its overall color scheme includes an eye-popping mix of neon green, red, blue, yellow and white. The feathers on its tiny head are like a fluffy mohawk. Strange finger-like feathers seem to wrap around from its back toward the front of its chest as if to hug the bird. Its eyes are beady and black.The males sport tail feathers than can be more than three feet (one meter) long.

A quetzal is pictured on the eponymously named Guatemalan currency.

The holy grail of birding

Quetzal Rancho de Quetzal - Alta Verapaz, Guatemala

A male quetzal in a trumpet tree, one of their favorites, above the restaurant at the Ranchito del Quetzal guesthouse in Guatemala.

Quetzals are also incredibly shy and prefer a very specific cloud forest habitat that only exists in a few places on earth. This makes the quetzal a must-spot for most birders and, frankly, for non-birders like us too. And so we headed for the Biotopo Mario Dary Rivera nature reserve, more commonly called the Biotopo de Quetzal in the Verapaz region of Guatemala in search of this unbelievably showy yet famously hard to spot bird.

Timing is (almost) everything

A male quetzal near the restaurant at the Ranchito del Quetzal guesthouse in Guatemala.

Quetzals are “easiest” to see from March to June. That’s their mating season so they’re more active and this is also when the males’ tail feathers gain full length and splendor. We arrived in quetzal country in May with fingers crossed.

Location, location, location

We’d heard the rumors that quetzal sightings were practically guaranteed at a little guesthouse right next to the Biotopo de Quetzal called Ranchito del Quetzal Hotel & Restaurant. Whenever we hear the words “guaranteed” in association with any kind of animal sighting we roll our eyes. But we checked in anyway after driving past their sad, faded sign on the highway.

Yep, a renowned place to see quetzals is right on a major road. That’s really the only drawback at the Ranchito. The rooms are simple concrete block affairs but comfortable enough for 180Q (about US$23). There are great hiking trails on the guesthouse’s property (which literally shares a fence with the biotopo) and the owners, Flori and Don Julio, could not be more charming–even when they were knocking on our door before sun up asking “Quiren ver las quetzales?” (Do you want to see quetzals?).

A male quetzal in flight.

Quetzals and coffee

A male quetzal in a tree near the restaurant at the Ranchito del Quetzal guesthouse in Guatemala. Though this bird looks blue that's just a trick of the light on its iridescent feathers.

We threw on clothes, grabbed binoculars and cameras and did our best to quietly hurry down to the restaurant where Flori had set out plastic chairs and made coffee. Don Julio, meanwhile, was calmly pointing at a trumpet tree (guarumo in Spanish) less than 40 feet (12 meters) away. Up in its branches was a male quetzal. Just like that. Quetzals love the fruit of the trumpet tree. Knowing that, Don Julio planted loads of them on his property years ago and now the quetzals know they can come here and eat.

We sat there in our comfy chairs sipped hot coffee and admired the birds for a couple of hours. As the sun came up we looked forward to really seeing their brilliant colors but the birds seemed to dislike the sun. They almost seemed to hide from it, waiting for a patch of clouds to obscure it before flying or feeding again.

Don’t hate us because they’re beautiful

A male quetzal in a trumpet tree, one of their favorites, above the restaurant at the Ranchito del Quetzal guesthouse in Guatemala.

That same scenario repeated itself the next morning, minus the knock on the door since we now knew the routine. At one point we counted more than 10 quetzals in the same tree. It was getting ridiculous. To be honest these sightings came so easily they were almost anticlimactic. We certainly didn’t fell like we earned them. We never even set foot in the Biotopo del Quetzal. Hell, we barely had to get out of bed.

So we decided to visit a remote, privately owned nature preserve called Chelemha where we would have to work for our quetzals.

A female quetzal. Only the males grow long tail feathers.

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30
Jan

Mayan Moats – Laguna Petexbatún & Aguateca Archaeological Site, Guatemala

Posted on January 30th, 2012 :: Posted in Accommodation, Adventure, Archaeology Site, bird watching, birds, Boat, Central America, Guatemala, Jungle, Lake, Mayan

As if visiting archaeological sites wasn’t enough of an adventure, there are a handful (like Yaxchilan in Mexico) that are best accessed by boat which adds a thrill before you even get there.

Aguateca Archaeological Site by boat

It’s got the word “agua” right in the name and, in some ways, the roughly two hour boat ride that you have to take from the town of Sayaxche out to the Aguateca archaeological site was the best part of our visit to this once powerful Mayan city which dates back to 300 BC.

The Rio la Pasión is the only highway to the Aguateca Mayan archaeoloical site in the Peten region of Guatemala.

In Sayaxche we called a local boat man named Manuel (+ 502 59136012), then we piled into one of his small open-air boats and headed up the Rio la Pasión. The river eventually widened into what’s called Laguna Petexbatún. Surrounded by the Petexbatún Wildlife Refuge, the area is a favorite hang out for birds including herons, ahingas, cormorants and osprey. Not to mention crocodiles and iguanas.

Birds on Laguna Petexbatún on our way to the Aguateca Mayan archaeological site in the Peten region of Guatemala.

When we reached the site our boatman parked and we sloshed up a sloping hillside to the entrance. The hillside has natural springs which made the slope muddy and slippery so wear proper walking shoes for this one.

Archaeologists didn’t even know that the remains of this city were here until 1957, but they’ve unearthed a lot since then. The site is also bisected by an unusual grieta, a natural chasm that’s up to 80 feet (24 meters) deep.As you explore the trails around this sprawling site you can cross the chasm over the same very cool natural bridge that the Mayans used.

Aguateca Mayan archaeological site in the Peten region of Guatemala is best reached by boat.

Aguateca Mayan archaeological site in the Peten region of Guatemala.

You can camp for free at Aguateca in a big, flat, grassy area but you must be totally self-sufficient and you’d have to negotiate for your boatman to stay with you to ensure you have a ride back to Sayaxche.

Karen admiring the remarkably crisp carving on this stone stelae at Agauteca Mayan arcaheological site in Guatemala.

The Mayans who lived at Aguateca became powerful local rulers and they probably thought their watery location and hilltop perch afforded them some defense from their enemies. But it wasn’t enough. Archaeologists believe that an invading force ultimately breached Aguateca around 800 AD forcing the royal class to flee to nearby Punta de Chimino where they, again, relied on water to protect them.

Archaeologists believe that this palace was abandoned by the royal class as they made their escape from Aguateca around 800 AD.

This partially re-constructed stone stelae at the Aguateca Mayan arcaheolgoical site in Guatemala retains a lot of original carving.

These partially re-constructed stone stelae at the Aguateca Mayan arcaheolgoical site in Guatemala retains a lot of their original carving.

Chiminos Island Lodge on the world’s first Mayan-made island

When the royal class abandoned the beseiged city of Aguateca they headed for Punto de Chiminos, a spit of land just a few kilometers away. Once there, they started digging. Well, the royals probably didn’t start digging, but their servants sure did, ultimately cutting an impressive and enormous trench through dirt and rock to cut off the tip of the spit, creating a small island which they hoped would protect them from their enemies.

Mayans desperate to protect themselves from invaders are believed to have dug an enormous trench through earth and rock to turn the tip of Punto de Chiminos, above, into a man-made island.

Today there’s a small lodge on Punto de Chiminos. The Chiminos Island Lodge has five stand-alone bungalows built amongst what remains of the city that the fleeing royals built here before they were ultimately overtaken.

Situated around the periphery of the island, the huge wooden rooms all have multiple beds, private bathrooms, big porches and generator electricity until 10 pm. There are hard wood floors and a lovely stone shower. Each bungalow also has a thatch roof with a screened “false ceiling” built under the thatch to keep grit and critters from falling into the room. Smart.

Our room at Chiminos Island Lodge where a violent wind and rain storm made us feel like we were about to be blow into the lagoon--or smashed by a falling ceiba tree.

At Chiminos Island Lodge you also get what amounts to your own private archaeological site to wander through. What the fleeing royals from Aguateca left behind has not been excavated but building mounds and even the ball court are obvious as you stroll the grounds. You can also peer into the impressive gash in the land that the Mayans made to create the island way back when.

Just be sure you’ve used good insect repellent before leaving your room. The mosquitoes love it here.

Batten down the hatches

After wandering around the island we returned to our room to watch the birds on Laguna Petexbatún below us, listen to the howler monkeys in the jungle all around us and take a nap. At dusk the wind picked up a little bit and we woke up thrilled. A breeze! Cooler temperatures! Fewer mosquitoes!

But the wind kept going until birds, beasts and trees were being blown sideways. Soon the rain came and the wind intensified even more. White caps appeared on the lagoon.

Over the next two hours the storm blew out our screens and ripped off sections of our thatch roof. With rain pouring into our room we stashed our belongings in the driest corner we could find and piled spare blankets on top of our bed to try and keep the mattress and base bedding dry.

Just as we were beginning to get really concerned about a tree falling on our room (we’d actually put our shoes on and packed our things, ready for a quick getaway), the dramatic storm passed.