Cayo Scoop! The Ecology of Cayo Culture

Check out Birding Magazine's article on birding in Belize. Mr. Roni Martinez is in there, as is the Rio Frio Cave, and Black Rock Lodge.

Video of the day.  Quite a few Cayo locations, from restaurants to sites, are in this travel guide video.  

'If you're interested in visiting the Cayo district of Belize this is a must watch video! Will Mitchell breaks everything down in detail so you don't have to do a ton of research on which restaurants to go to, which activities to do & where you should eat! We break down places like pine ridge forest, big rock waterfalls, thousand foot falls, rio frio cave & so much more! San Ignacio is a beautiful jungle landscape with so much to offer.'

THE SPOT-BREAKFAST COFFEE AND LUNCH - https://www.facebook.com/thespotbelize/
• POPS RESTAURANT- BREAKFAST - https://www.facebook.com/popsrestaurantsanignacio
• RUNNING W- BREAKFAST, LUNCH AND DINNER - https://www.facebook.com/runningwrestaurant/
• LOLAS-LUNCH AND DINNER - https://www.facebook.com/lolasmunchiesandbooze
• GUAVA LIMB- LUNCH AND DINNER - https://www.facebook.com/guavalimb/
• BLANCANEAUX LODGE- https://www.facebook.com/blancaneauxbelize
• EL BOHEMIO - https://www.facebook.com/ElBohemioRockBar
Sky sushi restaurant - https://www.facebook.com/skysushibelize
• WINE SMITH - https://www.facebook.com/wine.smith.ltd

Sunday read.  Great article highlighting a few of the many local cultural attractions that are great experiences for teenagers.  Well written, and Xunantunich, Cahal Pech, and the sites in MPR(Rio Frio Cave is pictured above), are all in there.  They loved their stay at the San Ignacio Resort Hotel, and enjoyed the Green Iguana Conservation Project.

"Our week in San Ignacio barely scratched the surface of the outdoor and cultural excursions offered here..

We wanted to make sure we learned as much as we could about our hometown for the week, so we dedicated a full morning to San Ignacio itself. We toured through the fruit and vegetable market (busiest on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays) and also really enjoyed learning about the history and process of cacao and drinking chocolate in the Mayan tradition at AJAW Chocolate and Crafts. Additional tours offer cooking classes and lessons on corn processing and tortilla-making at a Mayan women’s co-op...

Xunantunich and Cahal Pech: both these archaeological sites are rich in historical and cultural significance, and both are within easy distance of San Ignacio. Our leader, San Ignacio Resort Hotel guide Cruz, shuttled us only 25 minutes to arrive at Xunantunich, where we walked in the footsteps of Mayan people who civilized this region long before Columbus made his mark (or Christ, for that matter)."

The Belize Tourism Board has a short video about Cayo, and Barton Creek Cave, Big Rock Falls, and Rio Frio Cave are highlighted.  

"With Maya temples, dense jungles and mysterious caves, Western Belize feels like an adventure movie. Or at least an adventure movie with really nice hotels."

Jacques Cousteau's granddaughter was in Belize to gather information for 'Expedition Blue Planet: Belize,' a documentary that will focus on freshwater and marine biomes in Belize.  For a portion of her trip, she stayed at Blancaneaux Lodge.  They have come up with a travel package based on that.  They visit Caracol, Mountain Pine Ridge, and the Chiquibul Forest.

"Leave on a tour to the Maya site of Caracol, located deep in the Chiquibul Forest.  Firstly visit the impressive Rio Frio Cave system before continuing on to Caracol, the largest and most important Maya site in Belize.  The epicentre of the site is home to howler and spider monkeys and the birding is excellent.

Leave the lodge early for a spectacular day of birding and natural history en route to the nesting site of Belize’s endangered Scarlet Macaws.  The route will take you through the Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve to an escarpment overlooking the Chalillo Dam and its vast artificial reservoir.  After an inspiring and adventurous day in the Chiquibul Forest return to Blancaneaux Lodge.  As dusk draws in keep your eyes peeled to the road ahead in the hope of spotting an elusive jaguar."

The latest edition of Our People, Food, and Culture is all about Cayo, and things to do and see in the area.  Oxmul Coffee is mentioned, as are Poustinia Art Park and the San Antonio Women's Cooperative.  Rio Frio Cave, Rio On Pools, and Xunantunich are highlighted.  It also sets the stage for the 2nd part, which focuses on Finados, by interviewing David Ruiz.  

Part 2 here.,

'In this episode of Our People, Food, and Culture, we learn about the Cayo District’s many natural wonders and its Yucatec Maya heritage through the celebration of Los Finados. Tune in to part 2 at 4:00 p.m. on the BTB Facebook page and the Travel Belize YouTube Channel!'

Rio On Pools and Rio Frio Cave have beautiful new facilities for everyone to enjoy, and they were inaugurated last week by the Ministry of Tourism.   

https://www.instagram.com/p/CNP_ngHFZuc/

"New tourism facilities at the Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve were completed under the Sustainable Tourism Program (STP) II, which is a five-year program financed by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and executed through the Ministry of Tourism and Diaspora Relations.

Duarte Dellarole shot and produced an amazing video promo for Cahal Pech!  Definitely worth checking out.  It's mostly about Cayo, featuring Xunantunich, Barton Creek, the pontoon boat on Lake Benque, Rio Frio Cave, Rio On Pools, Big Rock Falls, Twin Falls, jungle horseback riding, and the Cahal Pech Archaeological site.  There's drone footage and some well used slow mo.  Cayo's shown at night at a really fast speed, which really came out perfectly.  

They have the trailer out for the next Maya Mountain Adventure Challenge, which is the test of ultimate will that spans over 220 miles around Belize.  Cayo is the setting in the trailer.  The race will start in San Ignacio, and go all around the Maya Mountains, where the teams will hike, bike, rapel, and canoe to get to the finish line. 

You can see Xunantunich, Caracol, Rio Frio Cave, San Ignacio, Rio On Pools, Branch Mouth Park, the Hawkesworth Bridge, and many other sites.  They interview Rafael Manzanero, from the Friends of Conservation and Develompment about the idea.  They did a great job on the epic trailer.

Cayo gets an amazing write up in the latest edition of Hemispheres Magazine.  Caracol, Rio Frio Cave, and MPR get a great write up.  Blancaneaux Lodge is where the author stayed.  The Flavors of Belize cookbook got a great mention in the article too.

"The crown jewel of the Cayo region is Caracol, a sprawling ruin that once
was one of the most powerful cities in the Mayan world.  At its peak there were maybe 150,000 people living here, roughly half the present population of Belize, and the whole city was clad in plaster.  It was mysteriously abandoned 1,200 years ago and rediscovered by a logger in 1937.  As you explore, a hummingbird mistakes your orange backpack for a giant flower; a howler monkey erupts in a nearby copse, scaring you out of your wits.  Skirting a coal-black fire ant hill with great care, you encounter what’s left of a middle-class Mayan residence.  Under it is a tomb in which archeologists made an extraordinary discovery: skeletons with flatened foreheads and jade inlaid in their teeth."

Rio Frio Cave, Barton Creek Cave, Nohuch Che'en, Offering Cave, and Actun Tunichil Muknal(not Mucnal) are all mentioned in this travel article.  Cayo wins again.  They forgot Mountain Cow Cave, and Actun Chapat.