Walking holidays in
the Caribbean bring you close to an amazing variety of natural and historical
sites. Take a relaxing stroll on Bermuda's pink beaches and enjoy the view or
trek over rugged rocks and through rain forests in Belize to sample traditional
medicine and visit the Mayan ruins.
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Chaa Creek
The Caribbean coast
of Belize ranges from sugar-cane fields in the north to dense rainforests and
Mayan ruins in the south. In the southern area, the country's largest district,
Cayo, not only has the most superb Mayan ruins but is also home to Chaa Creek,
an eco-resort on the banks of the Macal River and just 25 km southwest of the
district capital, Belmopan. After waking up to tropical bird song in the morning,
you can take the Maya Medicinal Plant Trail to see the herbs and plants used by
the ancients and still valuable today. Plants here can store water, help with
diabetes, treat malaria and cleanse the blood. When you tire of walking, the
riding stables nearby can provide some horses for you to continue along the
trail.
A trek around Mayan ruins will take you to the
Aktun Tunichil Muknal Mayan burial site at San Ignacio, just outside Chaa
Creek. This is an exhilarating walking holiday. If you would like to see some relics, it
involves climbing over 500 metres of rocky terrain and swimming through a
shallow (1.5 metre) waterway in a cave to reach them. Tikal, the largest Mayan
archaeological site, is just a two-hour drive from Chaa Creek across the border
in Guatemala. There are about 3,000 separate temples and other structures that
rise over 70 metres above the jungle canopy.
If you are very lucky on your walking holiday
through the rain forest, you may spy a harpy eagle, the largest bird of prey.
These silver and dark-grey feathered creatures can grow to seven feet long and
have claws the size of a grizzly bear's. You will recognise it by its call and
the crown of feathers round its head reminiscent of the dinosaur from which it
evolved.
Bermuda
With over 180 islands and a pleasant
sub-tropical climate, Bermuda is the oldest British colony and is ideal for
walking. The main island is only 21 miles long and there are a large number of
trails around it which are thankfully traffic-free. You can start from a grotto
by the sea alongside a crumbling 17th-century fort and then progress along pink
sands, coral reefs and flower-filled meadows. You can follow the course of the
Old Bermuda Railway in Sandys Parish for part or all of its 21-mile length.
The same parish has a shorter, four-mile walk
from the old Royal Naval Dockyard at Ireland Island to Somerset. Along the way
you will cross a nature reserve and visit on old cemetery for victims of a 19th-century
yellow fever outbreak. There are lots of opportunities to have a dip in the
ocean or just laze on the beach. Continue along the south shore to the
117-feet-high Gibbs Lighthouse that overlooks the Great Sound. You will pass
more pink-sand beaches at Horseshoe Bay and Warwick Long Bay until you reach
the botanical gardens.
Whether you wish to walk along beaches
and through rain forests or to visit archaeological sites, the Caribbean region
has a trail for all tastes and levels of fitness.
AUTHOR BIO
Peter Smith writes regularly on adventure travel in the Caribbean for a large range of websites
and blogs. He specialises in walking holidays that include visits to
archaeological sites.
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