The heart of Guatemala welcomes us with its winding mountain roads, lively small villages, and cities with narrow streets and chaotic traffic. We make a serene and refreshing stop at the Semuc Champey waterfalls before embarking on our quest for Guatemala's emblem: the quetzal!
Monday, April 24th, 2023
From Tikal, we have nearly 700 kilometers separating us from Semuc Champey, our next destination in Guatemala. We decide to split the journey over two days as the traffic is chaotic and the kilometers pass by slowly. There are vibrant villages with bustling markets, river crossings by boat, heavily loaded trucks, and buses overtaking at high speeds. Stray dogs unexpectedly cross the road or aggressively approach our Jeep's wheels, people and children walk along the road, and there are numerous speed bumps (known as "tumulos" in Guatemala) and tight turns on the mountain roads. However, it's a pleasant surprise that, overall, the roads are in excellent condition, some having recently been refurbished.
À midi, on s’arrête dans un petit restaurant de bord de route. Les enfants du propriétaire sont en train de faire leurs devoirs sur certaines tables. On commande des tacos, curieux de découvrir à quoi ils ressemblent ici. Les tortillas de maïs sont bien cuites, limite croustillantes. Elles sont servies avec du poulet ou du bœuf effiloché et accompagnées de chou et de tomates. Excellent ! On arrose le tout d’un jus de pastèque bien frais. En tout, on mange pour l’équivalent de 3 € à deux ! Lorsqu’on reprend la route, on est surpris de trouver au Guatemala des paysages montagneux recouverts d’une jungle épaisse.
In the late afternoon, we leave the main road and venture onto a dirt track that winds through the forest. It leads to a property owned by a family who has a large piece of land by the river. We settle there for 50 Q. Families are washing their clothes in the river while children play by the water's edge. As a result, the water is murky. At times, a faint smell of detergent reaches our noses! Nevertheless, we can't resist a quick swim as we are feeling too hot.
As the evening progresses, the families leave the area, and we find ourselves alone. It's quiet, with not even the howler monkeys to keep us company. Only distant thunder rumbles, but we narrowly escape the storm and even the rain!
Tuesday, April 25th
The journey to reach Semuc Champey's waterfalls is not an easy one! After several hours on a winding mountain road, which is heavily traveled but in perfect condition, we take a break at Iris's place, where we sample the local specialty called "tayuyos". These are grilled corn tortillas filled with cheese and beans for me, and chicharrón (fried pork skin) and beans for Rémi. Delicious! After passing through the village, the road descends in tight switchbacks down to the valley in Lanquin. And from there... no more road! The remaining 9 kilometers are covered on a bumpy and dusty path. The road is currently under construction, and we weave through workers and construction vehicles.
We arrive at the Semuc Champey site around 4 p.m. It's still crowded with people. We settle in the parking lot, where we are allowed to sleep for a fee of 20 Q. A little girl approaches us to sell chocolate. We politely decline, but she seems very interested in the crossword puzzle I'm doing. She even manages to decipher some words! I then teach her how to count in French! Once the site is closed, everything becomes quiet and we have a peaceful night.
Wednesday, April 26th
At 8 a.m., as soon as the site opens, we had breakfast and packed up the tent. We enter the site and head straight to the viewpoint. It's a steep climb for 30 minutes on wooden stairs. We catch a glimpse of a few howler monkeys. The view from the top is breathtaking! The waterfalls cascade into several pools of an almost greenish-blue color, deep in the valley. It's magnificent!
The climb made us crave one thing: to descend as quickly as possible and dive into the waterfalls! The place is stunning, like paradise. The water is pleasantly refreshing. The pools vary in depth but always have beautiful transparent water. It's incredibly enjoyable! We have fun swimming across them and jumping from the top of the small cascades. It's simply marvelous! We spend the morning with Laura and Vincent, two backpackers who are heading back to Mexico from South America. We exchange plenty of advice and travel tips with them!
In the early afternoon, it's time to hit the road again. We drive a few kilometers on the rugged dirt track until we come across a roadblock. It's 1:03 PM, and the construction work has just resumed after the lunch break. What bad timing! We have to wait for an hour and a half under scorching sun! Finally, when the road reopens, we are the first to pass through, followed by a convoy of pickup trucks that arrived after us. They leave behind a mess of chip and cookie packets, pizza boxes, plastic bags, paper napkins, and cans. Ugh, a real nightmare... 😑 We drive for three hours on narrow, winding mountain roads, and in the late afternoon, we stop at a hotel that allows us to camp on a small patch of land. For the first time in two months, we take out our pants and jackets because it's rather cool tonight: 23°C! 😅
Thursday, April 27th
The cool mountains where we find ourselves are the habitat of the emblematic bird of Guatemala: the quetzal. As early as 8 AM, we head to the Biotope del Quetzal. To maximize our chances, we opt for the longest trail, a 4-kilometer hike. We venture into the forest, filled with determination. The quetzal is not easily spotted, so we need to keep our eyes and ears wide open to locate it among the dense vegetation. As we start our journey, we quickly realize that it feels like searching for a needle in a haystack. The forest is thick, lush, and abundant. We scan the canopy, but how can we spot a bird among all these leaves and branches? It seems impossible!
After 3 hours of hiking, we return to the visitor center empty-handed. What a shame! The quetzal is a magnificent bird, and we would have loved to see it. They are found all over Central America, so maybe we'll have the chance to see one elsewhere. Back at the visitor center, we strike up a conversation with the ranger when a very official delegation arrives. They are carrying a large transport cage, inside of which is... a quetzal! Well, well! It's a female quetzal that was captured right in the center of Guatemala City! They have come to release her back into the wild. What a fantastic initiative! We now know that if we want to see a quetzal, it's better to go to the city rather than out in nature 😅 In the absence of the quetzal, we have seen some magnificent hummingbirds instead!
We have a long afternoon of driving ahead of us. We stop by the roadside to have our cheapest meal of the trip: €2.50 for the both of us! Then we continue driving through the mountains on a recently repaired road. In the late afternoon, we find a spot by the river and the road to spend the night in our tent.
Friday, April 28th
De bon matin, le « propriétaire » du lieu où nous avons passé la nuit vient nous rendre visite. Il nous réclame 25 Q. On n’a pas de monnaie, on lui tend un billet de 50 Q et voilà que subitement, c’est 25 Q par personne. Pff, ok. Une fois de plus, on passe la journée sur la route. On enchaine les traversées de villes et de villages. Le GPS nous envoie dans des ruelles très étroites, où on est obligés de se tasser pour croiser les tuk-tuk qui arrivent en sens inverse. Une fois de plus, on est très contents d’avoir un petit véhicule passe-partout. Notre seule pause est un repas dans un petit boui-boui où on déguste des tacos façon Guatemala.
We also come across our first "Chicken Buses"! These are former American school buses that have found a second life in Guatemala. Most of these buses are adorned with vibrant colors! They all speed along the roads. We quickly learn to move to the side when a bus approaches from behind or in front of us! We also stop in the village of San Andrés Xecul to see the church that has the privilege of being featured on the cover of a guidebook, the Routard, no less! It's true that it's beautiful, although a bit worn out when you take a closer look.
En repartant, on roule malencontreusement sur le panneau publicitaire d’une pharmacie. Le proprio sort. Il est colère : on a abîmé son beau panneau ! Un pied est légèrement tordu. Mais il tient debout ! Le monsieur ne veut rien savoir, il tire la tronche. Ok, combien tu veux ? 25 Q. Pff. On est sûrs qu’il ne le fera jamais réparer son vieux panneau. Bon, on lui file un billet de 20 Q. Il le prend sans un mot et retourne s’enfermer dans sa boutique 😑 On roule jusqu’à Quetzaltenango, au pied du volcan Santa Maria qu’on compte monter demain. On s’installe dans une cour au pied de la montagne. Dans la soirée, Jeronimo nous rend visite. Il nous demande à quelle heure on compte partir. 5 h 30. Ça ne va pas du tout, dit-il, vous allez rater le lever de soleil ! Pour le voir, il faut partir à 2 h du mat’ 😓 On se couche de bonne heure et un violent orage éclate. Les coups de tonnerre assourdissants et les éclairs durent 2 heures, pendant lesquelles il nous est impossible de fermer l’œil. Zut, on aurait dû prendre les boules Quies !
As soon as the last thunderclap fades away, we fall asleep immediately. The night promises to be short as our alarm is set for 4 a.m. for the epic ascent of the Santa María Volcano!
1 comments
Magnifique ces cascades en cascades !! …