"All you are going to see is glowing eyes" said Lisa the woman who owns the hotel we are staying in. We did see those glowing eyes and a whole lot more.
The last two trips we've had the opportunity to walk in the jungle and learn the names of the trees and plants and learn of their medicinal qualities so I thought I would like to do something a bit different this time. As I researched the different tours offered from Placencia I read a few reviews about a tour with Percy Gordon of Monkey River http://www.kingofthehowlers.com/. He had been written up in Esquire Magazine some years back and only a few years ago he took Jack Hanna and his camera crew into the jungle. He does day trips into his 'backyard' as he calls it, the Monkey River and the jungle that the river meanders through. On special request he'll take adventurous folks through at night.
Percy met us as the Hokey Pokey water taxi dock in Placencia at 4:00 in the afternoon. It was a gorgeous sunny day with a steady breeze to keep us cool and bug free. It is a 13 mile boat ride to Monkey River Town along the Belize coast through mangroves and past man made islands. Just off the dock in Monkey River Town ( just got electricity 2 years ago) is Alice's Restaurant run by Percy's mom and other members of his family. Before dinner Percy takes us into his back yard and shows us the lobster traps he is building; when Percy is not guiding he is a fisherman like his father and uncles for generations before him.
Mike and I are served a a cup of hot Red Rose brand tea to sip on as we wait for our beautiful and very delicious dinner of chicken, rice and beans, coleslaw, and plantains.
We get back on the boat just at dusk and head up the Monkey River. We meet a few boats of local fisherman fishing for snook. We see Green Herons, Little Blue Herons, Tiger Herons, Egrets, Cormorants, bull frogs, and many small crocodiles. A few miles up the river we stopped and got out to walk through the jungle. The moon was new and set just as we started our walk in the dark. The stars are amazing and surprisingly light up the sky but without flashlights you'd have to stay in one place until daylight because it is so dark in the jungle. We see Jaguar tracks in the mud, large spider webs with huge spiders, an owl butterfly, an opossum, we walk through a "200 year old " bamboo forest, Percy points out the poisonous and medicinal trees and plants. He tells us stories of growing up in this jungle and tells us of his interest in 'jungle medicine'.
We get back on the boat after maybe a 1/2 mile walk through the jungle and continue up the river watching the stars and the the river banks. Percy can see animals on the banks of the river with incredible accuracy. We saw 5 or 6 crocodiles and he caught a few of them for us to see up close. He handed one to me and can hardly believe that I held it. I was content to just touching it!
The 13 mile ride back to Placencia in the dark was a bit frightening but Percy knows the sea like the back of his hand and was a very capable guide. We treated him to a few cold beers in Placencia and said our goodbyes. We were shocked to see that it was 11:30 pm when we got back to our room. A truly memorable experience that we will not forget!
Here are a few photos of our amazing jungle adventure.
