Shell Collecting

After our initial short effort at snorkeling, we stopped for a break at a tiny island (less than an acre) for some shell and coral collecting.  The island is no longer inhabited, and the kids had great fun searching for conch shells, pieces of dried coral and other treasures.  

Hurricane Iris

The little island we stopped at during our snorkeling trip was home to a small resort prior to 2001.  In 2001 the island, and the Placencia area, took a direct hit from Category 4 Hurricane Iris and this is the only structure left standing.  Our guide Bernard said most of the wooden structures in Placencia were destroyed by the hurricane and needed to be rebuilt.  

Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave Trip

Last Tuesday we went to the Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) cave in Belize. The cave was used for Mayan rituals, but was 'lost' to history for many years and only rediscovered in 1986. The cave is about 5km deep, but the main room used for ceremonies is only 1km in, and that is as far in as the tour goes. The cave has only been open for tourist exploration since about 1997, and the Belize government works hard to keep it in an 'as discovered' state.

Reaching the cave from our camp at Chaa Creek took approximately 2.5hrs. This entailed about an hour on paved road, 45min on dirt road through orange groves and open fields like the one in this photo, then 45min of hiking including four river crossings. While there appear to be continuous groups of people going into the cave (I would guess 300 - 400 people on a busy day), this is not a cushy tourist attraction.

Hiking to the Cave

After about an hour and forty five minutes in the vans, we still had a 45min hike to the entrance of the ATM cave.  Chaa Creek was *kind* enough to pack picnic lunches for us to eat at the cave entrance.  You will note the blue tote the man on the left in this photo is carrying.  Chaa Creek packed as if we were going to Royal Ascot.  Real plates and metal flatware, generous fixings for making sandwiches, bowls of fruit and salad, sodas in glass bottles.  The only thing missing was champagne.  That blue picnic tote must have weighed at least 20 lbs and there were two others just like it plus several green backpacks also containing lunch and related supplies.  After all that work, we were pleased to find that lunch was delicious.

The hike to the cave was mercifully flat, but it did entail three river crossings (we actually walked across the river four times, but the first was to cross a ford and change vans).  We only had one casualty, Will fell in the river on the return hike and really murdered his shins.  They look just like Lyra's now!  He has been most unlucky on this trip and is coming home with many, fortunately minor, wounds.  

Ready to Explore

We had a great guide, Francisco, for our cave exploration.  The Belize government only certifies a limited number of cave guides, and they seem to be very well trained.  The guides are also (appropriately) obsessive about protecting the cave and its relics.  One of the members of our party received a very stern lecture after moving around to take a photo and almost stepping on an artifact.  The guides also enforce the 'pack it in, pack it out' rule.  There are no trash cans anywhere near the cave - whatever you carry in, you carry out.  Perhaps that is why all of the lunch equipment was so durable and clearly reusable, so no one would be tempted to leave it behind.  

Cave Entrance

The ATM cave is a 'wet' cave in the sense that the main route into the cave follows a deep stream. Exploring the cave requires some occasional swimming where the water is as deep as eighteen feet, and a lot of wading. Toward the end of the tour you climb up to a series of rooms that are dry now, but appear to have had water flowing through them at some point based on the rim pool formations that have caught and preserved a variety of artifacts.

The deepest part of the stream into the cave is at the very beginning.  The adventure starts by swimming across the pool just inside the cave entrance.  This tour is generally not recommended for children under 8 or 10 years old and confident swimming is a necessity.

Cath & Eva

We all had to wear helmets in the cave.  I dislike helmets in general, and disliked these especially.  That is until I hit my head so hard on an overhanging rock that my neck hurt from the impact.  I am not sure I would have been badly hurt, but at a minimum the helmet prevented a bloody bruise.  

With the helmet lights we could all see about 10 feet ahead.  At several points in the cave everyone turned their lights out and we had an opportunity to experience true, can't see your hand in front of your face, total darkness.  I am in awe of the Maya walking in and out of these caves with only burning torches.  

Will the Spelunker

Some of us wore shirts in the cave, others like Will took the bare chest approach.  Given that the wade/swim into the cave involved wading in shallow water for almost long enough to start to dry off, then back into neck deep water the bare chest may have been the best approach.  I wore a shirt, and was never dry or warm.

Small Cave Formation

Some of the formations created by dripping water were very large, but others like this one were small and delicate.  This one is probably about 18 inches long (which would still make it 300 years old), but it was closer to a pure white than many of the other formations which had bits of red and brown, I assume from impurities in the minerals.  

Rim Pool

The main chamber in ATM where most artifacts are located is completely dry (other than seepage from the roof) and has been for a long time.  I also suspect the chamber was dry when the Maya used it.  However, at some point in between, there was a lot of water flowing through the chamber, and this water built rim pools and calcified many artifacts.  

I asked Francisco about this, and did not get much of an answer.  My suspicion is that at some point, probably due to volcanic or seismic activity there were floods of water that left large amounts of sediment in normally dry areas, which eventually solidified as these areas dried out. In this photo, you can see the partially covered skull and pots, and to my eye it looks like they were covered in sediment which then hardened.  

Ceremonial Pots

The ATM cave was apparently used by the Maya at least 1,400 years ago.  Given that fact, I was amazed by the fact that some of the pots on the floor of the main chamber were in almost perfect condition.  The cave environment is a very constant 21C year round, and being 200 meters underground and 1KM into a hill side, there are no rain, wind or other elements to cause wear.  

I would have assumed the pots were just left randomly the last time the cave was used, but Francisco said that was not the case.  The way the pots are organized (e.g. which way they are pointed, whether they are upright or on their side) has specific significance.  In addition, the cuts in the rim (clearly visible in this pot) were made intentionally, and signify that these are ceremonial pots intended to be used once and then discarded.  

Spooky Skull

This skull is embedded in the floor of the main cave chamber, toward the top of the chamber.  Based on where it is located, in a rim pool in the middle of the chamber, it probably originally rested somewhere else and was washed to its current location.  

Francisco said the damage to the skull in back is consistent with having been hit hard with a heavy object, apparently one of the three methods the Maya used to kill sacrificial victims (the other two being decapitation and splitting the rib cage to remove the heart).  Francisco also said fourteen different sets of human remains have been identified in the cave, but those are on (or really partially in) the surface of the cave floor.  He made the point that anything fully submerged in the rim pools is now surrounded by solid minerals and is almost impossible to find (the guide also said archeologists are experimenting with imaging technology to 'see through' the rock floor of the cave).   

I made this photo by taking the shot just as Francisco shined his high power spotlight directly on the skull.  The cave is an eerie place, and I think this photo captures some of that feeling.

(At one point in the cave when our group was waiting to climb to another level, Will starting singing the Indiana Jones theme music.  This cave is a perfect Indiana Jones spot, and our group cracked up when they heard the tune.)

Cave Formations

The formations (stalactites, stalagmites, etc) in the cave are stunning.  My on-camera flash could not do them justice, and for most of the wade/swim to the main chamber my camera was packed, so I don't have photos of many of the ones we saw on the way in.  

The main chamber in the cave is large - like a ball room.  It was hard to really get a sense of it, because we just had headlamps and the guide's battery powered spot, but the ceiling was probably 30-40 feet and the room was ~150 feet in diameter (I am sure there is an exact measure someplace on the net).  I think the ones in this photo were ~20 feet high.  Francisco said they form at a rate of 1/16 inch per year, so the cave has been around  awhile.

What Francisco kept emphasizing, and is worth thinking about, is the Maya only saw these formations by fire and torch light, probably during ceremonies when they were under the influence of hallucinogenic mushrooms or other substances...

Cath - The cave was creepy enough just with a headlamp.  And some of the pathways needed to reach this chamber were suck-in-your-stomach small. It is hard to fathom hauling in all those heavy pots and terrified sacrificial victims all that way using torches that may or may not remain lit.  The shadows from the fire would make the stone formations seem alive. I can see needing some sort of hallucinogen to have the guts to go in there in the first place, although I bet it made the overall experience seem even more supernatural.

Climbing to the Last Chamber

This is the ladder from the main room in the cave (where most of the artifacts and remains are located) to the the last small chamber where the Crystal Maiden rests.  This ladder is in fact a typical Home Depot type extension ladder, tied in place with a small piece of rope.  Safety precautions in the cave mostly take the form of 'be careful and use common sense'.  There are no guard rails, safety ropes or anything else attached to the cave.  

Also note the socks I am wearing.  After leaving the wet portion of the cave, everyone is absolutely required to wear only socks.  No shoes, no bare feet.  Part of the reason is safety (socks grip well), but the main reason is to protect the cave.  Socks on bare feet are soft and minimize wear on the cave, and also prevent contamination from oil on peoples' feet.   We had to stop on the way to buy socks because we didn't know before leaving the States that we would need them for this.

Cath - We were all a little nervous before taking this trip because we did not know what exactly to expect inside the cave.  I was seriously worried that I would have to climb something ridiculous, or climb up something and not be able to climb down, or perhaps panic because I was going to have to watch the kids climb something scary.  Any mothers reading this post will totally understand the high anxiety produced by watching your kids perform some physically risky or dangerous activity.  But for me, this ladder was the worst part of the whole thing.  At least the rocks and boulders didn't move when I climbed over.

Crystal Maiden

This is the most famous feature of the ATM cave.  This is a skeleton on a young female, and is considered a 'primary' burial, e.g. this is believed to be the location where the body was originally placed.  The bones have been crystalized by the mineral rich cave water, and if you click on the photo to enlarge it you can see how the bones'  crystal structure sparkles.  The ATM cave was clearly used by the Maya for ceremonial purposes, believed to include sacrifice.  There is evidence on some of the skeletons consistent with ritual sacrifice, but no one knows for sure.

Cath - I cannot help but see this girl and others in the cave and wonder who they were.  They all had names and families and friends and played some important part in the lives of their community, but all that is lost now. I wonder if she would be appalled to be a tourist attraction or pleased that her sacrifice is still remembered.

None the Worse for Wear

We all survived exploring the ATM cave, with many stories, and many unanswered questions.  I think this will be an experience the kids will want to share in class, and it has also inspired us to do more research on the Maya. 

Cath - I am sure you have noticed Lyra is conspicuously absent from this adventure.  There was No Way to take her on a trip like this.  

Instead, Lyra spent a fun day with Noemi. Noemi is a relative of Dosio, the River Camp Manager at Chaa Creek.  Without Dosio and his extended family, there would be no River Camp.  We love to go there because it is, literally, like going to visit family.  They make us feel so welcome and at home.  

Noemi took Lyra for the day and gave her the Belizian baby experience.  Lyra got to visit Noemi's village, see her animals (dog, cat and chickens), have ice cream in town and have her hair done cute as can be!  So Lyra had her own adventure.  We will need to come back to the ATM cave with Lyra when she is 8 or 9 so she can have this family memory too.  I hope the cave has not been closed to the public by then.

Piano Debut

This weekend was Will's first recital with Mr. Solero. It was a Concerto concert and was a lot more fun to listen to than what I recall from my piano recital past. Will's teacher, Mr. Solero, played the second piano part for each student and I think even he had a lot of work to do to get ready.

Will played Concertino in C Major by Robert D. Vandall. The video includes portions of his piece and also features part of a performance by his friend, Eric. I cannot remember the name of the piece Eric played but it was beautiful. Lyra *looks* like she iss being a perfect angel but if you pay attention, you can hear her Thunk Thunk Thunk-ing her Hello Kitty watch against the metal chair. I ended up taking her downstairs to the reception area and it turned out that is the place where all the wiggly ones go. Enjoy!

Snow Day

A couple of people have said they couldn't load the prior version of this video. That one is on Facebook. I am not sure why that one isnt working since it always has before. This one is on Blogger. Maybe this will work? It is a smaller window though so I don't like it quite as much. Plus it is nice just to have to put the video in One Place and I know some people look at my Facebook page and not my blog....can you believe it??? :)

Snow Day!

I took all 3 kids sledding. It was complete mayhem, the video does not do it justice. We were lucky to escape without injury. Will insisted Eva pull him all the way to the park. He did pull her partway home but she got ripped off. Look how tired little Lyra is at the end! I think we are getting ready to go out again.

Proud Mommy!

The cats think all baby equipment was made for them, even toy baby equipment. Lyra pushed KC all around the house in her dolly stroller. She was so pleased that he cooperated with her. Our cats would NEVER do that when I was a kid.