Destination Seclusion - Page 5

Where To Toss The Bags

Accessing Belize from the States is a fairly easy task. From Texas, it’s about a two and a half hour flight. From Miami, less than two hours. Continental has nonstop flights out of Houston. American flies non-stop to Belize City from both Dallas and Miami.

Belize Fishing Adventures operates two motherships headquartered in Belize City. Meca - referenced in this article - comfortably sleeps and fishes three or four fishermen. Seaduction - a 36-foot Sea Ray - accommodates two fishermen. Both boats operate basically the same way with a cook on board who spends the majority of his or her time preparing meals around the fishing schedule. Meca tows two flats skiffs and Seaduction tows one. All the sleeping cabins are airconditioned. Parties of six are accommodated by anchoring both boats together.

The route most often taken by newcomers to the Belize mothership experience is to radiate out from Belize City, beginning by heading nor th and then swinging south and ending up back in Belize City. In this area, the fishing environments range from bonefish flats, tarpon and permit flats, mangrove edges for snook and juvenile tarpon, and the reef. The standard trip is a seven night package that includes vir tually everything except liquor and fishing equipment.

There is a unique permit-focused adventure that begins in Belize City and works its way south. This trip accesses the finest permit flats on the globe, however, it is for dedicated permit fisherman only as the bonefish and tarpon opportunities become very limited as you head south.

Visiting the Belize page on www.flyfishingadventures.org will lead you to the Belize newsletter. Current pricing can be found as well as additional information.

Bring Your Camera

Tucked into the Caribbean coastline just south of the Yucatan, Belize is the second smallest Central American country occupying approximately 9,000 square miles. For travelers toting a camera, there are two basic options available – inland or the coastal waters and cays.

More than half of the Belize mainland is covered by tropical rainforest. The flora, fauna, and wildlife in this environment of fer their own set of photo opportunities. Set among this backdrop of tropical foliage are several dramatic Mayan ruins. The ruins dot the countryside almost to the Guatemala border to the west.

The main attraction for the majority of Belizean travelers is the 240-mile long coastline and the 175-miles of barrier reef which fronts that coastline, second in size only to the Australian Barrier Reef. In the protected waters inside this reef are literally hundreds of islands and small cays. There are also atolls outside the reef which harbor spectacular tropical settings. Among those atolls are the Turneffe Islands and, 58 miles due east of Belize City, the famous Blue Hole. Scuba divers and snorkelers from around the globe are attracted to the varied world famous dive sites.

There are a variety of resorts and lodges on these islands and cays, ranging from some very high-end operations to the more rustic and basic. These provide a temporary home to the sun-worshippers, divers and others interested in a distinctly relaxing and laid back tropical atmosphere.

Other Notes of Interest

About Belize:

• Official Name: Belize
• Area: 22,966 sq. km. (8,867 sq. mi.); slightly larger than Massachusetts.
• Capital: Belmopan
• Population: 299,000
• Government: Parlimentary democracy
• Religion: Roman Catholic, Anglican, Methodist, other Protestant, Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist.
• Language: English (official), Creole, Spanish, Garifuna, Mayan
• Currency: Belizean Dollar ($2 BLZ = $1 US)