Dec 11, 2013 | Central America, Colombia, Panama
I had decided some time ago that if Andrea wouldn’t hike through the lawless Darien Gap with me, then we would do one of the backpacker sailing trips taking in the San Blas islands en route. The Darien Gap pretty much begins where the Panamerican highway ends in...
Nov 26, 2013 | Central America, Panama
I had made a bit of a gamble bringing us here although Calvin, our host of Free Spirit Inn, assured us that the internet is perfectly reliable. Not only did we risk connectivity on the main island of Isla Colon but we spent the entire week out on the far less...
Nov 24, 2013 | Central America, Panama
We almost didn’t bother snorkeling while in the Bocas del Toro archipelago as we’ll have plenty of opportunities next week in the San Blas islands, but after seeing these beautiful fish at Hospital Point on Isla Solarte we’re very glad we paid the boat owner $20...
Nov 18, 2013 | Central America, Costa Rica
Hopefully we were going to like La Fortuna more than we did last year where we spent one brief night before heading up to Los Chiles and Nicaragua. It was the same time of year, it was still a major touristy town and it still suffered from torrential downpours, but...
Oct 20, 2013 | Central America, Costa Rica
A very appropriate title for a special La Ruta del los Conquistadores 2013. This year La Ruta introduced a fatbike category and it was going to be all about the additional weight and four inch fat tires on the coast to coast mountain bike race. The fat bike provides...
Oct 9, 2013 | Central America, Costa Rica
After thirty six hours and barely enough time back in Florida to accomplish what was needed I was back to Fort Lauderdale airport for a flight to Costa Rica whilst Andrea remained behind to visit friends and family. The first ten days were spent just outside of San...
Jan 31, 2013 | Belize, Central America
We were concerned if we would have enough time to see the Tikal ruins in Guatemala, get to the border to cross into Belize and get to our accommodation 10 miles outside of San Ignacio all in the same day – no problem! The first town we encountered after crossing...
Jan 26, 2013 | Central America, Guatemala
A long weekend of travel was awaiting us – 8 hours from Antigua to Lanquin on Friday, then another 8 hours from Lanquin to Flores on Sunday. Both trips were on a small van sized ‘turismo’ shuttle with 14-16 passengers. They were cramped to say the least! Leaving...
Jan 24, 2013 | Central America, Guatemala
Unfortunately we didn’t allocate enough time in Antigua. It’s the previous capital of Guatemala with a thriving language school and tourist population overlooked by Volcan de Agua with Acatenango, Fuego and Pacaya volcanoes very close by. After previously...
Jan 21, 2013 | Central America, Guatemala
It was my decision to head to Quetzaltenango, Xela for short, because I had planned on furthering my Spanish education (really just throwing money down the drain). Xela is a very popular place for this, unlike Antigua, it’s not full of foreigners and English is...
Jan 17, 2013 | Central America, Guatemala
The must see market town in Guatemala’s western highlands, Chichicastenango, is rammed full of local produce and artesanial products, aimed primarily at the influx of tourists that arrive every Thursday and Sunday morning from the surrounding towns. We headed there on...
Jan 10, 2013 | Central America, Guatemala
This was to be the first of two local volcanoes I was planning on hiking with Altiplanos Tours. Santa Maria, an active volcano in the Quetzaltenango area at an altitude of 3772m and Volcan Santiaguito which was created from an eruption of Santa Maria in 1902. Volcan...
