After a few more days chilling out in Flores after the trek we were ready for a change of scene from ruins and jungles, so we made the long and winding (typical for Guatemala) journey to Semuc Champey. According to reviews and by recommendation from Jenner who'd been there a few years ago (thanks Jenner!), it was a definite must-see.
Semuc Champey is located pretty much in the middle of Guatemala and isn't exactly the easiest place to get to. We got a minivan as far as a small town called Lanquin, which is basically the end of the line for non off-road vehicles. We then transferred from a packed minivan to standing in the back of a packed ute, all piled in on top of each other and our bags. Holding on for dear life we then made the 30min or so drive over some more steep, winding and very bumpy dirt roads to Utopia, the promisingly named eco-lodge hostel we hoped to stay at for a few days. Thankfully it turned out to be a beautiful place in a stunning setting, and luckily they had a room for us. The main building of the lodge was a huge, open wooden structure, reminiscent of a tree house. The common/dining area was a massive open space with wooden swinging seats at the bar, big BBQ tables and amazing views out over the surrounding mountains and the Cahabon river below. Upstairs was a big open loft space with hammocks, bunks for the dorm, and little rooms, or 'private nooks' as they were called, under the eaves. There were also little cabanas in the garden below. As it was such an isolated place, all meals were eaten at the hostel with dinner being a communal affair. There were actually some pretty good meals produced too, all vegetarian. There's one or two places much closer to the entrance to Semuc Champey, but we were very happy with our choice.
Getting to Semuc Champey National Park involved another ride standing in the back of a ute, driving over yet more steep and winding dirt roads. Just short of the entrance, however, we stopped at the first activity of the day - exploring a cave by candlelight. As with many things we've done on our travels, we don't always know exactly what's in store - which is sometimes for the better. We had read many reviews though and were prepared with sturdy waterproof sandals, so we didn't have to resort to tying jandals onto our feet with string as some people had reportedly done. There were about 10 of us in our group, and after being instructed to disrobe as we'd be climbing and swimming through multiple underground chambers, our guide led us to the entrance of the cave where he handed out candles to everyone. Then we ventured into the abyss. Soon the only feeble, wavering light was from our flickering candles which, of course, frequently went out. Parts of the cave were easy to manoeuvre through, but many times we had to swim through surprisingly deep water with one hand held above our heads to keep the candle alight. There were also a few rather more challenging parts where we had to scale a sheer, slippery wet rock wall by rope/ladder, and fall blindly through a tight hole to water below. If you're at all claustrophobic this is probably not for you, but we all had a great time. It was like being a kid and discovering a whole new world, playing around in this underground lair. I have no idea how long we were in there (maybe an hour or so), but it was so much fun, even when our candles went out and we couldn't see a thing.
When we finally emerged into the daylight again, we were taken to a rope swing where the locals effortlessly demonstrated launching themselves into the river below. Only 3 or 4 of our group were keen to follow suit, and each and every time it ended very painfully - landing very hard and awkwardly in the water and coming up sore and winded, the locals were having a great laugh as it obviously always happens. Cheeky bastards. When no-one else was willing to risk further pain and injury, we crossed the bridge to enter Semuc Champey National Park.
In order to get the best view of Semuc Champey we had to make the steep climb to a lookout. After about 20-30mins, panting and drenched in sweat we emerged onto a wooden platform and were rewarded with an incredible view of the most amazingly turquoise blue pools below. It was pretty damn impressive and worth the walk. We had a break and some lunch before we could wait no longer, and headed down to cool off in the beautifully clear water. Probably because it's such a mission to get there, Semuc Champey isn't over-run with tourists which was a welcome change. We were free to swim about in the various pools, sliding down natural rock slides and jumping into the refreshing water. We could have stayed there for ages, but we were too soon told it was time to leave.
But our adventure wasn't quite over yet. Most of us were going to tube back down the river to the hostel rather than endure another dusty, bumpy ute ride, but a few of us decided to add to the excitement by jumping off the 12m high bridge first. From then on it was a fairly sedate float down the river, punctuated by the odd 'rapid' and scraping our asses on rocks in the shallows. One guy got a flat tube and unfortunately Kurt lost his sunnies going over in a rapid. Apart from that it was a pretty awesome day.
The final thing we did while staying at Utopia was a chocolate making course. They have a shitload of cacao trees growing on their property, so the owners (an American woman and her son) decided to capitalise on that by running daily courses. They showed us the plant growing in various stages of ripeness in the garden and we cracked some open to taste the nibs raw - they're covered in a slimy white substance and are quite sweet. We then spent the rest of the time in the kitchen where we were shown how to roast, shell and grind the nibs down into a paste using everyday household applicances and ingredients. We finished off by making our own chocolates which, while still quite bitter, were pretty damn tasty.
So while it was a bit of a mission to get there, Semuc Champey was a real highlight for us. Some things are just worth making the effort for.
Semuc Champey is located pretty much in the middle of Guatemala and isn't exactly the easiest place to get to. We got a minivan as far as a small town called Lanquin, which is basically the end of the line for non off-road vehicles. We then transferred from a packed minivan to standing in the back of a packed ute, all piled in on top of each other and our bags. Holding on for dear life we then made the 30min or so drive over some more steep, winding and very bumpy dirt roads to Utopia, the promisingly named eco-lodge hostel we hoped to stay at for a few days. Thankfully it turned out to be a beautiful place in a stunning setting, and luckily they had a room for us. The main building of the lodge was a huge, open wooden structure, reminiscent of a tree house. The common/dining area was a massive open space with wooden swinging seats at the bar, big BBQ tables and amazing views out over the surrounding mountains and the Cahabon river below. Upstairs was a big open loft space with hammocks, bunks for the dorm, and little rooms, or 'private nooks' as they were called, under the eaves. There were also little cabanas in the garden below. As it was such an isolated place, all meals were eaten at the hostel with dinner being a communal affair. There were actually some pretty good meals produced too, all vegetarian. There's one or two places much closer to the entrance to Semuc Champey, but we were very happy with our choice.
 |
| The open-air loft dorm |
Getting to Semuc Champey National Park involved another ride standing in the back of a ute, driving over yet more steep and winding dirt roads. Just short of the entrance, however, we stopped at the first activity of the day - exploring a cave by candlelight. As with many things we've done on our travels, we don't always know exactly what's in store - which is sometimes for the better. We had read many reviews though and were prepared with sturdy waterproof sandals, so we didn't have to resort to tying jandals onto our feet with string as some people had reportedly done. There were about 10 of us in our group, and after being instructed to disrobe as we'd be climbing and swimming through multiple underground chambers, our guide led us to the entrance of the cave where he handed out candles to everyone. Then we ventured into the abyss. Soon the only feeble, wavering light was from our flickering candles which, of course, frequently went out. Parts of the cave were easy to manoeuvre through, but many times we had to swim through surprisingly deep water with one hand held above our heads to keep the candle alight. There were also a few rather more challenging parts where we had to scale a sheer, slippery wet rock wall by rope/ladder, and fall blindly through a tight hole to water below. If you're at all claustrophobic this is probably not for you, but we all had a great time. It was like being a kid and discovering a whole new world, playing around in this underground lair. I have no idea how long we were in there (maybe an hour or so), but it was so much fun, even when our candles went out and we couldn't see a thing.
 |
| Bit of a tight squeeze down this one! |
When we finally emerged into the daylight again, we were taken to a rope swing where the locals effortlessly demonstrated launching themselves into the river below. Only 3 or 4 of our group were keen to follow suit, and each and every time it ended very painfully - landing very hard and awkwardly in the water and coming up sore and winded, the locals were having a great laugh as it obviously always happens. Cheeky bastards. When no-one else was willing to risk further pain and injury, we crossed the bridge to enter Semuc Champey National Park.
In order to get the best view of Semuc Champey we had to make the steep climb to a lookout. After about 20-30mins, panting and drenched in sweat we emerged onto a wooden platform and were rewarded with an incredible view of the most amazingly turquoise blue pools below. It was pretty damn impressive and worth the walk. We had a break and some lunch before we could wait no longer, and headed down to cool off in the beautifully clear water. Probably because it's such a mission to get there, Semuc Champey isn't over-run with tourists which was a welcome change. We were free to swim about in the various pools, sliding down natural rock slides and jumping into the refreshing water. We could have stayed there for ages, but we were too soon told it was time to leave.
But our adventure wasn't quite over yet. Most of us were going to tube back down the river to the hostel rather than endure another dusty, bumpy ute ride, but a few of us decided to add to the excitement by jumping off the 12m high bridge first. From then on it was a fairly sedate float down the river, punctuated by the odd 'rapid' and scraping our asses on rocks in the shallows. One guy got a flat tube and unfortunately Kurt lost his sunnies going over in a rapid. Apart from that it was a pretty awesome day.
The final thing we did while staying at Utopia was a chocolate making course. They have a shitload of cacao trees growing on their property, so the owners (an American woman and her son) decided to capitalise on that by running daily courses. They showed us the plant growing in various stages of ripeness in the garden and we cracked some open to taste the nibs raw - they're covered in a slimy white substance and are quite sweet. We then spent the rest of the time in the kitchen where we were shown how to roast, shell and grind the nibs down into a paste using everyday household applicances and ingredients. We finished off by making our own chocolates which, while still quite bitter, were pretty damn tasty.
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