Since the establishment of the St. Croix Hiking Association in 1998, we have been hiking off-island to other Caribbean islands. The last trip was to Jamaica in 2019, with a hike planned to Martinique in 2020. Believe me, there was great excitement and anticipation to hike on the island of Martinique. However, it never happened. In 2020, the World Health Organization announced that it was calling the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. After that, the entire world locked down. It was only this year that our next off-island hiking trip took place, when we traveled to Belize.
What a trip! There were hikes, culture, and adventures for the members of the St. Croix Hiking Association that they will never forget as long as they live. Believe me, Belize is a hiking, cultural and natural paradise for nature lovers. There is so much to write about the adventures we experienced in Belize. I am trying to figure out in my head how to write the stories of exploring on foot, in waterfalls, etc., and driving for hundreds of miles visiting the natural and cultural sites of the country.
This will have to be a series of articles describing a country that lies within the Caribbean Sea and is part of the Central America landmass. Before I can write about our adventures in Belize, I must say something briefly about the country’s great civilizations. The great Maya civilization dates back thousands of years between 1500 BC to 1200 BC. This great civilization in Central America flourished up until 1000 AD. There are several historic sites throughout Belize and neighboring countries that reflect the Maya ancient culture.
This ancient civilization emerged in the lowland area of the Yucatan Peninsula and the highland to the south, and spread to Mexico, Guatemala, western Honduras, and Belize. In the 16th century, the Spanish conquistadors and missionaries invaded Belize and its neighbors. It is a sad history, how the European colonizers raped the countries of Central America of its cultural and natural resources, such as logwood, and how they enslaved its people. With the Spanish also came the British settlers to the region.
Nevertheless, despite nearly 500 years of European domination in the region, the Maya culture and way of life persists. Our adventure to Belize started with members traveling from different parts of the United States and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It took most of us two days to get to Belize by traveling and layover in Miami overnight. We couldn’t wait for the sun to rise the next day to travel to Belize. As the American Airlines plane begin to descend over the lowlands of Belize, believe me, goosebumps began to form on our bodies with excitement.
As we went through the immigration process, we were welcomed to Belize with open arms by the officials. As soon as we stepped outside the airport building, there was brother Nick Drayton and Cathy Prince, two members of the association, welcoming us with a big sign that said, “GONE BUSH St. Croix Hiking Association,” along with local drinks and healthy goodies to eat such as garlic spice cassava biscuits. The hospitality at the airport was great, with members greeting one another with open arms and ready to take on the Belize adventure.
We had not hiked yet on foot, but our first day driving from the airport was an adventure. Everyone loaded into two vans from Philip Goldson International Airport with suitcases, backpacks, hiking boots, water shoes, etc. Without a doubt, we were all excited as we talked among ourselves during the 90-minute drive on the Coastal Plain Highway of Belize to Dangriga, the place where we would stay for the duration of our hiking trip.
As we asked Nick questions about Belize’s history as we drove and took in the natural beauty of the landscape of the country, Nick got a call from the other van saying that there was problem with the vehicle. There we were, miles away in the wilderness on a highway. The members of the hiking association took it with grace that this was all part of the adventure in Belize. We stuck together as one family and knew the unexpected experience on the roads is all part of life’s adventure.
To make a long story short, the van that I was in continued to Dangriga town. We did get another van from the car rental company. As we arrived to Dangriga, we were all happy to conquer our first adventure without hiking on foot. Mr. Augustine Flores, owner and manager of a small hotel known as Pals On the Beach near the Caribbean Sea, welcomed us to the perfect spot to rest our tried bodies. I could literally throw a stone from my room to the Caribbean Sea. What a beautiful view of the Caribbean Sea, with so many Frigatebirds flying in the air and small islands in a far distance of the sunrise on the shorelines of Belize. Paradise, baby!
That evening , we had dinner at Island Breezes Restaurant in Dangriga. The food was great, with music playing in the background. Before dinner, Nick and Ceilia Joseph, our two hosts in Belize, gave us a pack schedule of activities for hiking, camping, cultural, and natural visit sites for the week of our adventure. With a good night’s rest, which we all needed after a long day’s adventure from the airport, everyone went to bed looking forward for the next day where we would be hiking on foot in the mountain rainforests of Belize and bathing in waterfalls of our delight.
— Olasee Davis is a bush professor who lectures and writes about the culture, history, ecology and environment of the Virgin Islands when he is not leading hiking tours of the wild places and spaces of St. Croix and beyond.
