Expat TIG welders, Giant caves, and other adventures in Belize

A muddy CB in front of the Rio Frio Cave complex

12/17/16

San Ignacio, Bel.

108.5 kilometers ridden.

Morning started off with a trip up the street for the cheap breakfast Christine had told me about, it was a breakfast burrito and a large lime juice for the equivalent of about $2.50 US. The burrito was basic but tasty and the lime juice was a refreshing start to the day.

After the beating the rough road gave the little C90, I went on a walkabout with Ed and Aaron to go get the exhaust on Ninty fixed. It took most of the morning but we ended up getting some clues and finding a Canadian welder who had emigrated to Belize. He did a great job TIG welding the exhaust and it came out looking better than new. 

Ed March giving a we wink while he gets the tip welded. Just the tip, just for a minute.

We managed to get a little twisted up on the route before walking across the low wooden bridge that had carried us into town. Along the way we wandered through a market with lots of hand crafts and cheap Chinese products. I could tell I was in a more tourist oriented town than most I had stayed in so far.  I wasn't interested in anything there and was glad when we all walked back for food. Ed and Aaron went for Chinese and I wandered down for Rice and Beans with stew chicken. I was really starting to feel the difference between riding and exploring alone or with just one person you really click with.  Arron and Ed are both amazing guys but it was totally different to be thinking about balancing what I wanted to be doing with what they wanted to be doing.  While we were all independent travelers and capable of acting on our own, there is still a subconscious pressure to balance everyone's wants even in the most casual of traveling companions. I was finding myself being short with people and easy to frustration because of this. 

 

Some Belize rice and beans.  Good, but still not as good as that first roadside shack.

When I got back to the hotel Ed was already geared up and ready to head back out to check out a set of waterfalls near where we were yesterday. I threw on my kit on as quickly as I could and loaded up the bike. Ed and I set off and covered the miles to the Rio Frio Cave at a good clip. The roads were mostly dry and hard packed, with Ed leading the pace was quick but not mental. We made it to the cave and rode the bikes down concrete the stairs to the beach. Ed and I both set about getting photos and videos we wanted while  exploring the area individually. I enjoyed seeing the cave but only got a few decent shots due to the time of day and available light. I would have loved to swim in the cave but we just didn't have the time today.

 

I would have loved to have enough time for a swim but it just wasn't there.

Rio Frio is a beautiful cave complex full of many small waterfalls.

We cleared out from the cave but had to turn back because Ed wasn't sure if he had left his hard drive on the beach. I took out first and ripped a quick pace for the purpose of filming without someone out front. The hard drive wasn't there and so we turned back and rode back to town in the dark.

I never get enough of beautiful and interesting trees 

The group all went back to the first curry place and had dinner with Aaron, Christine, and four of Christine's friends. Food was okay and I had the lamb curry that Ed and Aaron were raving about. They were right, it was quite good. We all chose to be gluttons again and we each had a piece of lemon pie for dessert. We walked down and ended up splitting into our small group of four to go for beers. I was in enough pain that I felt myself getting even shorter than after the market and excused myself to go back to the hotel and get to sleep and hope the pain in my neck and shoulders would go down before morning.