ext212 > americas > belize
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Cayo District:
- The dirt road entering Ian Anderson's Caves Branch
- Fine mesh enclosed our cabana and it included a loft
- There were six huts for bathing equipped with hot water
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An hour and a half later with a warm breeze blowing in our faces, the paved road turned into dirt. We have arrived at Caves Branch, our sleeping quarters for the next two nights. Past the small buildings of Belize City and the flatlands surrounding Belmopan, we were now amidst mountains and acres of dense jungle foliage.
Caves Branch is owned by Ian Anderson, a cheery Canadian who moved to Belize thirteen years ago and discovered some of the caves near Jungle Creek.
Christy checked us in and Pedro offered us our first lunch. Ian Anderson eventually came by to give us his cordial, if not stock, welcome that included a pack of local cigarettes (a godsend for the one half of us that was nicotine-starved).
After lunch Christy gave us a tour of the site and showed us our cabana. The next cabana over was sufficiently far away to lend a feeling of complete privacy. Hibiscus flowers were laid on our full-size bed. Though the cabana is constructed with a fine mesh to keep out the mosquitos, we set up our own net over the bed to prepare for the impending insect-feeding hour at dusk. We headed off to the showers. Ample drinking water and hot showers in the middle of a jungle: no small feat, that.
Ian Anderson's Caves BranchMile 41 1/2 Hummingbird Hwy.,
P.O. Box 356, Belmopan
Web: www.cavesbranch.com
We rented a Jungle Cabana for two nights for $68 per night. Buffet-style meals are included. Caves Branch sits on a privately-owned 58,000-acre estate and you will be in the middle of the jungle. Showers and toilets are a few yards from your cabana but hot water and clean drinking water are ample. There is maid service and you can pay to have your laundry done. Check the Web site for the tours they offer.