Top Ten Belize Adventures

Eyeball one these guys in the treetops (Digital Stock)

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Continuing toward the mountains from San Ignacio brings you to Blue Creek. Rivers, caves, birds, and all of nature's wonders are here to greet you; best of all this is primary rainforest! For something different and heart-stirring, check out the skywalk above the river. Right now, this is the only rainforest canopy observation system in Belize, spanning a river and rising over 100 feet. It was installed by International Zoological Expeditions, IZE for short.

For the hardy, getting to the canopy is half the excitement. Six sturdy aluminum ladders are nailed to a tree, and after being hooked up to a mandatory harness you climb up and up and up. Suspended (rope) bridges link the wooden platforms (some have chairs!) that were built for educational purposes. It is quite extraordinary to be in the treetops, at eye level with the birds, looking down on the lazing iguanas and the river below—stay long enough and you might see one of the lizards fall into the river after losing a fight. This adventure is not for those scared of heights: though it's only 120 feet off the ground, it might as well be a thousand; nothing feels really solid under your feet until you are once again on the floor of the jungle.

International Zoological Expeditions

Text © 2001 by Chicki Mallan & Patti Lange. Used by permission of Moon Handbooks. All rights reserved. Book is available through local bookstores and online booksellers.