Gales Point and the coastal highway , Emmeth Drums and Chef Sean !
Took off for Gales Point after a stop to get groceries for dinner and breakfast the next day. After you leave Belize City the traffic thins out and there are not many settlements along the Western Highway.
Before we turned off the western highway, we went to check out Monkey Bay. They showed us around the property, where we could stay, etc. There was a lot of bird activity. Anna, the girl showing us around said the bird migration was going on and they had been seeing quite a few warblers in the area. We asked about kayaking on the river and it was much more expensive than we had hoped--$30 a person for 1/2 day.
We turned off the Western Highway onto the Coastal Road. It is not paved but was not in as bad a shape as I had believed. It is very beautiful with plains, trees and in the distance the Maya Mountains. There were several mound looking hills along the way that Mitch said could be ruins since the Maya lived all up and down this area.
Based on a recommendation by Ule we stopped at Soldiers Creek along the way. It was well worth the stop. There was huge bamboo overhanging the creek, limestone outcroppings and a clear cool stream. There was a huge pool with philodendrums against the rock and a large rock hanging out in the river. Robert, Mitch and Crystal all took a dip to refresh.
Reached the turnoff to Gales Point. From the turnoff on to the Coastal Road, it is 23 miles to Gales Point, and 25 miles to Emmeth's place. As we drove down the peninsula that is Gales Point, Mitch was greeted by several of the locals who all seemed to know him. There were several interesting characters that we met as we went along.
Got to Emmeth's place which looks to me almost to the end of the peninsula. The place we were going to stay was up on stilts with the bathroom outside. There was a hammock outside on the porch. Waves lapping underneath and a nice breeze blowing. We visited with Hank, a real character, who is in his words, "the only white man in the village". He had several interesting stories to share as the stay went.
Chef Sean arrived shortly after we had had a nap and Robert had walked into the village to see what they had in the store. He bought some cashew wine which evidently is a specialty of this area. It tastes more like port than anything I can relate it to. Chef Sean drives the bus for the village that runs on Friday and Monday. He is quite an interesting person. He has several projects going on----working to get Gales Point revitalized. At one time it evidently had several tour buses a day coming in to visit, more tourists, better conditions etc. He also is a trained chef, does consulting for resorts opening up in Central America and helps train personnel for these places. Had some interesting stories about the trials and tribulations of doing this.
Chef Sean offered to cook dinner for us with what we had brought. While he was starting to fix our dinner, one of the locals came up with a frozen gibnut (a type of rodent that according to some is quite good to eat.) Sean told him he couldn't cook it then and so the man then entertained us with a couple of his songs one of which had the lyrics---I just got out of prison with me new butcher knife all because of your new wife. We had brought fettucine, cheese, sausage, onions, garlic, butter and lettuce and tomatoes. From this he concocted a fettucine alfredo with carmelized garlic and onions with the sausage sauteed in. He set a table outside with a table cloth, flowers under the Mayan stars! Brilliant!
Sean told us the story of how Gales Point got its name. According to him, there was a man named Arthur Gale who settled in the area. He moved on but the escaping slaves from Belize City began to settle there. They were called Maroon Creole because they marooned there. The name Gales Point stuck. On some of the literature, they call it Gales Point, Manatee, Belize. This area is a breeding ground for the manatees.
Our night was very peaceful with the waves lapping and the breeze blowing. The next day we saw the shop where they sell various items. On the way out we ran into Emmeth but didn't get to spend any time with him.
Next day got up and Chef Sean fixed coffee, and Mitch took us out to the crossroads. We got on the bus with Sean to Belmopan. There we had lunch and got another bus to San Ignacio.
Thanks all for a wonderful time!
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