Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua
Costa Rica and Panama
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Hi folks, thank you for exploring into Part 2 of my SOUTHERN RIDE ... let me share a small introduction. |
Part 2 starts at the Guatemalan border at Melcor de Mencos after 21 days of heavy rain that makes the dirt road a very muddy, deeply rutted quagmire. The 112 mile road took Jon 12 hours of non-stop riding! This is by far the most difficult ride Jon has EVER done! For 20 miles the Waterbuffalo's motor was totally underwater and on occasions the water was up to the headlight. Jon was the ONLY one to make that road, all others failed including a bulldozer! This is when Jon gave the motorcycle her name, WATERBUFFALO. The Mayan Ruins at Tikal are world famous and the structures are taller than the pyramids in Egypt. Lake Atitlan is stunning with its 3 volcanoes and its waters that are constantly changing colors. Chichicastenango on market day is seen complete with the famous Indian dances. Jon really enjoyed seeing Iztapa on the west coast with it's black sand beaches. Many people there just lived totally outside under the trees.
Pigs were tied to trees by a rope on their tail. At the Mayan Ruins at Copan, Honduras, Jon was surprised to learn that the Maya may have traveled by the 5th dimension just like Star Trek! Research is ongoing. Wow!
Trujillo on the east coast has bright white sand beaches and is the oldest city in Central America. The Spanish Fort of San Fernando on the Atlantic side near Puerto Cortes is in excellent shape. Lake Yojoa is in the center of Honduras. The "Red Flash Sunset" is on the Pacific side near Choluteca on the Gulf of Fonseca is an astonishing sight to witness. Lake Nicaragua is a spectacular lake and someday the New Panama Canal will probably be built there. San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua is a tourist beach town, simple and beautiful. Costa Rica is small but very diverse country. Pacific Ocean on the west coast ---Lush green mountains 60 miles inland that are over 10,000 feet elevation --- then 60 miles further east is the Atlantic Ocean, all in a days ride. Wow! What photos! Puerto Viejo on the east coast, San Jose, the capital in the center of Costa Rica, Puntarenas and Golfito on the Pacific side are seen. No one knows anything about the large, perfectly round, rock like spheres that are found in the Golfito area buried in the jungle and some weigh as much as 60,000 pounds. In Panama, of course, the canal, one of the man made wonders of the world. The Canal has 3 locks. Jon rides from the Gatun Locks on the East coast to the West coast across the Bridge of Americas and over to Gillards Cut to film the SAME ship going through the canal. Whew! Portabello is an old pirate town on the Atlantic side. Sir Francis Drake is said to be buried there with lots of gold and silver in his coffin. Who said, "You can't take it with you!" It is said that the Shah of Iran lived there years ago when he was in exile.
Jon stays with the Cuna Indians in the beautiful San Blas Islands in the Atlantic. The Cuna are famous for the gold ring in their nose and the fabulous molas that they sew by hand. Jon enjoys living among the Cuna. What rare photos! In the extreme south in Panama below Yaviza near the Colombian Border, Jon gains permission to visit a Choco village on a river. This river can raise 60 feet in one day! Jon spends a wonderful afternoon in a tree house with 2 Choco women (warning they are topless) and their children. They cook with a wood fire on a wood floor in the tree house. Seeing is believing! These photos in the tree house are outstanding. Part 2 ends after the Choco chief welcomes Jon to return anytime and then the long journey back upstream begins in a dugout canoe.
DON'T MISS PART 2!!!
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Lake Atitlan has been called the world most beautiful lake. It is at 5,000 feet elevation and has 3 spectacular volcanos that extend down to touch the lake. |
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The water in Lake Atitlan is constantly changing colors right before your eyes. It seems like a new color occured every 30 minutes. |
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Home sites like this are prevelent in northern Guatemala. Many of the homes had horses in back although Jon saw an old pickup truck at one house. |
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The discovery and recovery of Mayan Ruins is on going at Copan, Honduras. While Jon was there, a new pyramid was discovered that is believed to be 15,000 years old and was buried deep inside an existing pyramid which was about 1,400 years old. |
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This was just the begining of the 170 kilometers, 12 hour ride between San Ignacio, Belize and Flores Guatemala. Only the Waterbuffalo made that MUD road that day with Jon's supervision, of course. NO OTHER VEHICLE MADE IT! |
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With this type of stamina and self-preservation after all the mud and deep water from 21 days of rain, Jon affectionately names the motorcycle, "The Waterbuffalo" and from that point on, she became a hit with the Latin American people. |
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Jon stayed with the Cuna Indians in the San Blas Islands off the East coast of Panama in the Atlantic Ocean. All things are hung up in their homes because of the very hot, extreamely humid conditions. |
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The memories of Jon's day in the tree house of this Choco family will last a lifetime. The Chocos cooked with a wood fire on a wood floor in their tree house! |
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A beautiful sunset near Puerto Veijo, Costa Rica. |
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