Chiquibul Park Visitors' Center

As promised, here are a few photos of the new Chiquibul Park Visitors' Center, one from the outside, and two of exhibits inside, including a tapir skeleton.

Chiquibul and Challillo

This morning we went to the grand opening of the Chiquibul Park Visitors' Center, which is on the Chiquibul Road where it splits and heads left into the Chiquibul Park and Las Cuevas, and right to Caracol.  The Visitors' Center is a much needed addition to the area, providing a meeting place, information, and support to visitors to these sites.  All sorts of dignitaries attended the opening, and everyone was very supportive of the effort.

On the way home, G suggested we take a minor detour and take a look at the Chalillo Dam.  Tom and I have lived here for over seven years - with "here" being not just Belize, but in the Mountain Pine Ridge area - and we have driven to Caracol countless times, but we have never bothered to take the 10 minute detour to get a look at the dam.

It wasn't as big as we expected to be.  This is probably because it has caused so much heated conflict in the country about the environmental impact and the value of the power it generates, we figured it had to be absolutely huge.  In size, it's just not that big, although the size of its effect on the area is still being debated.

I want to take a canoe and paddle around in it a bit, just to get a different perspective on what it is...so hopefully more pictures to follow when we get around to that adventure.