With more free time his hands, during my absence, Scott ventured out with our friends Jack and Monique (s/v Aloha), to visit some bat caves in the area. Not being a fan of dark, small spaces, or bats, I was thrilled to miss this outing.

They traveled in the Aluminum Princess through another winding, jungle river, eventually landing at a local farm.

 

Once onshore, Armando offered a tour for five dollars a person. Along the way, they learned about the farm, where he grows coconuts, papaya, pineapple and cocoa. The cocoa pods provide a sweet treat inside. Locals open the pod, and suck off the sweet, white coating that covers the seeds, spitting them out afterward.

Armando pointed out  sloths, frogs and other creatures on the way to the cave. Jack spied a fat, meaty, icky millipede-type looking thing, that seemed content to crawl on him; picking it up would not have been my first thought.

It was an easy hike to the caves, aside from some mud, and they soon arrived at the opening. Once inside, it quickly became dark, and Armando provided them with head lamps (Scott came armed with his own, of course). The walls were lined with creepy, spider crickets, and of course…bats.

Water runs down into the limestone cave, and Monique, Jack and Scott walked in as little as two inches near the mouth, to more than waist deep in other spots. In some places, they had to swim, and in one spot, a narrow opening in the thick, stalactite wall hanging from above forced them under water to get below it.

Crawling, swimming and wading through dark caves, while bats fly around your head is not my idea of fun, but these three enjoyed their adventure. Thank you to Jack and Monique, for sharing their photos, as Scott was without a camera while I was gone.

“Shells Sink, Dreams Float. Life’s Good On Our Boat!”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Shells Sink, Dreams Float. Life’s Good On Our Boat!”