So this past Wednesday we headed out on The Newt again with our friends, Lynn and Carl. We were invited to go snorkeling and then spend the remainder of the day fishing. So we hopped on board bright and early after grabbing a few burritos at Ms. Sara's Kitchen.
Carl first took us to snorkel Tres Cocos, which is a little north of town. I find it amazing he can just pull up to a random part of the reef, anchor, and say, "okay, this is Tres Cocos." Like...how does he know where to go? There are no markers, no buoys telling you it's a great snorkel spot....just his knowledge of being here his entire life and learning from experience. Quite amazing to me.
I have to say Tres Cocos was maybe one of the top 3 snorkels I have ever done. We saw so much wildlife: two nurse sharks, a few rays, a school of squid, two squid mating, turtles, barracudas-my LEAST favorite.
We then headed off to Hol Chan, the marine reserve. This is one of the top places to visit while in Belize. It is a marine reserve in which you have to pay to enter and is protected against fishing, touching, or taking. I actually stayed in the boat for this snorkel, as Tres Cocos was a long snorkel and my foot is still recovering from my foot surgery. Rob said it was amazing: 60 pound grouper, hammerhead shark, sea turtles, moray eels. I am sure we will be back to Hol Chan in the future, so I look forward to experiencing it.
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| Hol Chan: on a crowded day! |
Now I'm going to throw Rob under the bus here....this is the morning after Carnaval...and Rob had sucked down a few too many rum and cokes the night before. Needless to say, he was "under the weather" for this boat ride. I will give him credit-he hung in there and eventually turned the corner, but the two snorkel stops were not his best showings. I am just going to say he helped "feed the fish"....sorry Rob...had to do it.
After the two snorkel stops, we headed WAYYYYY north to do some fishing. When I say way north, I mean 14 miles north. The water turned many different shades of blue and it was a gorgeous ride. I love looking at all the resorts and houses, so many different styles and colors. It makes you want to spend a day at each one just to experience the different environments.
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| Captain Morgan's Retreat-home of reality show Temptation Island back in 2001 |
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| Boat ride heading north. |
We ended up at the last resort, Tranquility Bay, where we anchored and threw in some lures. We started to get bites almost immediately and the amount of fish that came in the boat was astounding. Carl was a great guide in teaching us when to pull up on the fishing pole and how to control the line. Before I knew it, we had red snapper for dinner!
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| Rob and Lynn fishing on The Newt |
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| Sushi anyone? |
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| Gorgeous trigger fish we threw back |
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| That's part of my dinner
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It was time to head home and cook up this fish for dinner.......
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| Yes...that's a golf cart in the middle of nowhere...somewhere north..... |
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| Palapa Bar...water view |
So when we got back to the dock, Carl gutted the fish for us and we took the snapper to Blue Iguana. Most of the restaurants here will cook your fresh catch for you. They cooked our snapper 4 different ways and it was DELICIOUS!
What is in store for our next day off? I am not sure, but each one is beginning to get better and better. I do know the weather is beginning to be gorgeous every day and I am so excited for our future here in San Pedro. I am so happy to be doing this blog....not for everyone to read it (don't get me wrong-I love to share with others)....but just so I have a documented timeline of where our experiences are taking us. So until next time....keep smiling and enjoying life.
