Caravana Pan Americana: Guatemala northbound

Guatemala Northbound

This portion of the route is being prepared by Don & Sue Welch. Please contact them if you have any suggestions for Guatemala.

Day: Destination: Km: Comments:

May 4

Doña Maria

145

Today we cross the border from Honduras after driving 11km northwest from Copán Ruinas. We'll drive CA-11 to El Florido, Guatemala, crossing the border. Continuing on, we come to CA-10 at Vado Hondo and then head north to CA-9 at Rio Hondo. From Rio Hondo we'll head northeast to Doña Maria, a small hotel/restaurant with a nice campground and swimming in the R’o Motagua.

May 5

Río Dulce /
Finca Paraiso

98

Driving north from Doña Maria, we'll look for a Shell gas station after 24.5km. We'll take a side road to the right to the ruins of Quirigua, the second most famous archaological site in Guatemala. We'll spend some time here. Returning to CA-9, we'll continue northeast through banana plantations. After another 40km, we'll come to the junction with the El Petén highway at La Ruidosa. From here we'll go north to Río Dulce, across the longest bridge in Central America.

We'll stay at Finca El Paraiso. From the finca (a working ranch), you can walk to an incredibly beautiful spot in the jungle where a wide, hot waterfall drops 30-40 feet into a clear, deep pool. You can bathe in the hot water, swim in the cool pool, or enjoy a jungle-style sauna in the space behind the waterfall. To get there, take the first left after the Rio Dulce bridge. (You're in the middle of a very congested market area here so keep alert.) Wind away from town taking the right fork at the 'Y'. Travel 28km out of town on a decent road through magnificent countryside and you will see a sign on your right for the Waterfall. The ranch is to your left. There is a restaurant at the ranch and some cabins right on the lake.

May 6

Poptún

127

Returning to Río Dulce, we'll continue north. The paved road ends after 33km, and we'll be driving towards Petén, Guatemala's jungle province. The road is bad in spots, so we'll break the trip north across two days.

Our first stop will be at the Finca Ixobel, a 400-acre ranch in Poptún. Good food, international comraderie, a river cave trip, tubing on the river, horseback riding, and other activities make this an excellent place to rest and relax.

May 7

Poptún

We'll spend an extra day at Finca Ixobel if time allows.

May 8

Tikal

168

Today we'll drive north along dirt roads to Santa Elena and Flores, and then a further 65km to Tikal. Towering pyramids rise above the jungle canopy at this Mayan site dating back to 700 B.C. Monkeys, parrots, toucans, and tree frogs all contribute to reminding you that this place exists in the jungle.

We probably want to stop at Flores to stock up on supplies and hit an internet cafe.

May 9

Tikal

A second day here will allow us to explore more of Tikal.

May 10 San Ignacio 114 Today we'll drive south to El Cruce, and then east to the Belize border at Melchor de Mencos and Benque Viejo. From the border it's another 16km to San Ignacio.

Total kilometers:

652

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