Ecotourism

Mother Nature blessed Guatemala. From the heavenly bodies sprouted beautiful warm and humid forest. From cool, inner woods flew the most beautiful birds, with plumage impossible to describe. Enchanting turtles, playful manatees, felines in cosmic furs, and a gentle silver river mirror the wild flowers. Guatemala overflows with lianas and quetzals, archis and toucans, bromeliads, ferns, crustaceans, howler monkeys…. If earthly paradise is not in the Guatemalan jungles, then perhaps God came here for inspiration!

In Guatemala there are 14 varieties of subtropical forest and 450 types of trees. In Izabal, Peten, Alta Verapaz, Santa Rosa, Escuintla, Quiche and Quetzaltenango there are 80 species of native birds and some 300 migratory birds. One of the most beautiful birds is the quetzal, held sacred by the Mayas and also Guatemala’s national symbol. Today it habits the natural sanctuaries of Alta and Baja Verapaz, Jutiapa, Quiche and Huehuetenango.

Explores who venture into the imposing, leaf and humid shade of the mangrove swamps can see in Santa Rosa, Jutiapa, Izabal, Peten and Retalhuleu, long-forgotten insects, mysterious reptiles and strange mammals. With temperatures varying from 20 to 30 degrees centigrade, these forests of hot and dry climates and saline sand produce a wonderful abundance of fruit, herbs, medical plants and mushrooms.

All this and more can be found in Guatemala, land of a thousand colors, beautiful plumage and soft heat.

Nature Reserves

Mario Dary’s Biotopo of the Quetzal
Baja Verapaz

In the treetops of the rainforest in this protected area there are more than 50 different varieties of orchids and bromeliads. Amid the countless exotic colored macaws, toucans, frigate birds and spoonbills, the quetzal stands out. With timid arrogance, from its long tail, to the iridescent rays of is plumage, the quetzal reigns over its sacred sanctuary.

Cerro Cahui

Cerro Cahuì is covered with great evergreen forest. It is a sanctuary for more than 50 species of butterflies and the reserve for sapodilla, mahogany, cedar and indigo trees. Lianas, bell shaped vines, orchids and grassy plants also abound. The Peten turkeys live in the underbrush of Cerro Cahui, while the hooked-beak sparrow hawk soars aloft. From October to April, hundreds of migratory birds come here from remote areas to inhabit Cerro Cahui. Twenty-eight different species of mammals live in the reserve, including white tailed deer, ocelots, armadillos and spider monkeys.

Chocón Machacas

Izabal

The waterways of this reserve meander though a virgin tropical forest full of marvelous birds. Following the Rio Dulce there is a wild lacustrian ecosystem that is traveled in “Cayucos”. Under the green dome of mangrove branches, in the water covered by mater lilies, we enter into the realm of myths, habitat of the manatee, a water mammal, one mistaken for a legendary mermaid by the early explores of these virgin lands. Here the manatee, or sea cow, is protected specie.

Lake Atitlán

Like a turquoise mounted in a setting of mountainous green mantle and misty peaks of Toliman, Atitlan, and San Pedro volcanoes, Lake Atitlan is a jewel of breath taking beauty.

Every year flocks of “chemo” and reddish colored ducks sit among the rushes on its banks while herons sink there feet into the sand and watch the smooth swimming of the is black bass in the blue surface water. There is no bluer water than Lake Atitlan. No wonder it is called “the most beautiful lake in the world”

The Guatemala Caribbean Sea

The great lake of Izabal, Guatemala’s largest, covers 590 square kilometers, is bordered by orchards of mangoes, avocados, mameys and pineapples that perfume the air with exotic fragrances, Rio Dulce originates from its deep waters and lows quickly to plunge into the thick jungle. There, it winds gently through the tropical foliage to the sound of multicolored riverside inhabitants that shake the foliage. Rio Duce continues its course to from the Golfete… It passes mangrove thickets seething with life, and lows out to meet the maters of Amatique Bay, in the Caribbean Sea.

A palm-lined road leads us to Siete Altares. There, in the middle of the jungle, we can see and hear the sounds of extraordinary transparent waterfalls and swim in its wild and cool waters, beneath a curtain of white foam.

Highlands

From the step rocky mountain paths to the depths of the gorges, where freshwater springs tumble down from the highest mountains, Guatemala’s pine forest rise impressively to meet the sky. In the pale, light of fawn, mist sinks softly over the volcanoes like a veil, enshrouding peaks and crags. Behind them, the sun’s first rays of light come filtering through, like golden spears behind sheer curtains. The mist drifts away to the shores of Lake Chicabal, in a volcanic crater, settling on the last white patch of moonlight, escaping the ardor of the pursuing sun. Age-old winds in the highlands make carving in the rocks, so that travelers may decipher the craggy formations of Momostenango.

The Pacific Coast

The Guatemala Pacific Coast is strangely beautiful. Its black volcanic beaches meet an excited wind which whips up white crests on the swelling waves, and crashes ashore I white foam. Up in the sierra, the teaming vegetation has left no space unfilled, no path, no crack and no chink. It simply spills out here, there and everywhere. Here a tree of succulent fruits, there a proud trunk, an aromatic weed, everywhere flowering herbs or bewitching climbers, As if that were not enough, the Escuintla region has gorgeous waterfalls to visit.

Petén

The jungle around Peten is a giant green wall rising up before your eyes. An organic wall of lush, fertile vegetation that is never quiet. Deep inside, woodpeckers drum their tom-tom rhythms into the mahogany trees, disturbing the sleeping ocelots. The howler monkeys bicker over territory with the macaws who depart under protest, alerting the sleeper a top the ceiba tree. He is king of all creatures, as ancient as the jungle it self. Knowing every path, every tree in Peten, he is a master of ambush. He is the sleek, fleet-footed spotted jaguar, prince of Tikal, the imposing city whose architecture defies the cosmos. Here, ceremonial priests once named the stars of the universe. The lush green Usumacinta River also snakes through Peten, over flowing into small lakes like San Diego, Sacuy, Peten Itza and Sachab. These in turn are surrounded by more rivers: San Pedro, Santa Isabel and La Pasion.

Verapaz Region

Many people confuse Alta and Baja Verapaz. Alta Verapaz is higher and traversed by abundant rivers flowing through rocky mountain, like the Cahabon, which tumbles into the waterfalls and pools of Semuc Champey, close to a garden of orchids and bromeliads. There are also cool misty forests with green landscapes encouraging the growth of rare mushrooms. Pretty villages in emerald landscapes are tucked into hidden pockets of the forests.

In Baja Verapaz, on the other hand, the air is hotter and the hills less steep. A top one is the archaeological site of Cayhup, with and excellent view of the sinuous course of the Urram River. In Rabinal there is a spa called Los Chorros, whose healimg waters are well-known throughout the region. Baja Verapaz is full of lovely fertile valleys.