BELIZE 2026: CAYE CAULKER DAY 2

 March 16, 2026

Bob had arranged a birding tour for our second day on Caye Caulker, which meant we got up at 5:30 AM. That was Joy #1. Joy #2 was when the first thing we did was get on a motorboat. After my experience on the water the previous day, that was exactly want I did not want to do.

However. it was a serene sea that we set out upon, and we never went very far from shore, and so my concerns were for naught.

Caye Caulker is actually two islands separated by a 20-foot channel know as The Split that was created by Hurricane Hattie in 1961. The southern island is home to the main village and tourist activity, and the northern island, where we were headed, is mostly uninhabitated and covered with mangrove forests.

It was hard not to break into song as we watched the sun come up over the tops of the palm trees.

A little further along, we motored past the extensive mangrove forest.

When we got to an open area, we followed our guide along some dirt paths in a quest for birds--any birds. Note that our guide is not wearing shoes. There were lots of rocks and stickery plants. The soles of his feet must have been iron hard.

We stopped in a pretty little bay . . . 

. . . where Bob got some good shots.

For more of Bob's Caye Caulker bird shots, see his blog. Meanwhile, these are a few of my favorites:

Belted kingfisher

Magnificent frigatebird

My video of magnificent frigatebirds circling the harbor:

Ruddy turnstone

White Ibis

White-winged dove

Mangrove yellow warbler

Osprey

Gold-fronted woodpecker

In the afternoon we set out exploring. This was the view as we left our hotel room:

Cool octopus art, although I'm not sure it has eight legs. The sign on the Barefoot Caribe Restaurant says "No shoes, no shirt, no problem. No money, BIG PROBLEM."

Key lime pie? Yes, please.  It was good, but not fantastic.

Lots of photo ops.

Did we frequent this establishment? Yes, indeed. Twice.

More octopus art.

If you like bars and sitting in salt water, Caye Caulker is perfect for you (and definitely not for us):

Of course, another option was eating on land at the barbecue joints like this one that lined the street:

I love that they encourage you to wade with the stingrays . . . 

. . . and then they tell you it is dangrous.

Christmas in March:

Caye Caulker is very tropical, and flowers of many varieties are everywhere.

What do you do with your lobster traps in the off-season? Make a wall, of course.

Apparently they drink a lot of soda and alcohol on Caye Caulker. These are just some of the empties, ready for recycling.

The empty water jugs were also impressive.

We had dinner at a fancy Italian place called Il Pelicano. We began with an antipasti plate . . .

. . . and followed up with a Salmone Pizza--Bechamel sauce, capers, red onion, orgonzola cheese, goat cheese, and smoked salmon. It was quite gourmet for a little beach town.