Ian's Visit La Costa Norte

Friday we made our way to La Ceiba on the north coast and stayed with my friend Cindy (below) for the night before heading to Cayos Cochinos.

Saturday morning our guide actually picked us up at Cindy’s house with no extra charge and took us to Sambo Creek, a Graifuna community east of La Ceiba, and from there we took a boat out to the keys about an hour of the coast. By the time we got there my abs were a little sore; it was quite choppy and Ian and I were sitting in the very front of the boat so we had to brace ourselves on every other wave. First we went to one island to check in and then our guide left us there for about 30 minutes with no explanation…hmm. Although we got a little impatient it was a good opportunity to meet the other people in the boat, one of which goes to Mercyhurst College in Pennsylvania and has been to Ashtabula, Ohio (the O’Donnell-McCarthy’s home town). What a small world!
Libny from Mercyhurst & me

Our guide finally got back and we went snorkeling and then on to the inhabited island for lunch, dancing, snake handling, coconut cracking, swimming, chatting with locals and relaxing.
After lunch they brought out the drums and everybody took turns dancing. I of course had to take a turn…Later on somebody came up to me and said “Mire es la chica que baila como negra.” Which means “Look it’s the girl who dances like a black [girl].”



Here I am holding a Boa Rosada (Pink Boa) which is apparently only found on the islands of Cayos Cuchinos. One of the locals found it on the big island and brought it over to where we were staying to show the tourists (and charge $1 to take a picture of it). Although it is small it is strong, I was amazed when it wrapped its tail around my forearm.
Ian decided that he wanted a coconut and that he wanted to open it himself, so Minor went in search of a coconut and then taught him how to open it using first a machete and then his teeth (brilliant). I dislike the taste of coconut but I did try this coconut and it was like nothing I have ever tried, and I liked it.
Our boat ride back was even bumpier than our ride out; I think the driver was in a hurry because we were all over the place. Again, our guide dropped us off at our next stop free of charge and we made our way to the Omega Lodge at Pico Bonito, a large national park on the north coast of Honduras. I was incredibly impressed by the lodge and was very intrigued by the signs in the bathrooms…

This was, by the way, very hard for me to do.

The next day we went rafting on the Rio Cangrejal on class 2 and 3 rapids. I was a little nervous beforehand but it wasn’t too scary. Ian and I were on one small raft with a guide.

This was our biggest drop


About halfway through the trip we stashed the rafts and hiked into the park to a waterfall.
Of course the boys had to jump off of something high (I passed this time).
Although I passed at the waterfall, I did jump farther on down the river. We got out of the rafts and climbed onto a boulder on the bank and jumped off into the river and then floated down the rest of the rapids without the raft. The jump was about 25 feet and I definitely did not want to do it, but I did in the end and I was very proud of myself since I am generally a wimp. We finished the day with more great food at the lodge (second best food I have had in Honduras) and more reading in hammocks and then spent the night in La Ceiba again before Ian flew out the next day.

The more tourist stuff I do the more I appreciate Honduras as a tourist destination (go figure). So, if anybody wants to visit I am always available to play tour guide.