Today we got up early and took the 8AM ferry to Caya Caulker, for the Manatee Watch tour. The trip did not leave until 10 so we had some time to explore the island. It was much less developed and low key than San Pedro, probably a bit more our style, but also a bit dirtier. Had coffee and piece of cake at a beach front lounge/shack.The tour was on a smaller boat with a wimpy 60 HP Yamaha (most boats have dual 200 HP, v6 engines). A cold front has entered so the wind is starting to blow at a constant 10-20 MPH creating some pretty big waves. We pass by several smaller islands one owned by a guy from Kentucky that had 2 air ports and a golf course on it in addition to the huge homes. It took probably close to an hour to an hour to reach the park for viewing Manatees. We saw small guy at a distance on the first stop. Some times they come right up to the boat, he did not. We tried a couple more spots but just saw one more at a far distance. It was fun exploring the mangroves though. The day was partly sunny, just enough to worry about a sun burn. We stopped at a small slightly developed island for lunch and fresh fruit. They miss calculated on food so Wendi and I shared a lunch. Got a few nice pictures of the Caribbean blue water.
From there we started to head back home and to do a little snorkeling. On the way the Italian girl spotted some dolphins which kept us entertained for along time as they played with the boat. Mostly swimming below our right in front of us. Got some great pictures and movies of them. The Italian couple were nice, she had worked at the Eastman House for several months learning about art restoration. They had been touring Guatemala for several weeks and really enjoyed the country, and did a lot of hiking. They wind really picked up and sea got really rough. The little boat was really pounding the waves. It turned into quite an adventure. We did head out to the reef and attempted some snorkeling. We were all a bit nervous as the waves were high and the sky dark and threatening.
The reef was very nice here but very few fish. We did get to see a really big leopard spotted ray going through the reef it was so graceful, just slowly gilding to the contour of the reef. We stopped at a 2nd spot to snorkel but only a few of us went in, Wendi and included. I was not in long before I got cold. From there. It was a short trip back to Caya Caulker. We had a beer while waiting for the ferry back to San Pedro. The ride back was even bumpy in the bigger water ferry. It was raining in San Pedro and started to pour not long after we got back. So much for going out for dinner, the ham and cheese sandwich tasted great!
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