June 30, 2007

After much humming and hawing we had decided to enter into Honduras via the El Florido crossing, rather than Corinto.

Corinto is on the Atlantic coast and would have been a much more direct route from Rio Dulce. But after reading in their travel blog about another couple’s prolonged/extremely frustrating experience trying to cross at Corinto, we settled on the more circuitous, but predictable, El Florido option.

Before driving to Rio Hondo, we had spent the morning at the Finca El Paraiso waterfall, which is on the north side of Lago Ixbal, about a 30 kilometre drive on a slow-going dirt road from Rio Dulce.

The Rough Guide to Central America had listed the waterfall it as one of the “Top 28 Things Not to Miss” on the trip. Although the jungle setting was attractive and the sulphur heated water cresting off the ledge created an idyllic oasis in the river, in comparison to say, the Palenque ruins, it really didn’t rate.

Factor in the time spent getting there and back, and we wouldn’t recommend it.

We spent our last night in Guatemala camped in the courtyard parking lot of the Hotel in the Hotel y Restaurante Pasabien highway town of Rio Hondo.

It was secure, and right next to one of the nicest pools/pool decks we had seen on the trip. Across the street is Comedor Yolandos, where they sell thick tortillas made fresh to order on a wood-fired grill. We felt completely satiated and refreshed by the time we retreated into the van for the evening to listen to drink red wine and listen to our I-pod.

(The parking lot of a large balneario (water park) that we had passed several kilometers east of Rio Hondo was going to be our back plan if we couldn’t find a place to camp in town).

The 90 minute drive on CA-10 from Rio Hondo to El Florido was very scenic as climbed up and descended down several mountain sides, passing through only a few villages and the occasional Mayan family on the side of the street resplendent in their colourful clothing.

El Florido itself is tucked into narrow mountain pass and there were only a few other cars and collectives lined up by the time we reached the tiny, sleepy border in mid morning.

The mechanics of crossing thee border here were:

1. Park the van;
2. Get our passports stamped at the Guatemala immigration window
3. get our passports stamped at the Honduras immigration window
4. Pull forward about 100 metres to the Honduran customs building
5. Have the van paperwork filled out.

It was all very orderly, even professional, and with short lineups, few swarming guides and aggressive money changers, and no decrepit semis blocking the road, it took us only about an hour before we were on our way.

From the border it was only 10 kilometres or so to the town of Copan, our first stop in Honduras.

Key Facts & Figures:

-camping, Hotel y Resturante Pasabien: $14.30
-El Parasio waterfall: $2.25/person

Guatemala Border crossing

-exit fee: $5/person

Honduras Border Crossing

-Vehicle Fee: $29