CheChem Hah Cave

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We had the fortune of touring the CheChem Hah cave with its founder, Will.

Will is a Mayan and Spanish decendant who lives at a farm type home with a few bulls and cows. In 1989, he was venturing out to find palm leaves (which are used for the roofs in many homes here, including our cabanas at the resort). His dogs ran off chasing something, and they came to a hole in a rock wall and barked to go in. Will removed some rocks (which he later learned were placed by Mayan people about 1200 years ago to seal off the cave) and noticed that it was very deep inside. Over the next few days, he cut some brush and moved rocks and explored the cave. He found large, clay pots instead and realized that the cave was significant. As it turns out, it was a cave used by the Myan people for religious ceremonies!

Today, the cave is recognized as an important archaeological find and is "owned" by Belize, but they've kept Will as the operator (and tour guide!) of the cave.

We drove about half an hour or so from San Ignacio, and then we hiked for about a mile or so through tropical forest. I hoped to see monkeys, but didn't. However, I did see Blue Morph butterflies, some lizards, many ants, huge spiders, and an orange centipede. As for the trees and floral growth, I got to see the black orchid (which is the national flower) and some plants that they referred to as "sensitive plants." When you touch the leaves of these plants, the leaves close up. The leaves are gigantic on most of the trees, and I took a few pictures of them to document how unbelievably large they were.

Anyway, after hiking through this dense forest, we made it up to the cave. Will let us in, and we were greeted by the largest spider I have ever seen. That was fun. We hiked over rocks and slick mud and saw our first pieces of Mayan pottery. The pots were much, much larger than I thought! Most were used as funeral pots. Will explained that, to the Mayan people, caves represented a way to the Underworld. As such, caves were used for the funeral ceremonies. In these ceremonys, the pots would be placed upside down and smashed--in a way, "releasing" the spirit. We saw a lot of these pots and pot fragments. Oh, and I also saw bats. Actually, I was climbing up one of the ladders to view some of the pottery pieces (no one has ever moved any of the pieces, so some of them remain on fairly tall cliff sections of the cave), and Will told me to turn around. I did, and I faced a fairly big group of bats, probably about three feet away. It was frightening (to me, who didn't expect it), so I hurried down off the ladder. Andrew proceeded to climb up for me to get a picture of the bats.

The CheCehm Hah cave had nine tiers. Getting down (and up) some of the tiers were tricky. We used ropes, ladders, and slippery clay steps, but (miraculously) all of us made it. One of the tiers had a giant stalactite and some stalagmites. We were taught that the Mayan people believed that there were three tiers to the world, and the tree of life connected them all. They viewed the stalactites as part of the tree of life. During one of their ceremonies referred to as the water ceremony, they would gather the water dripping from the stalactites (which they saw as holy water). Interesting!

We explored further into the cave. The last tier was a small area, but it contained an alter. Apparently, they would do blood letting ceremonies at the alter, which actually represented fertility. People weren't killed there, but they would cut people and pierce people in different areas. At this point, Will asked us all to turn off our headlamps. We did, and we all realized how dark it was in the cave. There is absolutely no light whatsoever. We learned that because there is no light, your eyes will never adjust to the darkness (because there's no light source to adjust to at all). The effect was eerie. I waved my hand in front of my face and touched my finger to my nose, but couldn't see a thing. Will lit a lighter at that point, and just that big of light was enough to illuminate the cave. That helped us to understand how torches could be very effective in a place like that.

I loved our adventure to CheChem Hah Cave. I loved the archaeological aspects of it, and I loved getting so close to the pottery (we could get as close as we wanted, but we couldn't touch). Andrew also had a great time on the tour, but I think his favorite time was seeing the bats and other creatures around the cave. All in all, it felt like a very memorable experience.

Oh, before I forget, Will mentioned that the history channel is releasing a special on the cave later this year, and he's the one narrating it! I'm eager to see it, and I hope you all have the chance to see it as well.

I'll be back soon to tell you about my next adventures! This afternoon, we plan on relaxing at the pool and climbing up the bird tour. Cross your fingers that I'll spot a toucan!

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Photos

Man Rides Donkey through Maya Mountains
We drove for an hour and a half through the Maya Mountains to get to the CheChem Hah cave.

Hiking Through Jungle
We hiked through pretty dense jungle to reach the cave. People have to clear areas like this with machetes to be able to walk through. The hike was worth it, not only for the cave, but to learn about the plants and trees as well.

Will & the Nut
Will washes a nut from the palm tree to crack it and show us what's inside. We're allowed to taste it, and I nibbled a tiny bit. It tasted a bit like watered down coconut.

CheChem Hah Cave Entrance
This entrance was originally sealed off with stones by the Mayans. No one entered it for nearly a thousand years until Will opened it back up. Andrew and I smile and get ready to go inside...

Look who greets us at the entrace of the cave.
This spider was (seriously, folks) as big as my hand.

Mayan Pottery
This is the first Mayan pot we came to. Much of the pottery is as old as 200 B.C., and it seemed to me that a lot of them were described as funeral pots. Will explained that the cave was viewed as an entrance to the underworld, and, as such, a lot of their funeral rites were performed in caves.

Pots on a Ledge
Will insists that no pots are moved inside the cave, so it's neat knowing that they're exactly where the Mayans left them. We had to climb ladders to see some of the pottery, like these here.

Look Behind You!
I turned, and there were bats. I was thrilled (or not...).

Stalctites
According to Mayan belief, there were three levels of the world, and the tree of life connected them all. The stalactites were considered to be the roots of the tree of life. They would use the water dripping from this stalactite as holy water.

Slippery Climb Down
The clay was very wet and slick, so we used ropes to help climb the stairs.

Tight Squeeze
I think this squeeze led us to the fifth tier of the cave. Will explained that there were nine tiers in the Mayan underworld, and nine tiers in the cave.

Blood Letting Alter
Here's a picture of the blood-letting alter at the ninth and final tier of the cave. In the circle of stones is also an incense burner.

Climbing back
Andrew climbs back up a ladder on our way out.

Hiking Back
We're significantly more muddy this time.

An Orange Millipede
I was the first one to spot this guy in our path.

Fearless Andrew
A bull comes running to Andrew. I would have cried out and run away, but Andrew simply held out his hand. The bull licked it and turned away to start eating the grass.

Andrew Enjoys Belizean Beer
Andrew has a beer on the bumpy trip back to the resort.

Comments

[Colleen/Mom]

LOVE IT!
I'm SO thrilled with this great trip and the wonderful adventures you are enjoying! It is just spectacular and I love reading all about it. I'm very anxious for the pix upon your return. Keep having a wonderful time and I look forward to hearing more and seeing you on your return!. Love, Mom/CMS