Off to Turneffe Flats

This morning we departed for Belize City after a leisurely breakfast. Along the way, we stopped at the Belize Zoo and saw all the animals we hadn't seen at Pooks, like crocodile, jaguar, tapir and harpy eagle, just to name a few. The zoo is small, and all the animals are rescued from situations that they likely would not have survived. Miguel drove us to Belize City and dropped us off at the Ramada where we were to meet our boat transfer to Turneffe Flats. As we walked in, we ran into Chris, the assistant manager of the lodge. Chris is also from Missoula and a fellow fishing guide friend of Evan's. We had a couple hours to kill so we grabbed lunch at the poolside bar and wandered along waterfront while we waited for the rest of the guest to arrive. We departed from the dock late in the afternoon for our 30-mile trek across the water to Turneffe Atoll. The lodge is on the far side of the atoll so we entered into the mangroves right before dark and arrived at the lodge pretty much at dark. We all walked into the lodge and were welcomed by the staff with welcome drinks and appetizers. It was a very comfortable lodge - nice but not fancy. Comfortable enough to just relax and hang out without feeling the need to be dressed up. Everyone had a few moments to settle into their rooms and then dinner was served. Everyone sat in various groups and got to know all our fellow-lodge guests for the next week. That night we walked along the beach and listened to the surf before turning in for the night.