Che Chem Ha Cave, Belize

Che Chem Ha is a cave located about 16 miles from San Ignacio, Belize. It is vastly different from some of the more touristy sites like ATM cave. Visitors get a more personal experience. Even our tour guide declared this as her favorite trip.
We were greeted at a small farm by a friendly dog named Brownie. He led us up a dirt path to his owner, William. William owns the property and discovered the cave several years ago while hunting with his dog. The cave is now on a national registry and William is its caretaker. His family farms the area, but William takes great pride in taking tourists to the cave himself. On this day, the entire group included William, myself, my boyfriend, our guide and Brownie.
We set off on an approximately 40 minute hike up the side of a mountain. William pointed out the flora and fauna along the way. We passed a large leaf cutter ant colony as well as termite homes in the trees. William also showed us orchids growing off the tree trunks.

Leaf Cutter Ant Colony

The hike was moderately strenuous. We had to use vines more than once to scale the steeper areas. Brownie trotted along beside us making the hike look easier than it was. I highly advise going in the mornings before the heat and humidity climb too high.

Brownie at the cave's entrance

Scorpion Spider

At the top of the trail, William signaled for us to stop and take a break. We sat on a wooden bench, re-hydrating and putting on our head lamps. The gated entrance to cave was visible in the mountainside. William unlocked the gate and instructed us to be cautious in the entrance as scorpions and snakes could be among the rocks. He showed us a large scorpion spider on the wall.
As we moved through the cave, beautiful pottery was found along the way. William explained that the Mayan considered the caves a path to the underworld. The pots were used to bring offerings. Unlike other cave sites in Belize, evidence of human sacrifice has not been found in Che Chem Ha.

The cave descended nine levels. We utilized ladders to reach the different levels as well as to reach ledges to view additional pottery samples. At the last level, the tunnel opened into a large cavern with an altar at the center. We explored small tunnels that extended off this room until we had to make our way back to farm.

Altar

I highly recommend a trip to Che Chem Ha. The cave was stunningly beautiful and William was a gracious host as well as an informative guide. You need to be in decent physical shape to reach it, but it is well worth the hike.