El Mirador

In November last year, I embarked on the 5 Day trek to El Mirador, a Mayan archaeological site hidden deep in the Guatemalan jungle. The site can only be reached by helicopter or trekking  through the jungle, so this was a very special experience. 

Much of the site is yet to be fully excavated, and is still hidden beneath layers and years of earth, plants and trees. This is quite symbolic, when you learn that the site was abandoned twice in it's history- the first time because the Mayans had used up all the natural resources in the surrounding area to build the city, so it was no longer habitable. They then returned generations later once the surrounding jungle had regrown. It seems that all these years later, the jungle and natural world has reclaimed the land and swallowed up all of the man-made structures. Perhaps a humbling reminder that nature will always prevail over civilisation? (Insert Jeff Goldblum 'life finds a way' meme here).

This trek was one of the hardest things I have ever done, but I am so glad I did it. It gave me a whole new appreciation for my body and mind and what I am capable of.

Over the 5 days, we walked more that 45 miles, took 176,051 steps and endured thousands* of mosquito bites. 

*a slight exaggeration but I assure you, it was bad. 

We waded through water, thick mud, dense vegetation, spikey trees, oh, and did I mention the thousands of mosquitos?! But watching the sun rise and set, and gazing at the stars from the top of some of the oldest mayan pyramids, with nothing but jungle and the sounds of monkeys surrounding us, made it all worth it. 

We booked our tour through Getway Tours in Flores, and there were 4 of us in the group - as well as our tour guide and two others who set up camp, carried equipment on the mules and prepared our meals. The guides were fantastic. The did all the hardwork so all we had to worry about each day was walking.

Thankfully, we had a very good group. We got on really well, helped one another when needed and no one really complained (despite some of the group coming down with a 24 hour stomach bug). We joked that the trek was just 'good vibes and mosquitos bites', but it really was. 

I thought I would have made more notes or written more insightful thoughts and feelings about the experience in my journal, but I didnt really have any. When the trail was easy and we werent tredding through mud and water, it was actually quite meditative, and for the first time in perhaps my whole adult life, my mind was relatively empty. 

It was a relief to have no worries from any trivial matters that come up in our day to day life, such as 'what am I going to wear?', and, 'does this person like me?', and, 'have I met this deadline?', etc. On the trek, our main concerns were very primative and all about survival. All we had to do was focus on putting one foot in front of the other- and making sure we ate, drank and slept enough to keep that up.

After 5 days, I was smelly, my hair was a mess, I was covered in dirt and mosquito bites, but I didn't care. And thankfully, neither did anyone else, because we were all in the same boat. This was very freeing. 

Here is a little recap of our little trek: 

Day 1

We were picked up from our hostel in Flores around 5am, where we were greeted by the other twohikers that would be joining us on the trek. We drove down a very long bumpy road to get to Carmalita, the base village in the National Park where we started our journey. We had breakfast, and then handed over any belongings we wouldn't need for the actual walking that day, and then set off.

As we chose to embark on the trek during the end of rainy season, a lot of the trail was covered in very thick mud and water. Where possible, new routes had been cut through the trees to make our journey easier. We had to duck under branches, swing around tree trunks (being careful to avoid any trees covered in spikes), balance on logs to cross the mud and water, and run very quickly whenever we saw ants.

Eventually, we would come to an area that was so flooded, there was no other way around. So, we had to set aside our pride and just trapse through the water - with our shoes on. 

This all reminded me of an article I read once about how adults do not play enough, and that it is very important. You really have to loose your inhibitions, put aside your self esteem and fear of looking silly, and just dive straight in. Literally. Just dive right into the mud and water.

We had a quick break for lunch where we were greeted with sandwiches, melon and cartons of fruit juice, before continuing the hike. The afternoon went fairly smoothly, and we even saw some monkeys! We reached the first site, El Tintal, by late afternoon and had a little explore, with our guide pointing out some of the structures including a ballcourt, before arriving at camp.

We refueled with coffee and watermelon, before making our way to the top of one of the structures in El Tintal for sunset. 

We stayed up there long after the sun went down and just gazed at the moon, stars and milky way. We even saw mars, Jupiter, shooting stars and satellites. 

We then had dinner, showered with buckets of water, left pur shoes to dry by the fire and went to sleep in our tents.

Day 2

I really struggled this morning. I had very little sleep on account of the early wake up, sore legs and my itchy mosquito bites keeping me awake most of the night. Not to mention, my face was incredible puffy and swollen - both a result of the lack of sleep and the mosquitos that relentlessly attacked my face the day before. 

I do remember listening to the guides all chatting and laughing over breakfast, which was really infectious. My friend mentioned how nice it is to hear people laughing so much as we never really notice this in the city or back home. And it's true, I've never heard people so happy and full of life at 6am.

I decided I needed some motivation this day, so put in my earphones and listened to some Beyoncé and an episode of My Favorite Murder which really helped lift my mood and take my mind off my ailments. 

Our guide pre-warned us that there would be 'Mas agua' on the route today, so to make things easier, we would take an extra long lunch break. After stopping for lunch and having a little lie down, I awoke with a whole new lease on life. It seems all I needed was a 20 minute nap and I was reborn and ready to face the rest of the trail and tackle the 'Mas agua'. I decided to save my shoes this time and walk barefoot, which was actually really fun. I balanced across branches and waded into the water, and aside from muddy feet and one little spike in my heel, I was ok!

We arrived at camp in the El Mirador site, had a dinner of spaghetti with a side of freshly made tortillas, and hit the hay.

Day 3

This was the best day of the trek. We awoke very early in the morning to watch the sunrise from the top of El Tigre, one of the Mayan pyramids that was near our camp. Of course, we cannot properly function without cafeine, so we clambered up the pyramid trying not to spill our mugs of hot coffee. 

There have been a few moments on my backpacking trip where I just can't believe this is my life right now, and all I can do is just gaze in admiration and try to hold back tears. 

Watching this sunrise was one of those moments. The sky was a beautiful, soft pink, and all we could see surrounding us was lush, green jungle, and layers of mist hovering over the canopy and covering the treetops like spider webs. All we could hear were howler monkeys and Toucans, the buzzing of dragonflies and we even had a large vulture circling us, before landing on a nearby branch and basking in the glow of the sunrise. 

I made a mental note to find more moments like this when I eventually go back home. Where I can just stop and take time to appreciate the world around me. 

We arrived back at camp and enjoyed a special breakfast of pancakes(!), and then went off to explore the site. I will save you all the details, as you will find more accurate information on the site's history and architecture online. But this was fascinating. We were also incredibly lucky as there were no helicopter tours on this day, so we had the whole site to ourselves, so could fully explore and climb up the structures without seeing another soul. 

We enjoyed some delicious soup for lunch and relaxed in hammocks for the rest of the afternoon, before going to watch the sunset from La Danta, the tallest pyramid on the site and the largest pyramid by volume in the world!

We saw lots of storm clouds on the horizon with bright lightening, and then once the sun went down, we were reunited with the beautiful stars and constellations. 

We also saw a grey fox, bats, some small snakes and a tarantula on the way back to camp, which made us all very excited.

Day 4

Alas, after two nights at the site, it was time to leave our home sweet home and begin the trek back to Carmelita.

On the way back, we stopped to look at some more ruins and even got to go inside one structure called La Muerta - which was once a tomb with living quarters built above. We squeezed into the small, dark space and through tight tunnels, and saw some very big cave spiders and moths. Luckily no one was fazed, and we were all fascinated by the creatures. 

Despite having to trapse back through the mud and water, there was something quite comforting about walking a trail that was familiar. We actually hiked very quickly this day - I'm not sure why? It just seemed like we had found our hiking legs and were on a mission to get to camp as fast as possible. Luckily, our speedy hike paid off, as we arrived at camp just as a huge downpour started. 

We relaxed in hammocks and then had a little nap in our tents before devouring a dinner of stirfried vegetables and noodles, with a side of fresh tortillas, naturally.

The campsites were very basic, but what else do you expect with being deep in the jungle? The shower was just a cubicle with a bucket of water, and the toilet was a room made of plastic sheeting and a small wooden bench with a hole. But, this all added to the experience. It is vastly different from anything else I have done on my trip so far and being a bit of a hippie/eco warrior, I really enjoyed sleeping in the jungle in tents. And after spending long days hiking, anything would feel luxurious. 

Day 5 

I don't have any exciting moments from this day, other than the promise of a shower, clean clothes, and comfortable bed that evening really motivated us. 

Oh, I did also get a big cluster of ticks on my leg! But luckily someone noticed and our guide ordered the others to quickly spray me with a lot of bug spray, so I was saved. 

We had breakfast at camp and set of early again. This time we didn't stop for lunch, just had some quick snack breaks and kept on plodding on. We encountered some groups of hikers just starting the trek which was funny. They were all full of energy and fresh faced where as we looked like we had been to and back. Hopefully we didn't scare them too much! 

Once we arrived at Carmalita,  we changed into some-what clean clothes (for me, this was my pyjamas!) and washed the mud of our shoes in buckets of water. I also had to throw away my trousers because they were beyoncpd saving. 

We enjoyed a nice lunch before getting in the car and heading back to Flores and re-entering civilisation. 

Highlights of the trek

Of course, watching the sunset and sunrise from the top of Mayan ruins. Something I will remember forever.

I also really liked being disconnected from the outside world and having no phone signal whatsoever. It meant we could really enjoy the experience and fully immerse ourselves without any distractions. How often do we have opportunities like that in day-to-day life?

My advice 

Take more big spray than you think you will need, especially if going during the rainy season or just after (like we did).

Take comfortable hiking shoes and something to wear around camp in the evening. Make sure you wear shoes that you don't mind getting muddy or wet.

Pack lots of snacks! Things like nuts and granola bars are best. Even if you don't feel hungry, the thought of having a little snack when we took a moment to rest gave me a much needed energy boost and some motivation. 

We were advised to wear light coloured, loose clothing to help avoid mosquito bites. I can confirm this really works, so I advise you pack a few sets of clothes that fit this description - unless you fancy wearing the same outfit everyday like me :)

Take some hydration tablets or powder sachets to add to water. The jungle is hot, and you are doing a lot of walking so will sweat. I really think my tablets saved me from getting dehydrated. 

Have fun! It is going to be tough, but it is a truly incredible experience that very few people will get to enjoy. 

Also, if you take a jar of peanut butter, make sure you close the lid very tight or ants will find a way in. I learnt this the hard way :(