An Underground Adventure

Thursday 7th September found me trying my hand at another completely new experience. This time it was caving. The Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave (or ATM cave as it more commonly known) is located at the edge of the Belizean Rainforest. The name translates as the cave of the Stone Sepulcher and was a cave used by the Ancient Mayans for religious rituals mainly contacting the spirits, and in the times of extreme drought, human sacrifices to appease the gods of rain and harvests.

We reached the cave entrance after a 45 minute trek through the jungle. Then it was time to don hardhats and headlamps as we plunged neckdeep into the icy cold waters to swim into the cave. Swimming whilst wearing hiking boots is an interesting experience. Once into the main body of the cave we spent the next three hours exploring. Often waist deep in water we were scrambling over rocks, climbing through small jagged opening between rocks, generally getting bumped and scraped. Without the lights on it was bitch black and quite frightening. We encountered some wildlife, alot of bats and a very large variety of spider called the scorpion spider. You wouldn't want to wake up with that monster climbing on you.

The views within the cave were amazing. The formations of limestones over the millions of years were astounding with stalagmites and stalactite's every were you look. What makes this cave truly unique though and the reason National Geographic did a 16 page spread on it is the fact that some Mayan pots and skeletons remain in situ. The reason being that over the hundreds of years since it was last used, limestone has formed around the objects effectively sealing them into the rock floor. The pots were filled with food and drink and left as offerings to the gods. A small piece of the rim of the pot would be broken and this would let the spirit of the pot loose so the Gods and the ancestor's would be able to enjoy the offerings. A similar custom is still going today in Spain and Latin American countries when offerings are left out on the day of the dead (October 31st going into November 1st) We only celebrate Halloween.

To get into the sacrificial part of the cave involved climbing up 5 metres vertically, hauling ourselves up the rockface. This is not easy for those of us with little legs. Once up we had to make the rest of the journey in socks only to avoid damaging the cave any more. Again this was not without pain. The cave floor is not smooth but extremely rugged and sharp. It was well worth it though and to see a complete skeleton in situ is remarkable. It won't be long before this cave is either closed to tourists (It has open been open a couple of years - and only rediscovered and mapped in the early nineties) or more likely it won't be long before unscrupulous operators go in and the artifacts are destroyed. Again this has been a remarkable adventure - that's two in a week. What will I be doing next I wonder...