After a good night sleep thanks to my adventure last night in Punta Izopo, I am ready for a new adventure. I booked the motorcycle tour in Tela with Garifuna Tours. This is just another of the many great tours that they offer. As with most of their tours, the departure point is at their offices next to the Lancetilla River in downtown Tela. They have made sure that I know how to ride a motorcycle. If you have no previous experience driving a motorcycle, then this tour is simply not for you. The standard equipment for this tour are Yamaha XT 125 and XT250 off-road bikes. However, they also offer the possibility of an upgrade to Kawasaki KLR 650 bikes.
Available equipment for the Motorcycle Tour in Tela
To be completely honest, it has been a few years since I rode on a motorcycle. Yet this motorcycle tour in Tela sounds like a lot of fun! Last time I was on a bike was about 7 years ago in Nicaragua, when I rented a motorcycle to go around the island of Ometepe. As a kid, I used to run around on a motorcycle all the time. You know they say that once you learn how to ride a bike, you never forget! The same applies to a motorcycle. So despite my lack of recent motorcyle practice, I was feeling confident and decided I wanted to ride the big bike, so I went ahead and paid for the upgrade for the tour. I confess I was a bit hesitant about the bigger, heavier bike, but I did quite well and managed it just fine!
Our route took us on a dirt road near the Lancetilla Botanical Garden. This is the largest of the botanical gardens in Atlantida. As a matter of fact, it is the largest tropical botanical garden in the Americas! The road went through a hilly area with diverse vegetation along the road. We crossed the La Esperanza River and then continued towards the beach, pretty much on the outer limits of the Jeannette Kawas National Park. Eventually, we arrived at the Garifuna Village known as Miami. This was the ideal spot to relax for a while. One of the local Garifunas offered me a coconut he had just harvested from a coconut tree. I was not aware of how thirsty I was until I drank all the coconut water in it! Miami sits between Los Micos Lagoon and the Caribbean Sea.
Enjoying a unique ride in Tela. Photo: Courtesy of Garifuna Tours
The beach was way to tempting, and I ended up taking a plunge into the Caribbean Sea before we continued our route back towards Tela. We followed a different route this time along a road that was parallel to the beach. Next, went through the Garifuna Village of Tornabe and on towards San Juan and Tela. We did a quick stop at Honduras Shores Plantation, as I really wanted to visit the Tela Coral Aquarium. The facility is small, but it was well worth the visit! As we drove into Tela, I could not help but smile as I pondered on the fact that in two days, I have been to three of the National Parks in Tela: Punta Izopo, Lancetilla Gardens and Jeannette Kawas National Park!
It is a shame that so many visitors are not aware of the nature experiences available in Tela and surrounding areas. I must confess that this motorcycle Tour of Tela was one of the best adventures I have enjoyed in Atlantida!
