The Nohoch Ch’en Expedition members
Photo of expedition members joining FCD staff on Expedition to Nohoch Ch’en for a two week research project. Nohoch Ch’en is the largest sinkhole in the Chiquibul Forest.
For a WONDERFUL and BEAUTIFUL photo essay entitled "Personal Triumph, Patriotic Heartache" on the expedition, click here (photos by Tony Rath).
Photograph by Tony Rath, story told by Therese Rath
Drop Into the Green - The Nohoch
Ch’en Expedition
By Marguerite Fly Bevis
The seeds for the Nohoch Ch’en Expedition were planted years ago
when Neil Rogers flew over the Chiquibul Forest and took the first
images we had ever seen of the giant sinkhole. My husband, Jim
Bevis, owner and operator of Mountain Equestrian Trails (MET),
Cayo kept that photo above his desk for the next twenty odd years.
This was one expedition he was determined to make happen. Jim
approached Mr. Rafael Manzanero, Executive Director of Friends for
Conservation & Development (FCD), for endorsement and to ensure
that an expedition into this massive sinkhole would be beneficial to
the development of the FCD Karst Management Program in this
remote area of the Chiquibul. The answer was, “Let’s do it.”
The purpose of the expedition would be to document one of the
most remote, rugged and unexplored locations in Belize and to
hopefully further justify to Belize and the world, the uniqueness and
value of this region as a potential World Heritage site. The Nohoch
Ch’en sinkhole, the largest of 49 collapsed doline formations that
are located mostly over the Chiquibul Cave System, is located in an
area where surface water is very scarce, making it challenging to
explore for long periods of time. Very little scientific information was
available for this region of the Chiquibul National Park, let alone the
forest environment at the bottom of the 650’ wide and 450’ deep
sinkhole. In the year 2000, several members of the Millennium
Expedition descended by rope into the sinkhole and made brief
observations, but time did not permit exploration and little data was
collected, as this was not the main focus of their expedition.
Jim spent months studying maps, making lists, planning every
detail. He assembled a seasoned exploration team for the project:
Jim Bevis, expedition leader, Marguerite Bevis (myself), camp nurse
and communications coordinator, and our son, Arran Bevis, area
exploration leader, have all led and outfitted expeditions into the
Chiquibul since the early 90’s. Jim Allan, a world-class alpine climber
and explorer, instructed and supervised the difficult technical climbs
required. Neil Rogers is an adventure travel specialist who took the
photo that inspired us all. Tony Rath, photographer extraordinaire,
who’s well known images have attracted worldwide attention to
the beautiful Jewel that is Belize, offered major support during the
planning and implementation phase. Therese Rath, Tony’s lovely,
vivacious, and energetic wife, was invited along to assist Tony and to
cook, which she did amazingly.
Bruce Holst, of The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens is perhaps the world’s top specialist in
epiphytes and other tropical
forest plant species. He has
been doing research in Belize
for over 20 years and has
collected and catalogued over
10,000 species of different
flora here. Bruce’s assistant,
Ella Baron, founder of the
Caves Branch Botanical
Gardens, also became a part
of the team. They would
spend all day finding and
mapping new specimens, and
then work for hours in the
evenings sorting, identifying
and pressing, plus saving live
specimens for various botanical gardens, including the National
Herbarium in Belize.
Other team members included Giovanni Martinez, level 3 rope
rigger and natural history expert, as the rescue technician and lead
medic; Nickolas Lormand, a film student from New Mexico; Joey
Martinez, camp cook and “chain-saw Ninja”, when it came to
clear the old logging road for the expedition to navigate deep in the
Chiquibul; Hugo Orellano, camp cook and maintenance man; and
Jairo ViaFranco, the “bush”mechanic who was able to fix anything
and saved the day on several occasions.
The FCD Rangers were essential team members. Gliss Penados and
Boris Arevalo contributed significantly to the scientific component
of the expedition gathering data and mapping areas by GPS. There
were other FCD Rangers whose vigilance and knowledge of the
area, made for a safe working and living environment. These are the
brave sentinels of the Chiquibul. They kept guard day and night and
reported their observations of the presence of potential intruders.
Their dedication and commitment to conserving the Chiquibul is
inspiring.
Having loaded two trailers, one with supplies, the other with
passengers, twenty team members began the journey on January
26, 2015 into the deepest parts of the Chiquibul Forest Reserve. We
drove the tractors/trailers to FCD’s Tapir Camp where we spent
the first night. We travelled the good road almost to Millonario
but at that point, we had to reopen an old logging road for about
ten kilometers to the base camp location at the pass below Nohoch
Ch’en. Reopening the road took three days. On the fourth day, after
hours of backbreaking labor, just before dark, we set camp at our
final destination.
MET donated a Weatherhaven 20’x20’shelter to FCD. This was
an opportunity to instruct the FCD Rangers to set it up for use as a
base camp facility. The tent housed a charging station for everyone’s
electronics and was powered by a small generator for a few hours
a day to charge the 12 volt batteries for continued use after the
generator was turned off. A large table was in the center for food
preparation and serving. Along the edges of this tent was storage for
food and equipment.
A water station was constructed to filter the dark tea-colored water
brought from a Maya aguada every other day by tractor. After
filtration the water was still slightly colored but purification drops
were added for additional protection and nobody became ill.
On the first morning at the base camp, the scientists and
photographers went to the top of the sinkhole for the first glimpse
and images of this magnificent natural wonder. Others stayed in
camp to set up the large shelter and a kitchen and build sanitary
facilities. Thus began the daily routine of exploration and discovery.
While some descended into the sinkhole by bosun’s chair, others
continued to search for a source of water closer to camp and for an
above ground entrance to the giant underground chambers of the
Chiquibul Cave.
The scientists were constantly at work searching for epiphytes,
and they were excited by what they found. Dr. Holst found over 50
species of orchids alone. Specimens have been sent to Marie Selby
Gardens. At the bottom they discovered large boulders covered with
mosses, ferns, and orchids, and a profusion of epiphytes.
Getting to the bottom of the sinkhole was not easy. A Harken winch
helped to lower people down to a ledge about a third of the way down
into the hole and then they could carefully make their way to the
bottom. Each member was carefully harnessed and double checked
for safety before descending or ascending.
Team members discovered small shallow holes in the vertical walls
all around the sinkhole. One small cavern could be seen from across
the rim and at the entrance were large Mayan pots. Climbers spent
a day and a half accessing this cave, to photograph the three large
storage urns.
What we know for sure is that the bottom of the sinkhole had not
been explored or looted by modern man and it is extremely rich with
various plants and epiphytes. Bruce Holst called the sinkhole and its
rim, “exceptionally rich beyond words.”The only mammals seen in
the sinkhole were Spider Monkeys that climbed effortlessly in and
out of the sinkhole via cascading vines. A pair of Orange-Breasted
Falcons were seen every day and are likely nesting in the sinkhole
cliffs, but no nest was seen. Slate-colored Solitaires could be heard
singing their incomparable flute-like song most days.
There also appears to be Mayan ceremonial temples on the west
and east rims of the sinkhole and temples with plazas were found
for miles in every direction near the sinkhole hill. Ancient Mayan
agricultural terraces were everywhere. It became evident that the
Maya did climb down into the sinkhole to build ceremonial places
to leave pottery or mementos, presumably to honor the dead. It is
unlikely anyone lived there.
There is no water in the bottom of the hole; however, possibly it was
there in the day of the Maya. Nohoch Ch’en means great well and
water was a precious resource then and now. There was an aguada
at the base of a Maya site near our base camp, which still holds
water today. There was very little water elsewhere - a few muddy
puddles but no creeks, no rivers. Water is the major limiting factor
in planning this and future expeditions.
Also evident during the expedition, is that the area is heavily
trafficked by intruders. There was a lot of Guatemalan branded
trash around their campsites and trails. They are not taking just
Xate; they are taking valuable hardwoods and wildlife and leaving
behind garbage.
The area is at risk of becoming one big Guatemalan milpa. The
issues are complex and there is no simple answer. In order to
protect the Chiquibul, FCD requires the finances to sustain the
efforts on the ground. Concerned citizens at home and abroad can
help by supporting FCD. To know more on how to help visit the
www.fcdbelize.org website.
The Chiquibul Forest is rich in biodiversity. The bottom of
the sinkhole is a virtual time capsule of plant specimens and
undisturbed Mayan relics. Mayan terraces and buildings abound.
Consider that also within the Chiquibul Forest is the natural
bridge, “Puente Natural” and the Chiquibul Cave System, the
largest cave system in Central America, not to mention the Mayan
city of Caracol. The Upper Macal and Raspaculo Rivers are nesting
grounds for the endangered Scarlet Macaw and have an abundance
of wildlife. Let’s not forget that these are the headwaters for the
Belize River, possibly your drinking water. The Chiquibul Forest is
important not only for Belizeans but for the world. It is our unique
and irreplaceable natural and cultural heritage.
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