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Beneath the chain of volcanoes that bounds the southern side of the highlands is a strip of sweltering, low-lying land some 300km long and 50km wide, known by Guatemalans simply as La Costa Sur . This featureless yet supremely fertile coastal plain - once a wilderness of swamp, forest and savanna - is today a land of vast fincas, scattered with uninteresting commercial towns and small seaside resorts. The Pacific coast was once as rich in wildlife as the jungles of Peten, but while Peten has lain relatively undisturbed, the Pacific coast has been ravaged by development. Its large-scale agriculture - sugar cane, palm oil, cotton and rubber plantations - accounts for a substantial proportion of the country's exports. Only in some isolated sections, where mangrove swamps have been spared the plough, can you still get a sense of the maze of tropical vegetation which once covered it. The Monterrico Reserve is the most accessible protected area, a swampy refuge for sea turtles, iguanas, crocodiles and an abundance of bird life. As for the archeological sites, they too have largely disappeared, though you can glimpse the extraordinary art of the Pipil around the town of Santa Lucia Cotzumalguapa . Here, a few small ceremonial centres, almost lost in fields of sugar cane, reveal a wealth of carvings, some of them still regularly used for religious rituals. The one site that ranks with those elsewhere in the country is Abaj Takalik , whose ruins are well worth a detour on your way to or from Mexico, or as a day-trip from Quetzaltenango or nearby Retalhuleu. The main attraction should be the beach , but as nature has cursed the coast with mosquitoes and unpredictable sea currents, and man has added filthy palm huts, pig pens and garbage, it's not. The hotels are also some of the country's worst, so if you're desperate for a dip and a fresh shrimp feast, it's best to visit as a day-trip from the capital or Quetzaltenango. The one glorious exception to this rule is the nature reserve of Monterrico , which harbours an attractive village and what may be the country's finest beach, with a superb stretch of clean sand. The main route through the region is the Carretera al Pacifico , which runs from the border with Mexico at Tecun Uman into El Salvador at Ciudad Pedro de Alvarado. It's the country's swiftest highway and you'll never have to wait long for a bus. Venture off the Carretera al Pacifico, however, and things slow down considerably, with irregular bus services and poorly maintained roads.
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