You might think it would be difficult to get a baby to nap on a speedboat, but Logan is a pro.

The one tour I really wanted to do while we were in this part of Belize was a tour of Monkey River. We were lucky enough to book with Percy of Barebones Tours. Percy is from Monkey River Town and knows the area and its flora and fauna inside and out.

Travel to Monkey River begins with a 20-minute speedboat ride from Placencia through the mangroves.

Once we were on the river itself, Percy stopped periodically to show us the rainforest’s bounty. We ate rose-colored cocoplums straight from the tree and tried a podlike fruit that was very much like a banana.

Rainforest GeekaPa.

The baby, who is teething, was super into the sugarcane. Ami wouldn’t try it. More for Asa!

Percy pulled the boat onto a small bank surrounded by palms and vines and warned us to bathe in bug spray because we were heading into the rainforest for a short hike. Thankfully, he also had special bug shirts! Logan and I had permethrined our pants before leaving Austin and we tried to cover the rest of ourselves in DEET, but the mosquitoes found any unprotected patch of skin. I’ve never seen swarms of mosquitoes like this!

We saw stands of bamboo that were larger than any I’d ever seen – yes, including Arashiyama!

Ami was enthralled by the wildlife. Percy showed her the sap of the glue tree and banged on trees and made “YOWP” noises to call the howler monkeys. We got to see several jumping through the branches above!

Our little adventurer was completely in her element.

This is under a tree that was full of howler monkeys – notice Logan assiduously avoiding the poop.

Then, back in the boat! Percy sped away trying to lose the mosquitoes that had decided to come along with us. Around a turn in the river, he offered the opportunity to swim. Logan and Ami took him up on it, of course.

Then, it was time for a stop in Monkey River Village, where we had a nice lunch and bought some souvenirs. Ami was not interested at all in eating, but did make some friends who she played with while the rest of us ate our chicken with rice and beans.

And then, back to Placencia! Please turn the volume up if you enjoy the sound of my nervous laughter.

Percy took us back through town on a different route, where we got to see the water taxi stands and the expensive houses, as well as lots and lots of iguanas sunning themselves in the middle of the hot afternoon.

Thanks for everything, Percy and Barebones Tours!