Fodor's Expert Review El Boquerón

Perhaps the most beautiful of Guatemala's natural wonders, El Boquerón is a narrow limestone canyon whose 180-meter (590-foot) walls are covered in foliage heavy with hanging moss. Hummingbirds dance around lavish blooms, blue morpho butterflies flutter between branches, and kingfishers dive at minnows. Sometimes howler monkeys visit the trees nearby—listen for their thunderous cries in the late afternoon. All along the canyon you can climb rocks and explore caves filled with clinging bats. Close to the entrance is a turnoff past a giant ceiba tree that leads to several thatch huts along the river; the proprietors, Antonio and Miguel, provide roughly fashioned kayukos (canoes) that you can rent for a ride through the canyon. The water is clean and cool, and great for swimming except after a heavy rain, when all the local rivers turn a muddy brown.