Rise and shine! Today, we’re exploring the sacred ATM cave. ATM stands for Actun Tunichil Muknal, which translates to Cave of the Stone Sepulcher. A journey through this cave challenges the mind, body and spirit for any adventurer. Are you ready to join me? Let’s go!
Meeting the Convoy
Our adventure began bright and early at Benge’s Cost Less, where we awaited our convoy, guide and safety gear. While preparing for our expedition, I threw on a synthetic top, sturdy synthetic hiking shorts, wicking socks, and a pair of waterproof Keen Newports.
I needed to visit the restroom before we hit the road. So, I paid the shopkeeper a quarter to use the facilities. For my investment, I gained access to the back stockroom where I found questionable toilets with broken seats inside shoddy green wood structures. Yikes.
Minutes later, our convoy headed toward the ATM cave. Located within the Mountain Tapir Reserve in Belize’s Cayo District, this sacred cave system sits squarely in the jungle. As we drove past teak and mahogany farms, our driver rolled down his window to chat with a nearby fellow on horseback about buying the second horse he had with him. After the negotiation, we splashed through a small river and approached the expedition staging area.
Trekking Through the Jungle
Vehicles parked along the left. Bathrooms, changing rooms and picnic areas sat off to the right. Our trail to the cave was just ahead. We hopped out of the rig and loaded up our gear. We zipped our red life jackets, refilled water bottles, strapped on hard hats, and tested our headlamps.
Shortly thereafter, five adventurers joined our expedition team. After a quick meet & greet, we set off though the jungle towards the large limestone cave. Heavy rain over the past few days gave way to thick and muddy trails.
A member of our team attempted to avoid the mud by creeping along the edge of the trail. Our guide stopped us cold. “To avoid poisonous plants and pit vipers, we must walk directly through the mud in the center of the trail.”
Crossing the River
Our shoes now caked with mud, we approached our first crossing of the Roaring River. While I knew we would have several river crossings going into this, I did not anticipate a crossing of this magnitude. Due to high water, this river crossing was both wide and deep. We swam hard across the river using a guideline for support.
Once on the other side, we scrambled back up to the trail and hiked along the scenic ridge overlooking the river. Because I was so focused on the spelunking adventure ahead, I didn’t fully appreciate the lush beauty of the broadleaf rainforest around us at the time. We had two more river crossings. We navigated both them on foot despite the stronger current.
Exploring the Actun Tunichil Muknal
After our 40 minute trek through the jungle, we arrived at the mouth of the Actun Tunichil Muknal. Scoured by an active subterranean river, the only way into the cave is to swim. We climbed down a set of wooden steps onto the smooth limestone and slid into the translucent blue green water. We swam roughly 30-40 feet against the current into the large cave mouth. Once inside, our ascent through sacred cave began.
Hard Hats, No Ropes
Although I like to think of myself as pretty adventurous, I have not done much by way of technical caving before the ATM cave. All of the caves that I have been through have been somewhat finished for tourism. While this particular cave is a bit technical, it does not require the use of ropes.
For those of you who’ve been into this cave before, you’ll know that getting to the artifacts within this cave is a seriously physical endeavor. Thanks to high waters, we fought the current upstream the whole way into this cave. We had to swim on several occasions. Because I’m only five feet tall, I found myself swimming where others could simply walk. We shimmied though narrow passages and scrambled up and down slippery boulders.
Challenging, Yet Magnificent
While caving as a technical first timer, I found myself genuinely intimidated five times in the ATM cave. I reached the first moment about 15 minutes into the cave while standing thigh deep in a pool of water looking up at a ledge that was just above eye level. Water rushed down the very wall that I needed to scale.
This is where our telephone game of instructions fell apart. I wasn’t sure where I needed to put my feet to scale the wall. I took a deep breath as I positioned my right foot on a stable hold under the water. Now straddling the rushing water, I lifted my left foot and positioned it on a study surface on the other side. I shifted all of my weight to my left foot and stretched my right leg up and across to catch the right foothold. My foot couldn’t quite reach a secure position, so I grabbed the right hand hold to hoist myself up and over the ledge.
Or, at least, I tried. Now, I’m pretty sure everyone lost their footing at one point or another. I ate it the hardest when I had to scramble up this little wall that was simply too wide for my short legs. In a flash, my hand slipped off the right grip as my left foot slid off the foot hold. Down I went, hitting my tailbone along the way. Owwwww! Thankfully, the guy in front of me saw what happened. When he realized I wouldn’t be able to secure my footing, he lent me a hand. (Thank you!) Once over the ledge, our journey through the cave was both challenging and absolutely magnificent. We saw grand ceilings, winding pathways and impressive cave formations.
Subterranean Secrets of Xibalba
What makes this cave special, however, is it’s sacred significance. The Mayans believed that this cave was an access point to the underworld also known as Xibalba. To continue our journey into Xibalba, we had to get out of the river. As I stood waist deep in water, I found myself looking straight up at a series of very large boulders and nearly vertical 30 foot wall that we had to climb.
How in the world am I going to climb this huge boulder?
Once again, I took a deep breath and positioned my left foot alongside the enormous boulder. I swung my right leg around to straddle the side and shuffled to the top the boulder. As soon as I reached the top, I surveyed the large gap between where I was sitting on the boulder and the ledge. Stretching across the chasm, I hoisted myself up to the ledge. When my feet were planted firmly on the ground, I assessed the wall climb ahead. While the pitch of this smooth wall was certainly sharp, it was not quite as vertical as it appeared from the ground.
We removed our shoes to protect the sacred artifacts and continued our journey through the remaining chambers on foot. We carefully scaled the wall and entered the first chamber. Ancient ceramic pots, obsidian tools and sacrificial remains were scattered across the ground. Over 1,000 years ago, Mayans conducted many rituals here—including bloodletting and sacrifices. Our guide explained that the ancient Maya believed that they could directly appeal to the gods of rain right here in the cave. Sacrificial remains included male royals, which were easily identified by their flat foreheads and filed teeth. Cause of death could easily be determined for most by a quick look at the skull–blunt force trauma to the head.
As we looked through the ceramic artifacts, we caught a glimpse of a ceremonial pot with a decorative monkey element near the rim. Our guide referred to this as a “monkey pot” and explained that this particular pot hosted a variety of hallucinogens used to help foster feelings of connection to the gods of the underworld. Near this same location, we found that the Mayans carved the ends of several stalagmites with animal profiles and religious symbols to cast curious shadows along the cave walls.
Meet the Crystal Maiden
In our final chambers of ATM cave, we entered the resting place of two sacrificial victims known as ET and the Crystal Maiden. Both of these two skeletons remain completely intact. Just beyond ET, a tall aluminum ladder rested against a cave wall. Wearing only socks, we climbed this slippery ladder into a small chamber above the cave floor.
Entering the chamber, we found ourselves in the company of the famous Crystal Maiden. While there is some controversy over the gender of the Crystal Maiden, experts believe that a priest sacrificed this Mayan over a thousand years ago to the rain gods. Over time, the bones of the Crystal Maiden calcified to produce a sparkling, crystallized appearance.
After paying our respects, we descended. Without a clear line of sight, I found a secure hand hold and stepped onto the muddy ladder from inside the small chamber. Climbing down this ladder was definitely scarier than my experience climbing up. We quickly descended through the chambers, slid down the smooth wall and put our shoes back on.
Standing at the precipice, I was not really sure how I was going to climb back down this huge boulder. Much like my experience with the ladder, climbing down was far scarier than climbing up. I sat down on the edge of the ledge and stretched my legs as far as they could go. Damn. They could not quite reach the foot hold. Standing nearby, my guide told me to push myself from the ledge while sliding my left foot along the boulder. After this total leap of faith, I landed perfectly and scrambled my way down the boulder.
On Darkness & The Decapitator
Once again, we found ourselves waist deep in the subterranean river. Because we were now moving with the current, the trip back was faster. Like every other cave tour I have ever been on, we killed our headlamps to experience total darkness. After our eyes adjusted to the darkness, we turned on only our red lamps and continued our journey. Only this time, we took a different path. Our new path was quite fun as we let the current carry us through a long narrow hallway. At the end of the hallway, however, we reached what looked a lot like a dead end. We huddled around our guide.
“There’s only one way out of here,” he said as he pointed his flashlight to a small hole just above the water line. “We call this spot ‘The Decapitator’ for a good reason,” he continued, “so, I need you to listen closely. Your helmet will fit through the hole you see here, however, the wall narrows just below the hole to leave room for your neck. You’ll be submerged as you use your arms to shimmy though the passageway. You won’t be able to get through this with your life jackets on, so I need you to take them off. Now, I need you to watch me.” Moments later, our guide vanished through the little hole.
Ohhhh really. We’re going to do this, huh?
I took off my life jacket and approached The Decapitator. Sinking into the water, I felt for the cave walls. Once my position was secure, I tilted my head to match the angle of the hole and shuffled through. As I moved through this tight squeeze, I felt the cave wall gently brush against the front of my neck. Gulp! Moments later, I emerged. I did it! Yay!
After this little stunt, I felt like a total bad ass.
Enjoying The Journey
Once we reached the cave’s entrance, we swam back to shore. Our stroll back was much more leisurely as we took in these gorgeous jungle surroundings. The sun was shining, and the greenery seemed somehow more vibrant after our adventures underground. We happily crossed the wooden bridges and forded the river crossings using the guidelines with ease. At the staging area, we changed into dry clothes and enjoyed an afternoon meal complete with rum punch.
In retrospect, my journey through the Actun Tunichil Muknal in Belize ranks easily one of the best life experiences. If you are in reasonable physical condition and love adventure, I can’t recommend the ATM Cave highly enough!
Photography Note: Cameras are no longer allowed into ATM Cave. While my blog posts typically showcase my own photography, all of the images you see here were taken by other adventures who are kind enough to offer Creative Commons licensing via Flickr. Thanks to Rubiessf, Kara, Carophoto, Antti T. Nissinen and Tony Rath.
