After a beautiful week in El Salvador and many in Guatemala, we had high expectations coming into Honduras. With fewer tourist highlights (meaning fewer viral Instagram photos), we weren’t sure what to expect.
Our start was rough. Border crossing into Honduras was absolutely chaotic. First on the El Salvador side, they didn’t have electricity and there was a huge backup of trucks waiting to get through. Then the Honduras side was disorganized, confusing and at times ridiculous. It took way too long and in the end I don’t think half the agents knew what they were doing. Details are unimportant, but this was by far the longest, most expensive and most stressful crossing yet.
Then we had a long drive to our first stop. Distance wasn’t too far, but the road was rough and we kept getting caught behind trucks on the steep uphill segments. Then we finally arrived in the town of Gracias, tired and ready to relax. The town is cute and sleepy, but the established campsite in town was apparently the party spot. Loud music until 6am, party people woo-woo’ing, and us grumbling from the Landy. Luckily we are in the land of good coffee and found a great shop in the center of town, located in the town square “tower”. Then exploring the town, we visited the old fort and cute shops. The town has set up great tourist resources and is ready for the crowds – the crowds just need to find it!
Needing some real peace and quiet we headed to Celaque National Park. This park is a gem. There are well maintained hiking trails and facilities. We were happy and ready for a relaxing evening when the moths showed up. Not just normal moths, but an insane invasion of moths that shed their wings and crawl through any gap in your car. They were getting in faster than we could counterattack. Stepping outside was like stepping into a plague… So we bolted. Friday night we slept outside a thermal pool, which is also a party spot. But we we’re so exhausted from the moths (and relaxed from the pools) that we slept through it all.
The next day we tried the park again. These moths were apparently a one time deal, and we finally got to enjoy the hiking trails and peace and quiet. Our luck finally changed, and the rest of Honduras was great – stories to come!
