We had planned to return to the sandy island of Caye Caulker in the barrier Reef. It was our favourite places during our last visit to Belize. However after our earlier impromptu yacht experience to the south Belizean Cayes from Guatemala we have decided to miss out this leg of our current trip and spend more time in north of Belize and in Mexico.

We catch the public bus from beside the zoo and head back into Belize City. Like all public buses in the country, Reggae music blares out and the bus lurches along, seemingly in time to the beat. The woman sitting opposite has a live chicken under her arm. With its beak open, it seems thirsty and I'm tempted to offer it a drink from the cap of my water bottle but decide against it on the grounds that everyone on board would think I'm nuts. We arrive at the bus station just in time to catch another heading north in our direction. Elaine hops on the front to try and grab two seats while I load the rucksacks through the tailgate door then climb in to the back of the bus by the same method. Fortunately we manage to get adjacent seats.

An hour later we are deposited at the road side at the junction of the dirt trail leading to our destination. Neither of our phones can register a mobile network so we can't contact our accommodation to get picked up, a service they provide. Fortunately, one of the locals waiting with his wife for a bus to the city hands me his own phone and we are able to get collected shortly afterwards for the three miles journey along the rough track.

We are back at Crooked Tree Village (population 200 approx) where we last stayed three years ago. The village is situated in the heart of a wetland bird reserve and our hotel, Birds Eye View, specialises in birding tours and does excellent local food served buffet style. The first morning we are up at 6am to head out to the remote end of the shallow lake by boat with 6 others and a bird guide. During the rainy season water from the Belize River backs up and raises the level several metres. Now the water is receding and the shallow waters are a great feeding area for migrating water birds. We see lots of birds on our three hour trip and are lucky enough to see 3 huge but rare, jabiru storks. The males stand more than 5 feet tall and have wingspan greater than 9 feet

The village is set amongst trees, many of them cashew and mango with a few dozen houses well spaced out and surrounded by their own rough grass, scrub and trees. The village hosts a cashew festival each year in May with live music, food and dancing. Must be the highlight of the year because there's very little else happening here. Our afternoon treat is a couple of cold beers from one of the tiny village stores ( this one owned by Chinese who are buying a lot of property in Belize) which serves it's customers through a grated front window. Seems strange because there is no reported crime here and the locals joke about the village police spending most of their time sitting by the main highway 3 miles away hoping for some action.

Enjoyed our three nights here in the peace and quiet, surrounded by wildlife before heading out to the main highway to catch a bus heading north.