El Mirador

In the morning we were up to explore the ruins. We had one day to explore before making the long trek back. What I had read claiming that El Mirador had the biggest pyramid in the world turned out to be not exactly true. There is a monument there that is not exactly shaped like a pyramid called “La Danta.” By some accounts, “La Danta” is considered to be the largest pyramid by volume and one of the tallest structures in the ancient world.

In truth, none of the monuments are anything like the ruins you find in places like Tikal, Palenque, or Giza. The city, which was abandoned by the Maya over one thousand years ago, was completely reclaimed by the jungle. The giant stone monuments that once covered the valley are now covered by dirt and trees. The site is now only partially excavated. The monuments now appear to be hills or mountains. In fact, I didn't realize that we were on “La Danta” until we had reached the top and saw the partially restored stone structure. We spent the day exploring the various excavations and looking at the Mayan stelae. We watched the sunset over the unending jungle from atop “El Tigre,” another large pyramid at El Mirador.

A toucan!

A family of monkeys high in the trees.