Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Diving or snorkelling along the reef is excellent, with shallow fringing and patch
reefs, and some fantastic wall diving. You can visit several virtually pristine protected
areas, including Laughing Bird Caye National Park and Gladden Spit and Silk Cayes
Marine Reserve .
In addition, Placencia lagoon is ideal for exploring in a canoe or kayak ; you may even
spot a manatee, though it's more likely to be a series of ripples as the shy giant swims
for cover. The reefs and shallows off Placencia are rich fishing grounds too, and the
village is home to several renowned fly-fishing guides (see opposite).
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French Louie Caye
8 miles northeast of Placencia • T 523 3636, W frenchlouiecaye.com • Accommodation available (see p.204)
French Louie Caye , a beautiful tiny island just eight miles off Placencia, is privately
owned by Ran Villanueva, who allows one group at a time to come here on great
sea-kayaking expeditions or to spend a minimum of three nights in a simple cabin
(see p.204). There's fantastic snorkelling, with hard and soft corals, sea anemones and
schools of tiny fish among the mangrove; you can also visit half a dozen uninhabited
cayes nearby. French Louie has a resident pair of ospreys who successfully rear chicks
every year.
Whipray Caye
8 miles northeast of Placencia • Only accessible to guests of Whipray Caye Lodge T 608 8130, W whipraycayelodge.com
The small, idyllic island of Whipray Caye lies surrounded by reef and coral heads eight
miles northeast of Placencia. Shown on some maps as Wippari Caye, it offers fabulous
fishing, and can only be visited by arrangement with the owners of its fine cabin
accommodation (see p.204).
Laughing Bird Caye National Park
11 miles east of Placencia • Accessible on tours from Placencia; 1-day prices range US$40-100 • T 532 3565, W laughingbird.org
The most popular destination for day-trips from Placencia is the uninhabited Laughing
Bird Caye National Park . A World Heritage Site, located eleven miles offshore, the long,
narrow caye itself sits atop a “faro”, a limestone reef rising steeply from the sea bed. Its
outer rim encloses a lagoon, making it similar to an atoll.
Named for the laughing gull, the caye covers less than 1.5 acres, and gulls no longer
nest here, but it's the centre of a national park that protects over ten thousand acres of
sea as a “no take zone” (no fishing). There's a ranger station, and many tours stop for
lunch on the beach. The northern tip of the caye protects native vegetation and nesting
birds and turtles, and is off-limits.
Gladden Spit and Silk Cayes Marine Reserve
23 miles east of Placencia • Accessible on tours from Placencia; typical 1-day price US$100
The exquisitely beautiful Silk Cayes, set twelve miles beyond Laughing Bird Caye,
form part of the Gladden Spit and Silk Cayes Marine Reserve , a large protected area
designated to safeguard the seasonal visitation of the enormous yet graceful
whale shark .
These migratory fish, found throughout tropical waters, are attracted to Gladden Spit
during the full moons of April, May and June by huge numbers of spawning snapper.
The sharks are filter-feeders, so it's the protein-rich spawn they're after, not the fish
themselves. Research conducted by the University of York and the Nature Conservancy
indicates that this is one of the largest and most predictable aggregations of whale
sharks in the world; radio-tracking shows that they travel as far as Cancún in Mexico
 
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