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iving in Utila has dangers that most people never think about. I realized that long ago and how my thinking has changed after living on Utila, this lovely tropical island for over 20 years! I now manage my daily activities keeping these things in mind to watch out for while in Utila:
- Getting hit by birds.
- Getting hit by falling fruit.
- Bats.
- Falling snakes.
- Eagle rays killing you.
- Falling Iguanas.
- Killing Iguanas, or Pichetes (Monkey La Las), or snakes or crabs.
- Pelican Poop.
- Slowing down.
- Getting stuck.
1. Getting Hit by Birds: I have had several close calls with birds and almost got hit by two things while driving my scooter. The first thing was a hummingbird that wasn’t watching where he was going. The second thing was…
2. Falling Fruit: The dangers and sizes change according to the season. We just finished hog plum season when there are tons of orangey-red plums loading down all the trees around the holidays. I love it since the white egrets migrate to our tree for the whole holiday season, making me have ‘egrets in a plum tree’ instead of ‘partridges in a pear tree’. So you must always keep your head tilted down so you don’t get one in the eye while driving the scooter. Many people gather these plums and make jam. They are sweet, and peachy-plummy-tasting.
Another danger is falling mangoes which are extremely heavy. During Mango season, one learns to scoot around when passing under mango trees because getting knocked on the head by one of those while driving is going to hurt!
Did you ever wonder why nothing falls on your head in the cities in North America? Some trees require males and females to bear fruit. Did you know that most cities only plant male trees so as not to worry about falling fruit and seeds, and the clean-up afterwards? I’ve heard that’s why there are so many allergies and hayfever which is caused by the extra pollen thrown out by the male trees while they wait in vain for the female trees to respond.
Check out this article in the New York Daily that talks about planting a million male trees, sacrificing allergy sufferers over aesthetics (and I’m assuming clean-up costs factor in there too).
Here’s another interesting link to Popular Mechanics debunking myths about trees.
At Watercay, one of the many Cays of Utila, a beautiful, uninhabited little cay, my friend June got hit in the head by a coconut that fell from about 10m/30ft. It glanced off the side of her head, but she was still in pain for the remainder of the day.
Island Living Lesson #1: You must be careful where you string your hammock. (But that would be another blog post).
This is an example of poor hammock-stringing. Can you see why? Yes, coconuts on either end… If there were coconuts only on one side, you could put your head on the opposite end, risking falling coconuts on your legs. It’s better having no coconuts on either end. Do you remember high schools physics? A 2 pound coconut falling from 30 ft equates to how much force?
Remember? Force = mass x acceleration
For me, that calculates to OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW!
3. Bats.
Yes, around dusk coming home one early evening, I was smacked in the head by a bat that turned a little too late!
Another reason to watch for bats… They LOVE to drink away all the hummingbirds’ sugar water. However, I have learned that with just the right amount of sugar, the hummingbirds like it, but the bats don’t. Use less sugar than normal, and the bats will stay away… unless you want to end up replacing about a litre of sugar water daily!
4. Getting hit by a falling snake.
Yes, it’s true. Our 3 year old daughter and my husband were driving to school (with our eldest daughter) when a boa fell from a tree, hit her in the head, fell to the bottom platform of the scooter and slithered away. She still loves to tell that story after so many years!
Pictured here is an endangered Pink Boa that can be found in Honduras, only in Cayos Cochinos (the Hog Islands).
The good things is that on the mainland there are poisonous snakes, but there are NO POISONOUS SNAKES on Utila! How awesome is that?
5. Eagle Rays Killing You
Okay, no one has ever been killed by an eagle ray here in Utila. They are one of the most beautiful, peaceful creatures underwater. Although it has happened! Do any of you remember that one woman in the Florida Keys who was killed in a freak accident when a Spotted Eagle Ray jumped out of the water, hit her, and she fell backwards. She hit her head on the boat and died. Talk about bad luck!
See the article on NBC News… Just ignore the fact that they called it a Stingray, it was an Eagle ray… NBC must not have a scuba diver on staff! And rays are complicated. Did you know that they are classified with the family of sharks? Why because they have no bones, they have cartilage.
No one has been hurt in Utila from a flying ray, but I have seen rays flying out of the water here! It’s an amazing and very special moment! Just as long as it doesn’t hit you! I liken the experience to a shooting star!
6. Falling Iguanas.
Just like snakes falling out of the trees, iguanas can too. Back in Toronto, raccoons would often fall out of the trees, probably after dozing off in a precarious position.
This beautiful iguana fell out of the tree, stunned, and our dogs started to chase it around our yard. As I panicked screaming, “Oh no oh no oh no!”, our daughter’s 7 year old friend, ran up to the iguana, grabbed it and held it. They all proceeded to laugh at my panic. We placed the iguana back up in the tree, and everyone lived happily ever after.
7. Killing Iguanas, or Pichetes (Monkey La Las), or snakes.
Iguanas love to come out and bask in the sun. We have over 20 iguanas on our property that allow me to admire them every morning as they emerge from their holes to lie out and warm up in the sun. This however, is detrimental to their health when they bask on the roads. The problem is not just avoiding them, but rather when they zigzag in opposite directions making you anticipate which way they are going so you can avoid injuring or killing them. Iguanas are more straight line runners and easier to avoid, whereas Monkey La Las look like they are purposely trying to get squished! Snakes are straight line slitherers too, but harder to avoid at night when you can’t see them.
Crabs are super hard to avoid. After a rain, like right now, crabs line the streets as they escape their flooded homes. It’s quite disconcerting to hear the crunch! as you accidentally roll over a crab, but I imagine it’s worse for the crab!
8. Pelican Poop
You think that seagull poop is awful, imagine a bird about 10 times it’s size? Well… some cultures believe it is good luck to be pooped on by a bird. This can be arranged if you like. Just stand under a tree on Watercay, I’ve seen up to 10 pelicans in one tree! Just stand under it for a few minutes, and voila! Good luck!
9. Slowing Down
You will most certainly slow down when you come to Utila. It may take awhile, but soon you’ll realize that there are more things to life than work. Everyone knows the phrase “Love your work, and you’ll never work another day in your life”. Well here, you can understand it!
10. Getting Stuck
Yes, most of all the biggest danger of Utila is “getting stuck”. I, like a pile of other people, planned on being here on Utila for just a short time. For me, it was for 5 days. I planned to do a 10 tank dive package. Move on. Travel by land to Chile, and be home in March 2000. It’s January 2021 and I’m still here. I guess Chile will have to wait.
The most popular Utila video that ever existed is based on this premise! “If you come to Utila” With over 467,700 views, this is one of the biggest dangers of Utila! These guys are probably not troubled by the problem listed in #9… Maybe that’s what keeps a magical balance in Utila!
This is us now that we have (#9) Slowed Down, this is more our speed now that we are over 50! LOL. Click here for our Day In the Life Series on youtube.
Be very very careful in Utila… because you may never leave!