Caesar's Place Guest House Our Guest House Tours & Activities Accommodation Black Rock Lodge Our Eco-Lodge Tours & Activities Accommodation Comments Caesar's Place Gift Shop Our Gift Shop More Info! Our Policy About Us Contact Us Related Links About Belize Deutsch Black Rock Enterprises, Belize In January of 1976, my dad, Caesar Sherrard and our family arrived in Belize enroute to Costa Rica. He was looking for a peaceful country to raise a family and Belize sounded like a serious possibility. Driving over the Hawkesworth Bridge, that joins the twins towns of Santa Elena and San Ignacio in Western Belize, the beautiful Macal River cast its magic, and we never left! We purchased 40 acres on the Macal River, 10 miles upstream from San Ignacio and Santa Elena, and started farming vegetables, chickens, and goats. The area was called "Macaw Bank" after the huge Scarlet Macaws that lived on the banks of the river. The road to Macaw Bank was in such a terrible condition for most of the year that it was impossible to drive to town. So my Dad bought a dug-out canoe (called a "Dory") and an out-board motor and, by this means, we'd take our produce to market every Saturday morning. We'd sell our produce at San Ignacio's "Saturday Morning Farmer's Market", buy provisions for the following week, then head back upstream to our farm. My parents were people trying to getaway from the "rat-race", so for a dayoff, they wouldn't go to town to party but instead, would hop into the old dory and explore the Macal River. One day, they packed a lunch, bathing suits, and me, and headed upstream for a day of R&R. Dad drove the dory up the Macal River untill the rapids were impassable by boat. There he tied the dory and we started hiking upstream alongside the river-bank. Within a couple miles, the terrain started to become extemely rugged and there was much denser jungle, more waterfalls and wildlife. Pretty soon we came into a huge canyon with 800 foot cliffs, huge limestonebolders in the river, sandy beaches separated by upturned black slate. This area, according to the map, was called Black Rock. It was absolutely georgeous! My Dad realized that this was probably the most incredible location in Belize! He vowed to return someday when had the money and time to build a getaway to beat all getaways!

Our lifestyle at Macaw Bank was tranquil but times were tough and my dad soon realized that this wasn't going to do; one day I'd have to go to school and the pennies made from farming weren't going to cut it. So Dad looked around for something else to get into and realized that Belize was blessed with beautiful exotic hardwoods. And that is how our farming days ended and our wood-working days began.

We sold the farm and moved to San Ignacio because we needed full time electricity for the wood shop, a telephone for sales, and I had to go to school. Dad bought a small lot on the outside of town and bought one piece of wood-working machinery at a time. Every year re-investing and saving and never borrowing a dime. The business grew slowly but steadily till we were exporting our products, in small quantities, all over the word. The most popular of which was the "Clam Chair".

Even though we kept the wood shop for 13 years, we moved out of town just a year or two later. Dad bought 5 acres 10 miles East of San Ignacio bordering on pristine Barton Creek. There, we opened a giftshop , a "Wine and Cheese Cafe" (something totaly unheard of in Belize) and a small guest house.(even though I haven't mentioned anything about jewelry up until this point, Dad had always made and sold jewelry; even before we came to Belize!)

For the next few years, we worked constantly, my parents seeming to have lost track of the reason why they came to Belize in the first place. Then one day, in 1987, Dad and I decided to go exploring on our motorbike. So we packed a lunch and some water and took off. We drove around to different places, basically goofing off. Then, before we have decided on any particular coarse, we found ourselves on the Negroman road (a road to a citrus orchard south of San Ignacio). We drove through the orchard and on till the road dead ended. Then Dad decided, since we were but a short hike through the jungle from Black Rock, to go and see it again.

What a spectacular location! I could not believe my eyes. It was even more beautiful than Dad had described from memory. Sheer cliffs, huge mountains, large canyon, springs, waterfalls, verdant jungle, wildlife, pristine nature at its best! I was in total awe!

There was only one problem, well, actually many. No road, no civilization within miles, and what seemed like no flat land to build on. So Dad and I hiked up and down the steep montainsides looking for land that was semi-flat and out of the flood zone. After several hours, Dad found what seemed to be a few acres of just what we were looking for. Ofcoarse, in dense jungle, it was hard to tell exactly how big the flat peice was but we knew it was enough.

So first thing Monday morning, Dad headed off to Belmopan, our nation's capital to see if the land was available. It was available so Dad leased it.

Over the past decade, we have slowly built an awesome 10 cabana jungle lodge with a rustic flavor in the most spectacular location in Belize! A getaway to beat all getaways!

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Last updated on Sept 17th, 2001 by J.Sherrard}