There's no better way to see Cayo's backcountry than from the seat of an ATV.

You'll meet your guide in San Ignacio for a full safety briefing and to gear up. The first 10 minutes are on paved road as you head out of town, wear clothes you don't mind getting dusty or muddy, because once you turn off the pavement, the real ride begins. From there, you'll follow farm tracks and ridge roads through some of the most beautiful country in Cayo. You'll pass Mennonite farms, ride alongside grazing cattle, and climb into the hills above the Belize River Valley. Your guide knows every turn and every story behind it.

And getting there is only half the adventure because your destination is one of the largest ancient Maya cities in the region.

El Pilar sits along the Belize-Guatemala border with more than 25 known plazas spread across both countries. Yet the trees have grown back over the temples, the howler monkeys have moved in, and most days you'll have the site nearly to yourself. When you arrive, you'll trade your ATV for a guided walking tour of the ruins. Climb temple mounds still cloaked in jungle. Stand in plazas where Maya royalty once held court. Watch for toucans, parrots, and the resident ocellated turkeys that roam the site. Unlike Belize's busier archaeological sites, El Pilar is preserved as an “archaeology under the canopy” reserve, meaning the structures remain partially covered by forest, the way the first explorers found them.

After exploring the ruins, you'll mount up and ride back to San Ignacio.

This is the Belize most travelers miss: wild, uncrowded, and on your own terms.