Belize Barrier Reef

The Belize Barrier Reef is the second largest reef in the world and only Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is larger. The barrier reef off the coast of the Central American country of Belize is a wonderfully beautiful site to see.

One of the most popular activities to do on the Belize Barrier Reef for locals and tourists alike is: Spearfishing! If you never catch anything while spearfishing, it’s still fun and exciting, and local people always say, “You can’t get any fresher fish.”

One activity that you should not expect to do while in Belize is surfing. The barrier reef just off the coast of Belize naturally breaks the waves before they reach the shoreline.

The Belize Barrier Reef alone brings over a hundred million US dollars into the country each year. Belize has tens of thousands of tourists who visit each year just to experience this magnificent reef; one of Belize’s most precious treasures.

Unfortunately, two major natural disasters threatened to completely destroy Belize’s barrier reef. In November 1998, Hurricane Mitch struck the Barrier Reef directly, destroying hundreds of years of coral growth. Since corals are animals and not plants, they cannot take root anywhere else. Right after Hurricane Mitch, El NiƱo brought warmer than usual waters to the reef and literally cooked it to death. The entire dead reef at the bottom of the ocean floor is known to local Belizean people as ‘The Standing Dead’. In the sense that the fish still like the coral reef, whether alive or dead, there has been no impact on the livelihood of the local population as, for many, the reef is their main source of food.

More than 10 years after Hurricane Mitch, Belize as a country is recovering. Although the Belize Barrier Reef is not fully restored to its former glory, it is well on its way and remains a must-see global attraction. ~Anthony Benjamin~

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