Aguateca

Aguateca stands on a limestone ridge above Lake Petexbatun, protected on one side by cliffs and split down the middle by a deep natural chasm that the Maya bridged and incorporated into their defences. Around the year 810 the city was attacked and abandoned in a hurry, and because people fled leaving their belongings where they were and the buildings burned, archaeologists found household objects in place across the site, grinding stones, pots, tools and ornaments, which gave an unusually direct picture of daily life at the end of the Classic period. The approach is by boat up the Pasion and across the lake, then a walk up through forest.

What you actually see

• The natural chasm - the cleft running through the site.
• Defensive walls on the ridge - the fortifications of the final years.
• Household objects found in place - the evidence of a sudden abandonment.
• The boat approach - the Pasion river and Lake Petexbatun.

When to go

January to April, the dry season. A day from Sayaxche including the boat. Trips combine it with Dos Pilas or Ceibal. Guides are arranged at Sayaxche.

Honest expectations

Access is by boat and there is no road; trips must be arranged. The climb from the lake is steep and hot. Facilities are minimal. Insects and humidity are heavy year round.

Nearby

Dos Pilas is west; Sayaxche lies north.