20 Feb
Today is the one day the mules get to rest. Although we will explore Mirador more, we return and sleep another night in this camp. So the morning was unhurried, breakfast at 08:00 and out exploring by 09:00.
The big destination today is La Danta, a pyramid complex a little over a mile to the east of El Tigre. En route we visit a temple to the southeast of Structure 34. recently excavated with large plaster masks. We continue along, following the sacbe the connects the east and west parts of Mirador.
La Danta impresses. The whole complex covers 44 acres (compared to El Tigre's 14 acres), and the main pyramid tops out at 230 feet taller then the jungle around it. Counting the large platform, it might be the largest pyramid in the world, based on volume. Again, it's difficult for photos to convey the scope of La Danta. As you walk through the plazas on the way to the pyramid, you can sense the scale of the city, the space between structures, and just how large a place it is. Through a camera, it's trees, trees, and a pile of rocks. At the top we run into the other group, so we chat a while and linger.
On the way back we pass a couple of stellae, monuments the Maya carved from stone. One of them has the oldest Maya gliphs yet recorded. We return to camp. Eladio takes a long time to prepare lunch, but it was worth it. Easily the best meal of the trip. We are the envy of the other group for food. They're meals seems a litany of spaghetti and spam, sometimes fries, sometimes just warmed-over. We've had meat and fresh vegetables -- better food than Tikal for sure.
After lunch Claas (from the other group) comes down to our camp to tell us that they've successfully bribed the guards and they will be going under Jaguar Paw Temple (Structure 34). The Maya often built new structures right on top of old ones. And archaeologists have recently found an older temple beneath Jaguar Paw Temple. The guards opened the locked door and hauled out the generator to light the interior. We donned hard-hats and went inside. The tunnel was cleared enough so that you could not only see the plaster facade of the older temple, but it was still red. An uncovered mask still had its original paint decorating it. Well worth the whiskey I gave the guard, it's one of the highlights of the trek.
Afterwards, we climbed another pyramid complex, Los Monos (The Monkeys). And indeed, it's kinda their neighborhood. Then back to camp for a shower.
Since we had been lead around Mirador by a guide of some sort or another, I wanted to do a brief bit of wandering by ourselves. I'd seen a section that we hadn't visited and H and I set of to see what there was to see. The last thing one would want to do is get lost, but I have a pretty good sense of direction and (more importantly) a GPS, so I had an electronic breadcrumb trail back to camp. 
We went past El Tigre to the El Leon pyramid and the North group. Being on our own was nice, and I climbed yet another pyramid -- spotting the other folks on El Tigre. By sunset we were back in camp, where we had a light supper.
Tonight is the lunar eclipse and we viewed it from the Jaguar Paw Temple. As the eclipse progressed, the once bright white plaster of the temple dimmed with the darkening moon. The stars were stunning. Thoughts of Maya and blood and sacrifice as the moon itself turned a blood red.
Returning to camp, the guards had set up a generator, a bright light and a sheet at one end of the camp field, probably for catching bugs. I've seen a couple of guys roaming around with butterfly nets.
Meals:
- B - meat(beef), rice, tomatoes, onions
- L - vegetable soup (potatoes, carrots, squash), salad (cucumbers, tomatoes onion), fresh tortillas
- D - beans, eggs, tortillas
