Semuc Champey some say is the most beautiful area in Guatemala, I think this claim may be true, though it is hard to give the accolade to just one area when there are so many so beautiful. Both guide books (Rough Guide and Lonely Planet) included information on Semuc Champey, including the general advice that it is better to take a tour. Tours all cost $35, way too much for a savvy budget traveler such as I. The Rough Guide goes as far as to mention that some guy called Fernandez in an unnamed green shop near the main plaza will take you for only $10. What kind of advice is that? We wandered around the plaza several times without seeing any unnamed green shops... the general consensus from the tour companies was that it also was impossible to do this within a day so after accomplishing this feat I feel compelled to share the route of our success.
Semuc Champey is a paradise of pools and waterfalls, which is a famous tourist spot. People come here for bathing without knowing much about the geology. But the geology is almost as spectacular as its bathing fun.
The travertine pools are the result of carbon rich water from karst springs, similar to other pools on earth like Plitvice lakes in Croatia. The water emerges, looses carbon dioxide to the atmosphere and the soluted limestone is deposited. Because of flowing water and waves the limestone is deposited only on the rims, which makes them grow continually. Today the pools a Semuc Champey are generally about one meter deep, some even deeper. The blue color is primary an effect of the high amount of limestone and not a sign of low pollution.
