Raxrujá & Cancuén
I'm in the final stages of planning a road trip to Guatemala. My travel partner and I decided that it would be better to split the journey from Antigua to Tikal into 2 days. I was trying to find a good place to stop in Alta Verapaz and after initially considering Cobán, then Chisec I'm now debating going as far as Raxrujá on day 1 and trying to visit the archaeological site of Cancuén on the following morning before heading to Tikal so we get there well before dark on day 2.My map shows two roads heading to Flores from Cobán - the western road goes through Chisec, the eastern road goes towards Lanquín initially, but then avoids it by turning north. The two roads converge a few miles west of Raxrujá, from where the road heads north towards Sayaxché and then Flores. Is one of these routes better to take than the other? We're trying to avoid unpaved/potholey roads whenever possible.
Also, has anyone been to Cancuén recently? Is it possible to get to the ruins in the morning, spend a couple of hours exploring, get back to Raxrujá and still make it to Flores before dark? (This will be in November, so it will be getting dark shortly after 6pm.)
What I gathered so far from the LP and Moon guide books is that the site can be reached by taking a combi from Raxrujá to La Unión and then hiring a boat to Cancuén. How difficult is it to find someone with a boat to take us to the ruins on a weekday morning (around 8am)? I know this question is a long shot, but maybe someone has been that way recently and can give me some pointers.
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If you are trying to avoid unpaved/potholey roads whenever possible take the western road by all means, unless a minor roadworking miracle has happened in the last 12 months or so.But this is a no-brainer - 99 (if not 100) % of all buses running Coban-Raxruja will be taking the paved western highway as opposed to the unpaved eastern mule track.
With an early start you could make it to Cancuen, back again and onward to Flores. But those pickups to La Union leave (and return) when they're full - and this is really full. The last time I was out that way it was seriously muddy, and Raxruja-La Union may have taken an hour, maybe less, but bear that in mind.
La Union is tiny. And I got the impression there is not a whole lot of work going around. I was on the boat about 15 minutes after arriving in the village, including walking time down to the river. The guy at the store where the pickup stops will contact the boat guy. Don't worry - they all know the drill and there won't be a whole lot of confusion about why you are there. If it is just the two of you and it is not muddy, you can save on the boat fare by paying a guide to take you walking to the site. Ask about it when you're there, anyway (again, the guy at the store) - it's not a huge distance, although if you are pressed for time maybe it's not such a great idea.
