At about Mile 75 on the Southern Highway near the village of Indian Creek, 25 miles north of Punta Gorda, Nim Li Punit is atop a hill with expansive views of the surrounding forests and mountains (it’s about a half mile west of the highway ,along a narrow road marked by a small sign). The site saw preliminary excavations in 1970 that documented a 30-foot-tall carved stela, the tallest ever found in Belize—and among the tallest in all the Maya world. A total of about 25 stelae have been found on the site, most dated A.D. 700–800.

Although looters damaged the site, excavations by archaeologist Richard Leventhal in 1986 and by the Belize Institute of Archaeology (IOA) in the late 1990s and early 2000s uncovered several new stelae and some notable tombs. The stelae and artifacts are displayed in the very nice visitors center built by the IOA. The Nim Li Punit ruins are open 7 a.m.–5 p.m. daily; entrance is US$5. The small office can be reached at 501/665-5126.