Nick Pelios
Freediver, Creator
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Nick Pelios
Freediver, Creator
Embarking on a freediving trip to Mexico's cenotes is on the wishlist of many freedivers around the world. The beauty and the mysteries surrounding those remote locations have sparked a global interest in the diving community, with more and more people traveling out there every year, just to get a glimpse of the Mayan underworld. How were they formed though? Are they dangerous? Where can they be found? Which cenotes should one visit? How can one access them? In the new episode of The Complete Guide, Carlos Negrete - a local freediving instructor & creator - taps into everything you need to know before planning your first visit to Mexico.
The word "cenote" comes from the Mayan word "Ts'onot" or "D'zonot" which means a deposit of water or cave with water. For Mayan people they were very special places - access to water in the jungle, is always going to be important. Of course for wildlife and plants that live around it, it's the main source of life and for Mayan people, they used to be a special place, a ceremony spot and there are many legends about that.
All of this area is limestone. It has a lot of underground rivers flowing and being limestone when the ice age happened, the last ice age, the water levels dropped, so you had these rivers and the limestone eventually collapsed, because there was jungle growing on top of it and then after the rain, the acidic rain mixed with the salinity and organic material started to eat down the limestone, creating these formations, that now are filled up with water, and now we're lucky we can dive in them. But actually, many mini cenotes and caves used to be 100% empty, that's why they've been discovering giant sloths, like all these remainings inside of them.
Since cenote water has more calcium than normal, it actually helps to preserve the remains, like bones, bone structures, pigments, even skulls, and things that people keep finding in cenotes. So, we're lucky to be able to study them and they are very well preserved in cenote waters.
There are more than 8000, the count is huge, and they all vary in depth, in size, in width and some of them are 5 meters, some of them are 130, and some of them are connected with a big system, through long underground caves and some of them are shallow, with lilies and gardens. They’re just so magical and they offer such a big diversity that it's so unique. In many unique places in the world that I've been to, those are definitely some of the most special ones.
Since cenotes vary a lot in locations, some of them are closer to the sea, some of them are deeper in the peninsula, they also vary in characteristics. Some are fed from the top, some are being fed from under, but one thing that varies quite a lot is the wildlife and the vegetation around them. So, in the Yucatan peninsula, the Mayan jungle, there is normally very hard limestone, so the vegetation there grows and develops strong roots, so it can feed on the ground that is under the limestone. They have strong roots and spending all their energy feeding on them.
As for wildlife, you can find different kinds of things, mostly mollies, catfish, cenote catfish and there's even an endemic species of eel in Yucatan, but for example, in some cenotes that are closer to the sea you can find tarpons and in some even cases manatees. And deeper in Yucatan, it's normally more like dark catfish and nothing really to worry about. In some cases again, closer to the sea, you can find the moreletii crocodile, which is a Mexican crocodile, that's what it's called. And you know, it's a perfect growing up area, where they can find small birds, small fish, they can develop, eventually, if they grow bigger they're gonna have to move out, to find bigger food right? So if you're lucky you can get to see them.
One of the most important topics, in my point of view, it's the access and the tourism around cenotes. At the moment they're becoming so famous, we all want to go and dive there, and we should all do it, but let's do it properly. How we can do that?
So, let's understand a little bit how cenotes work. They are not like a national park or they are not owned by the government, they can be owned by whoever owns that land. Like, if technically speaking I buy a piece of land and there's a cenote there, I have the access to the cenote. So, of course, cenote owners, they follow regulations according to the government, regarding divers and accesses, and they have their own fees, schedules rules, days off, and all kind of things. That's why it is so important, whenever you go and dive them, go with a local guide. They know exactly where to take you, you're going to enjoy the experience. And the ones that you can access without them are not really like the freediving main beautiful spots, that you actually want to see.
So, I highly recommend you to follow the rules, go with the local guide and just enjoy. That's just the way to do it, okay? Because that way we're respecting the locals, we're respecting the owners, we're respecting the Mayan jungle and we have to follow a lot of the regulations, that maybe we didn't even think about. For example, the chemistry of the water is going to be affected if you use sunblock or if you use your soap to put on your freediving suit. All these kinds of things are so important and of course, your local guide is going to be able to help you follow through with them.
As for the general area, I would totally recommend you to fly into Cancun. There are other airports being built at the moment there, but since this one has been operating internationally for a long time, it has a lot of routes from Europe, from all kinds of places. So, definitely, it's just easy. Flying there, then making a move. There are different towns and cities you can stay. Since cenotes are so spread in the area, you can spend a few days or weeks, I don't know, depending on the visit.
Tulum, some of them in Playa del Carmen, some of the days in Merida. And you're definitely going to be able to find a local guy that knows the local accesses, that can definitely take you, respecting the correct protocols, and there's just so many to see and enjoy. So, I would definitely recommend that, spending some time in different towns and exploring the surrounding cenotes, because some cenotes can be five-six hours away from other cenotes. It's quite a big area, so that would be my recommendation.
Cenotes are getting so famous, people really want to go and dive in them, and you should. You should definitely come, find the local instructor and make the most out of it. They're just so unique for underwater photography, they're just so unique for training, for competitions, it's freshwater, no traffic, there's just no boats, it's just amazing. Normally I'm there only in the winters, I offer courses, workshops, training, underwater photography, tours, all kinds of things. But also whenever I'm not there, there are some local guides that are all year round and they can definitely guide you.
Contact me if you want some more details on that, and, yeah, thank you Alchemy for the never-ending support, thank you to the freediving community, I hope you get to know cenotes, you get to explore them in the right way, and hope to see you underwater.