It's hard to believe that in one week's time we'll be landing at Gatwick airport. Eager to make the most of our last few days in Mexico we booked to go snorkelling today. We had breakfast and walked to the shop on the block next to our hotel to meet our guide for the day, Peggy. We'd booked to go to both the ocean and a cenote to get most of the day. From Tulum we drove the short distance north along the coast to reach Akumel (place of the turtles) where turtles come ashore to lay their eggs, although fewer and fewer arrive each year due to resort development and increased tourism. There is also a reef here, although badly damaged from fishing and tourism it is starting to recover and is home to various species of tropical fish. We found a place on the beach to leave our things and headed into the warm water, easier said than done with fins on!. The reef is quite close to the shore and whilst a lot of the coral has died, the fish were plentiful and we saw a variety of brightly coloured species of all shapes and sizes. Various sea anemones were growing amongst the coral, swaying in the current. We continued along the reef to reach a cordoned off area where groups snorkel in the hope of seeing sea turtles. We were lucky enough to see 2, both tagged, eating from the sea bed and coming up the the surface for air. They are such graceful creatures and yet again we were reminded of how lucky we were to have swam with so many in the Galapagos. We also saw a couple of mantarays on the seabed and fish that are from the puffer fish family. After snacks and refreshments back on the beach we set off back towards Tulum heading for Cenote Dos Ojos. There are 2 main cenotes here (the 2 eyes) which provide access to an enormous cave system of nearly 57km. It's the 3rd largest underwater cave system in the world. After a quick sandwich we went to the 2nd eye first where you can snorkel, with a guide, through an underwater tunnel, past stalactites and stalagmites that we could illuminate with our torches, to the bat cave. The cave has a small hole, c1m circumference, above through which natural light pours down through the crystal clear water. The ceiling was covered in vampire bats and several flew above our heads. Down below us we could see the torch lights of scuba divers exploring the under water caverns. It was an amazing experience and the closest thing either of have done underwater caving. After a short spell in the sunlight for Diane to warm up we walked to the 1st eye. We could only swim here as the caverns are all underwater and only accessible by divers. Again the water was crystal clear, much more so than at the other cenotes we have visited but probably because these are significantly shallower at the entrance. Peggy then took us to their secret cenote. As we were getting ready by the edge of the water we heard a very loud rustling in the undergrowth nearby. Peggy was keen to investigate and we set off in the water swimming by the vegetation and mangroves. We were both less eager to see what it might have been given crocodiles do live in the area. Luckily we didn't see anything and swam into an underground tunnel where glow worms lived on the rock ceiling. Simon startled 2 bats on the ceiling directly above us (so close they were within touching distance) with his torch and a spray of water from his snorkel. The cenote has an earth covering on the floor with tree roots growing down through the water. It made for a very different experience to the first cave we visited. Back at the carpark we enjoyed masaqueso from a stall, crispy pancakes filled with grated cheese, before returning to Tulum. After changing out of our wet gear we went out to get a drink before returning for a rest. In the evening we went to Celti, restaurant on the corner opposite where we were staying. We had free appetisers which were lovely and very filling and then shared a delicious meal of pepper stuffed with minced pork and beef and a squash stuffed with vegetables, washed down with a pear margarita and bottle of Mexican red wine to help celebrate our last night in Tulum.
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| The crystal clear waters at Cenote Ojas |
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| Underwater stalactites and stalagmites |
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| The 2nd eye |
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