Trip Report Xcalak, Mexico Dec 4th- 8th, 2007.
We had some time on our hands so we decided to drive over to the Yucatan and do some diving. Cancun, Coz and PDC seem a bit too crowded for our tastes, so we beat feet back to our old stomping grounds Xcalak (pronounced Shcalak). Xcalak is the last town in Mexico before you get to Belize. You cant cross into Belize on land (for that you have to go inland and back around the Bay of Chetumal) but you can take a boat to Belize from here. To get to Xcalak you take Highway 307 from points north, take the turn off for Mahahual and, just before Mahahual, take the turn off for Xcalak. Some of the highway signs have disappeared since Hurricane Dean but Xcalak was pretty much spared (The same cant be said for Mahahual, which lost its cruise ship pier).
Theres not much to do in Xcalak except dive! Its a fishing village thats seen better days. North of town is Gringoland- 8 or so mini resorts, I think all are owned by Americans or Canadians. We stayed in town but we did eat one dinner at one of the resorts. The food was good, the beer was overpriced (compared to in town) and some folks were shockingly overdressed. The hotel in town (Hotel Caracol) was basic but clean. The restaurant and bar in town (note the use of singular) were simple but the food and beer at both the restaurant and bar was as good and cheaper than the resorts.
We dived with XTC dive center. There are now other options for diving in Xcalak, a couple of the resorts have dive shops and/or dive guides but, as we were staying in town and we dived with XTC before, we saw no reason to change. We were very happy with the services provided by Alejandro (shop mgr), Tito (boat capt) and Luis (dive guide). Our first day of diving we were lucky enough to make it out to Banco Chinchorro. Banco Chinchorro (or Chinchorro Banks) is the largest Coral Atoll in the Northern Hemisphere. Its also been classified a Biosphere Reserve, the highest level of ecological protection offered by the Mexican government. Some fisherman live out there but there is no tourist infrastructure and you are not allowed on dry land without prior permission. Dive operators also need a special permit to dive the banks. This all means not too many folks make it out here which equates to AWESOME diving!!!!
The banks are about 30 km NE of Xcalak and it takes about 1.5 hours in XTCs big boat with twin 200hp yamahas. The crossing is weather and sea dependant and sometimes you just cant go. The day we went was about as smooth as you can hope for this time of year and it was still, occasionally, pretty rough.
We did three tanks at Chinchorro.
1. Coral Gardens
2. Suzannes Reef
3. Silvias Reef
The visibility ranged from very good (80+ feet on dives 2 and 3) to stunning (130+ feet at Coral Gardens). The reefs appear to be very healthy and there is an abundance of overgrown corals and fans. Everythings bigger at Chinchorro. We didnt see an amazing amount of fish (probably because the only people that make it out here are fishermen) but we did see lots of Stingrays, some turtles and one nurse shark. The water was warm with very little current all in all excellent, easy diving!
Over the next four days, we did eight tanks of local diving in Xcalak. We are never disappointed in Xcalak diving and this trip was no exception. The dive sites are fairly close, Tito knows these waters, and its a very low-key, low-stress dive environment. At no time was there more than 6 divers (including the dive guide). Wed do our first dive around 0945, our second dive around 1200, drinking beers at Xcalak Caribe by 1400!
We dived: Hol-Na, Sand Coral Gardens, La Chimnea, La Poza, Sunken City, La Pozeta, Santa Cecilia, and Dive Shop Reef.
Average dive time was 60 minutes; Average Maximum Depth was 68 feet. Visibility was generally good (40-70 feet), water temps were around 78-80 degrees F. The coral is in good shape. Lots of turtles and barracudas, the occasional eagle ray. The famous school of tarpon didnt really materialize at La Poza but the next day we ran into a small school at La Pozeta that didnt seem to mind having us there at all!
So if youre looking for a somewhat off the beaten trail dive destination in the Yucatan, head south to Xcalak. We arent affiliated with any dive shop and we can certainly endorse XTC dive center! (Aventuras Xcalak to Chinchorro Dive Center CARIBBEAN, YUCATAN, MEXICO, xtcdivecenter.com).
After our diving in Xcalak we drove north for some Cenote diving that Ive discussed here: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/mexico/213590-cenotes-dos-ojos-more.html
Heres a video of the diving.
YouTube - Diving in Xcalak and Chinchorro
We had some time on our hands so we decided to drive over to the Yucatan and do some diving. Cancun, Coz and PDC seem a bit too crowded for our tastes, so we beat feet back to our old stomping grounds Xcalak (pronounced Shcalak). Xcalak is the last town in Mexico before you get to Belize. You cant cross into Belize on land (for that you have to go inland and back around the Bay of Chetumal) but you can take a boat to Belize from here. To get to Xcalak you take Highway 307 from points north, take the turn off for Mahahual and, just before Mahahual, take the turn off for Xcalak. Some of the highway signs have disappeared since Hurricane Dean but Xcalak was pretty much spared (The same cant be said for Mahahual, which lost its cruise ship pier).
Theres not much to do in Xcalak except dive! Its a fishing village thats seen better days. North of town is Gringoland- 8 or so mini resorts, I think all are owned by Americans or Canadians. We stayed in town but we did eat one dinner at one of the resorts. The food was good, the beer was overpriced (compared to in town) and some folks were shockingly overdressed. The hotel in town (Hotel Caracol) was basic but clean. The restaurant and bar in town (note the use of singular) were simple but the food and beer at both the restaurant and bar was as good and cheaper than the resorts.
We dived with XTC dive center. There are now other options for diving in Xcalak, a couple of the resorts have dive shops and/or dive guides but, as we were staying in town and we dived with XTC before, we saw no reason to change. We were very happy with the services provided by Alejandro (shop mgr), Tito (boat capt) and Luis (dive guide). Our first day of diving we were lucky enough to make it out to Banco Chinchorro. Banco Chinchorro (or Chinchorro Banks) is the largest Coral Atoll in the Northern Hemisphere. Its also been classified a Biosphere Reserve, the highest level of ecological protection offered by the Mexican government. Some fisherman live out there but there is no tourist infrastructure and you are not allowed on dry land without prior permission. Dive operators also need a special permit to dive the banks. This all means not too many folks make it out here which equates to AWESOME diving!!!!
The banks are about 30 km NE of Xcalak and it takes about 1.5 hours in XTCs big boat with twin 200hp yamahas. The crossing is weather and sea dependant and sometimes you just cant go. The day we went was about as smooth as you can hope for this time of year and it was still, occasionally, pretty rough.
We did three tanks at Chinchorro.
1. Coral Gardens
2. Suzannes Reef
3. Silvias Reef
The visibility ranged from very good (80+ feet on dives 2 and 3) to stunning (130+ feet at Coral Gardens). The reefs appear to be very healthy and there is an abundance of overgrown corals and fans. Everythings bigger at Chinchorro. We didnt see an amazing amount of fish (probably because the only people that make it out here are fishermen) but we did see lots of Stingrays, some turtles and one nurse shark. The water was warm with very little current all in all excellent, easy diving!
Over the next four days, we did eight tanks of local diving in Xcalak. We are never disappointed in Xcalak diving and this trip was no exception. The dive sites are fairly close, Tito knows these waters, and its a very low-key, low-stress dive environment. At no time was there more than 6 divers (including the dive guide). Wed do our first dive around 0945, our second dive around 1200, drinking beers at Xcalak Caribe by 1400!
We dived: Hol-Na, Sand Coral Gardens, La Chimnea, La Poza, Sunken City, La Pozeta, Santa Cecilia, and Dive Shop Reef.
Average dive time was 60 minutes; Average Maximum Depth was 68 feet. Visibility was generally good (40-70 feet), water temps were around 78-80 degrees F. The coral is in good shape. Lots of turtles and barracudas, the occasional eagle ray. The famous school of tarpon didnt really materialize at La Poza but the next day we ran into a small school at La Pozeta that didnt seem to mind having us there at all!
So if youre looking for a somewhat off the beaten trail dive destination in the Yucatan, head south to Xcalak. We arent affiliated with any dive shop and we can certainly endorse XTC dive center! (Aventuras Xcalak to Chinchorro Dive Center CARIBBEAN, YUCATAN, MEXICO, xtcdivecenter.com).
After our diving in Xcalak we drove north for some Cenote diving that Ive discussed here: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/mexico/213590-cenotes-dos-ojos-more.html
Heres a video of the diving.
YouTube - Diving in Xcalak and Chinchorro
