Dive Aventuras,

Smmcdonald

07/08/15 at 15:43

If our first Cenote dive experience was outstanding, this one was phenomenal! Elle decided that she would sit this one out, and it was probably a good call on her part. A bit darker over all, with more swim throughs and surprises, this dive took us to the next level of cenote diving without getting into the technical realm of cave diving. We entered "Chak Mool" from another cenote called "Little Brother". The two entrances are located at opposite ends of a very large underwater cavern/room. (Little Brother is the same cenote we used to don our wetsuits and get acclimated before diving Kukulkan earlier in the day). Swimming along the route of these paired cenotes, we entered a lot of dark areas where very little light from the entrances penetrated. Though never further than 300' or so from either, it seemed at times we were far away from being able to surface. This, along with the darkness, made Jen a bit uneasy I think. I loved it, but I could definitely see how divers easily get turned around in caves and even caverns like this one. I would have had a different feeling had we not been with an experienced dive guide! (Mario has 20+ years of cave diving experience, most of which are in these very cenotes.) The highlight was surfacing in a dark room with a large air pocket where there were thousands of small stalactites forming from the ceiling. Small tree roots branched out across the ceiling while large ones plunged though openings and into the water. There was little to no light, as the roots seemed to fill the voids completely. (I caught a little of this on camera, but probably not well as my flashlight does not have a broad pattern.) The original plan was to surface, check our air and general comfort, then go back down and head to another part of the cenote. Jen expressed that though she's glad she did the dive, and thought it a good experience, she was not comfortable in the darker areas and swim-throughs. Mario understood, so he took us to Chak Mool where we swam around in the lighter area while he filmed us. At one point, I surfaced to take a quick look around. It's a beautiful cenote, but I can understand why Mario prefers to enter at Little Brother. The water in this cenote is a bit more murky with a very thin layer of detritus on the surface. On one end of Chak Mool entrance, maybe 10 to 15 feet below the surface lies the entrance to a large cave. This was an off-limits area to non-cave divers, of course, but nonetheless, Jen later expressed concern that we were going to go off in that direction! After swimming around a bit, we headed back to the Little Brother. Cutting straight across, it was then I noticed how close the two entrances actually were: you could clearly see one from the other at this angle! We were never far from either, but meandering through the crevices sure made it feel that way at times! Like with the first dive, at times I forgot I was under water! The only areas where clarity was an issue was in the halocline where the fresh and salt waters mixed. It was stirred up a bit, perhaps from the morning crowd (we were in this cenote alone, as far as I could tell). As soon as you got crossed into salt water, the temp rose and vis declined to a wavy blur. Very surreal! In the clear fresh water, it would catch me by surprise now and then when I would notice something "fly" by my mask just a few feet in front of me. I would turn my light on and it would be a small fish--a little reminder of where we were! Mario again pointed out a few formations, including a large stalactite, several crevices and entrances to caves filled with columns, a large fossil brain coral and a fossil spiraled shell. Another great experience that I hope to duplicate again some day! Mario assured me there are several more cenotes (10 or so) in the area that we could do without being cave certified. Definitely worth a return trip! Note: Being too heavy last time, I shed 2 lbs. I was still too heavy. I think I could have dove with 6 lbs considering the 80's and wet suit, and fresh water with no current.

Smmcdonald

07/08/15 at 14:32

Our first cenote dive! The site was just across the main highway from the entrance to Puerto Aventuras beach area and the dive shop/Omni resort. Just off the road, a different world appeared and we got a glimpse of the Yucatan on a different level! A beautiful place, with very resourceful people. All matters of what first appeared as trash, I noticed they re-use everything they have at their disposal. Past the entrance, we meandered down a dirt road to the end where among a few shacks were several cenotes, the most noted being Chak Mool. Our guide, Mario, is Mayan. He is also the brother of Froylan, our guide from yesterday. Mario is very boisterous, and seemed genuinely friendly. Resourceful himself, he saved Elle's dive by rigging her a new fin strap. (She had lost hers on the last dive the day before when she removed her fin for the last dive, but did not know it.) Lesson learned--check dive gear before every dive! To help acclimate us to the water, and get our wetsuit on (or just generally for fun), we walked down to the first cenote entrance, the "Little Brother" and jumped in--or rather stepped into--the water. It was very refreshing, and I decided a hood and gloves were not needed after all. Water that is 76 degrees isn't as bad when you aren't transitioning from 85 degree water, like at the quarry. We climbed out, donned our gear, and walked a little further down the sandy path to the entrance of Kukulkan. When we first submerged, I noticed a stream of bubbles coming from behind Jen. Elle and Mario noticed, too, as he checked the connection under water before having us surface to do a quick adjustment. Submerging again, the air continued to escape. We surfaced once more, and Mario--ever the resourceful dive guide--pulled from one of his pockets an extra o-ring and quickly switched them out. That did the trick! We submerged again and were quickly on our way to tour the cenote. Outstanding! It's hard to describe the experience. We had the place to ourselves, the water was clear and refreshing, and the thrill of it was almost overwhelming. We started shallow along the wall in the open area, greeted by a large white koi, and spotting several small freshwater fish and a turtle, before moving on under the ledge and into darker areas where we found several large openings into caves filled with stalactites and other formations. We continued to circumnavigate the outer edge of the main area counter-clockwise, exploring the holes and crevices, but never venturing too far and always in site of light from the entrance. Mario pointed out a few features, including a fossilized brain coral in the ceiling of a large overhang. Near the entrance, the air collected on the ceiling and bubbled up the sloped contour toward the water's surface. This made a roaring sound much like a muffled waterfall, though less intense. Back near the entrance, there was a large cave that went on further than my flashlight could penetrate. This cenote connects to Chak Mool, and I think the cave may be the way. There's a sign at the entrance that reads "Prevent your death! Go no farther." So, I didn't. From there we headed back to the entrance, taking a short final break as a few divers entered and swam by. We were again greeted by the same white koi as we left the entrance, and stepped back onto dry land. Jen and Elle, and my experience were notably different. While they felt nervous (Elle noticably so whenever we got close to one of the small caves to pear in), we all enjoyed the dive. But I didn't feel nervous like I thought I would. To me, the water was so clear and I was so caught up in the scenery, I would sometimes forget I was under water! It was like exploring a cavern, but weightless! If you wanted to see something on the ceiling a little closer, all you had to do was float up to it! Not being stuck on the ground like in a dry cave has it's advantages! Jen doesn't like the dark, and the cenote had some pretty dark places, even in the open area. She seemed to relax later in the dive, though, and said she really did enjoy it. Note: After yeterday's experience, and with wearing the wet suit, I used 12 lbs of weight. This proved too heavy in the fresh, still water.