Cenotes of the Riviera Maya by Steve Gerrard

SISTEMA OX BEL HA
'Three Paths Of Water'
The World’s Longest Underwater Cave System
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Region South Tulum
Location  
GPS Position  
Land Owner Ejido Jose Maria Pino Suarez
Dive Site  Fee  
Maximum Depth 98 feet/33.5 meters
Average Depth unknown
Distance Explored / Surveyed 539,556 feet/163,502 meters
First Explorers Sistema Esmerelda – Fred Devos, Bil Philips, Daniel Riordan and Sam Meacham

Sistema Del Mar - Steve Gerrard, Tamara Kendall and Sue Sharples
Primary explorers – Bernie Birnbach and Chrissy LaMaillot

The connection between Sistema Del Mar and Sistema Esmerelda - Bernie Birnbach and Christophe Le Malliot - March 19th, 1999
Other Explorers Ted Cole, Steve Keene and Sabine Schnittger
Upstream YES
Downstream YES, Three different vents connected to the ocean, Very strong current of two knots+ with outgoing tide
Cavern Dive NO
Snorkeling YES, Fair
Cenotes within Cave System
  1. Cenote Air
  2. Cenote Amber Sun
  3. Cenote Ayim
  4. Cenote Barrier
  5. Cenote Bat Hole
  6. Cenote Bend
  7. Cenote Blackfoot
  8. Cenote Bo’ox
  9. Cenote Bronx
  10. Cenote Canales Norte
  11. Cenote Chac Che
  12. Cenote Crack
  13. Cenote de la Familia
  14. Cenote Del Mar
  15. Cenote Dum
  16. Cenote Esmerelda - Awesome Cavern
  17. Cenote Espejo
  18. Cenote Este
  19. Cenote Hideaway
  20. Cenote Labyrinth
  21. Cenote La Mesa
  22. Cenotes Las Perlas
  23. Cenote Los Canales
  24. Cenote Lost Twin
  25. Cenote Luz
  26. Cenote Kax
  27. Cenote Kubil
  28. Cenote Mangrove
  29. Cenote Moonpod
  30. Cenote Morena
  31. Cenote
  32. Cenote Matchbox
  33. Cenote Odyssey
  34. Cenote Perla
  35. Cenote Sac Be
  36. Cenote Stilt
  37. Cenote Tall Trees
  38. Cenote Tarpon
  39. Cenote Teapot
  40. Cenotes Twin
  41. Cenote Victoria
  42. Cenote Wakax
  43. Cenote Ya’ax Kai (Bluefish)
  44. Cenote
  45. Cenote Xuux
  46. Cenote
  47. Cenote Xeh
  48. Cenote Zapata
There is a total of 111 cenotes in this system
Cenote Location Take the Coba Road east from Highway 307 to the Tulum Beach Road. Go south 4.2 kilometers and find parking area on the west side of road. South of the “Ana Y Jose Cababnas and Restaurant
Accessibility EASY, Enter at Cenote Twins, Minor restriction to get into Cave system, Most of cave system deep into the jungle and inaccessible
Cave Description Shallow meandering passage with flow of water, Many offshoot passages near the ocean area, Cenote Esmerlda Area deeper with saltwater sections, decorations, etc
Best Dives Main line upstream from Cenote Del Mar
Map Available YES, Contact Sam Meacham or Bil Philips
Future Exploration  
History  
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