Yucatan, Day 1 in Tulum and Day 2 in Sian Ka'an

We arrived at the Cancun international airport with plenty of other full flights of people. It was spring break, and college kids, young adults and families were excitedly departing the plane in search of white sand beaches and Mexican culture. Little did I know that the person holding the TNC sign would be one that would impress me the most during my first trip to Mexico.

We began our drive south along the main highway in a van full of people I didn’t know at all. I would spend the next 4 days with these people for more than 16 hours a day. Eduardo Galacia, from Pronatura Yucatan accompanied us south to Tulum where we would stay for the night. He graciously offered local snacks bought from Walmart and other groceries, and answered any first questions we had about the local environment, the road systems, etc. I wondered if I would be able to answer the same questions if they were posed to me…the population of Maryland? I dunno.

Our lodging in Tulum was located right off the beach. The main highway was about 3 or 4 miles from the coast, so we traveled inland passing a few small shops and other beachfront lodges. At one point the road was not more than 30 feet from the churning ocean. It isn’t hard to believe that this location could get demolished by hurricanes and tropical storms. We opened the windows and took in the salty ocean air. I could already feel the texture of my hair changing as the ocean air hit me.


We rose bright and early to the surf lapping at the quiet beach. Sandpipers were already busy combing the beach and the sunrise turned into many pastel colors behind the clouds. We began bird watching on the road with Eduardo and Mark Willuhn (Emerald Planet guide and former TNC employee) and were amazed at the number of birds we witnessed despite being so close to development. But Tulum was small and isolated compared to its northern tourist destinations. We saw orioles and kingbirds, and were most excited to spot a ferruginous pygmy owl and its partner inside a full tree. We left that morning to drive to Sian Ka’an biosphere reserve, just a few miles south of Tulum.

There we met Ismael, a local tourist guide and one of the founders of Amigos de Sian Ka’an. Ismael never realized when his father began giving eco-tours (then just a boat ride on the water with no real information exchange) twenty years ago that he would be encouraging and building a community enterprise for tourists. Tied with his Mayan culture, he found it important to protect his local land and resources for his ejido community. He worked with his council of community members to enlighten them about the benefits of building business around the booming ecotourism and offered them knowledge and markets for their local products or to help support the guides he was already leading. With TNC’s help, he taught local men and women to become ecotourism guides by spotting local flora and fauna, and stressing the importance of the ecology of mangroves and tidal wetlands to visitors. He tried to educate his peers that agriculture would no longer bring them the money they needed to survive, but ecotourism and protection of land would provide them with a long future of sustainable funds.

At Sian Ka’an biosphere reserve they are handling about 6,000 visitors a year. Add to that the other access points where guides are, and about 11,000 people are visiting the reserve a year. They are currently conducting research surveys to determine how many people the park can sustainably hold in a year, and will base their growth on that number. We then took a boat trip through the canal systems developed by the mayans, stopping at a very small ruin site right on a piece of land in the middle of the wetland system which might have been used as a trading post. After a lazy float by current down the canals, occasionally feeling the mucky mangrove river bottom squish through our toes, we boarded the boat again and traveled to Pez Maya.


Pez Maya is an island that TNC and Amigos de sian Ka’an acquired to stop any threats of future development from occurring at this picturesque and delicate spot. It is located at a gateway for the SK reserve, and provides critical habitat and reefs for many fish and bird species. It is a nesting ground for the threatened least tern and other species of birds, and osprey and pelicans thrive on fish there. While we bought this property for $2.7 million, 5 years later it is now valued at over $16 million. The only development—local landowners who will hopefully serve as future conservation buyers, a high-end resort that features catch and release fishing, and some military installments. This area harbors a large section of Mexico’s Meso-American reef, and a variety of coral and fish species. Groups of young adults train here for weeks to become knowledgeable about reef species and then identify and catalogue what’s occurring at these local reef systems for the first time. We are hoping to establish a coral reef research station here, with a focus on climate change research. Pez Maya’s position on the second-longest coral reef makes it ideal for studying coral reef resiliency to sea level rise and temperature change, as wells as effects of storms.
The threats to Mexico are greatest with population growth, which is at a world record pace! All of these people need natural resources like energy and water. ASK is working on environmental education and social participation among those areas which affect the Sian Ka’an reserve (22 hotels are working in conjunction with them now).

At the end of this very long day we returned after dark to the canals to hunt for crocodiles. Hunt, of course, is a relative term. In three motor boats set on idle, we slowly maneuvered along the edge of the marsh. The lead boat contained a rapidly scanning floodlight and the Crocodile Hunter. We aimlessly stared at the stars and fended off suicidal fish jumping into our dark boat as we awaited the signal from the lead boat. Suddenly they had it, and they called us forward. In his hands was a 3 meter crocodile, mouth fully tied shut. The teeth pierced through his jaw, ensuring that when he caught prey he could completely lock his jaws shut. We each were given the awesome opportunity to touch and hold the crocodile. I couldn’t wait for this chance and anxiously stretched my arm to touch his armor-like tail as we listened to his measurements and weight. I was astounded at his skin, which was not slimy but soft and smooth. Despite the scaly appearance, it was truly luscious to touch. The edges of this tail, which appeared to be rigid and boney were actually bendable although still impenetrable. My heart racing, I held his throat tightly and his tail proudly in the air as they shot my picture.