On the road to Valladolid from Tulum, several well-known cenotes are available for cave diving. One is Tortuga Cenote, the entrance to which is combined with the road to two more cenotes: Vaca Ha Cenote and Kim Ha Cenote.
The Tortuga cenote is located at the end of the private road. Approaching the cenote, you will see a small pool with convenient steps. The pond is about 6 meters in diameter in the jungle. Near the cenote, there is a parking lot for three cars. There are no amenities. You can get dressed and dive in.
The cenote is only available to Cave divers. Open Water divers cannot go there.
Cave line description
The maximum depth of the Tortuga Cenote cave line is 28 meters, the average depth is 20 meters, and the length of the surveyed passages is 2488 meters. At a depth of 19 meters, there is a halocline between fresh and saltwater. The Tortuga Cenote cave line is connected to the neighboring Kim Ha Cenote cave line.
The permanent line of the cave begins at the surface, tied to a log. There is a freshwater zone of 1,200 ft (362 m) with various beautiful decorations. There are two T intersections in the freshwater zone. The first permanent intersection goes left and down into the saltwater zone. The second permanent intersection splits into two dead ends. The freshwater zone is known as the First Strike Run. The saltwater zone is named the Gateway. This cave system is an incredible example of water drainage, showing how the limestone is eroded through geological time.
There is an underwater connection from Tortuga Ha Cenote to Kim Ha Cenote in the South-East.
Our Kim Ha, Vaca Ha, and Tortuga Cenotes cave diving video
Tortuga cenote cave lines map
Tortuga Cenote location map
The first explorers were Ivan and Mary Cappelli, Randy Douglas, Sam Ferra, Steve Penn, Allen Jonushaitis, Cliff Keck, and Don Redinger. Other explorers are Jim Kitka, Daniel Riordan, and R. Weijski-Wol.
It was connected to Cenote Kim Ha during the summer of 2004.
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