Xcacel Beach, Tulum, Quintana Roo, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

Some have said this is one of the most beautiful undeveloped beaches in Mexico.  I haven't personally seen very much of Mexico's 9300 kilometers of coastline but, I have to say that Xcacel (pronounced ish-ka-sell)  is certainly a mighty beautiful beach.

The beach is maintained as a turtle sanctuary to protect habitat.  A "donation" was requested of 10 pesos per person  (about $0.75 USD). On the sign above, the quotation under the name of the sanctuary  translates as: "Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish caught will we realize we cannot eat money" - American Indian Wisdom.

We were among the first people to arrive on this early morning and noted that there were no human footprints in the sand but rather these curious tracks crisscrossing and covering everything.

I guess that the tracks belong to the many, many iguanas who call this home and range freely especially after the humans leave and the gate is chained shut every night. This mom and junior were not particularly intimidated by my presence - more annoyed - but they both skittered away at my approach. A regular beach goer I talked with cautioned that if you are eating fruit they will climb your leg to get to it.  Not sure if I believe that but I didn't test the theory.

This one enjoys a nice oceanfront burrow/condo.

Cenotes are sinkholes that fill with groundwater.  The limestone bedrock characteristic of the Yucatan peninsula fosters thousands and thousands of these freshwater delights. This one is a short walk from the beach.

 Some of the more developed/famous cenotes include ziplines, amusements, and all manner of enticements to attract the tourism dollars.  The one just off this beach shown here was maybe 50 feet in diameter and tightly encircled with mangrove/jungle vegetation.

And why is Amy smiling so happily as she stands waist deep in the cenote?

Because as she looks down.......

.....she sees and feels hundreds and hundreds of little fish performing free exfoliation services (nibbling) on her legs!

The sandy path to/from the cenote tracks along through the greenery parallel to Xcacel Beach.

Clear water, clean white sand, a warm breeze, and endless sunshine. 

And here's a 30-second audio/video clip if you'd like a short visit to Xcacel. Sorry it's jerky, I'm not much of a videographer.