One of the 31 states of Mexico is Yucatan. It is bordered on the southwest by the state of Campeche, bordered on the east and southeast by the state of Quintana Roo, and is located on the Yucatan Peninsula. The Yucatan has many features in its relatively flat land. There are beaches, vast expanses of jungle, coral reefs, swamps, and even the Puuc hills.



More than half a century ago, the Mayan civilization thrived and prospered in Yucatan. They relied heavily on the waters from cenotes, which is a sinkhole that contains groundwater that can also be found in the Yucatan Peninsula and some of the nearby Caribbean islands. In the Mayan language, the word cenote means dzonot, a sacred well. One of the most popular cenotes is the well at Chichen Itza, which was used for human sacrifice. These holes in the ground are formed when the rock is dissolved, creating a subsurface void. When the water table is below the void in the ceiling, the rock will collapse at an even faster rate.

Cenotes vary in size and shape, but the kind most often seen resemble circular ponds and can measure many feet in diameter. While the water surface in some cenotes is at ground level, the majority would require some bending to reach the water. There are thousands of species of fish and plant life that exist in this underwater network of caves. The roots of trees found on the land above have pushed their way through the rock and limestone below.

Yucatan is a frequent vacation destination. Cenotes in Yucatan and in other areas of the world attract visitors worldwide and even divers who want to explore the vast underwater caves. This underwater world stretches for hundreds of miles and has not been fully explored. The most experienced of divers still have difficulty navigating through these waters. Divers often have to squeeze through very tight spaces to continue their exploration, which can be dangerous if any equipment is damaged.

It requires a tremendous amount of skill and knowledge to map out the caves. At this time, more than 350 miles of the Yucatan cenotes have been mapped, but it is an extremely dangerous feat. The next cenote could be hundreds of miles away, and it is easy for divers to get disoriented in direction and lose air.

Divers use spools of string that they attach to rock formations to avoid getting lost. Due to the fresh water flowing in from the jungle meeting with the ocean's salt water, it creates an illusion in the water, leading divers to think they have found an area without water.