The Sacred Caves of Calcehtok
About an hour out of Mérida on the way towards Uxmal, near the town of Muna, the caves of Calcehtok offer a remarkable half-day trip. This natural underground cavern system extends almost three miles, with some passage being easy to navigate, while others are true adventures – requiring you to crawl through crevices across the damp mud.
In Maya mythology, caves where entrances to the Underworld, and were populated by mischievous dwarves, known as “aluxes,” pronounced “ah-loo-scious.” The complicated series of tunnels at Calcehtok where filled with pre-Columbian pottery and the burial sites of ancient Maya elites. There are still pottery shards visible throughout the chambers, and the guides, member of the Cuy family which are the designated caretakers of the cave system, are very patient with visitors, explaining the history of the caves and the archaeological finds made.
There are various explorations that one can take at Calcehtok, which can be tailored to the time constraints of visitors as well as their physical condition. A two-hour tour is the more popular, suitable for visitors in their 60s, as well as children over the age of seven. A four-hour expedition, through the more complicated tunnel system, is for the fit, hearty and adventurous tourists, which leaves them exhausted, sweaty – and muddy.
It is important to bring bottled water, flashlights (which a tour operator can provide), sturdy sneakers to avoid slipping, and a change of clothes for those who expect to get dirty. Depending on the time of year, the caves can be moist, or they can be very muddy – and slippery. To this, add humidity, and it is quite surprising to see how the temperature changes the further one ventures into the caverns.
This kind of setting, naturally, leads to natural wonders: albino centipedes who live their entire lives in darkness, various kinds of bats that sleep all day in the cave and emerge only at dusk to feed; peculiar insects that dwell in the damp mud. One of the more compelling experiences is upon emerging: It feels cool, simply from the warmth of the caves, and perspiration on a visitor’s body.
And of course, visitors at Calcehtok as dusk arrives witness a extraordinary site, as hundreds of thousands of bats emerge from the caves in waves, relentlessly flying into the skies to feed. It is awe-inspiring and an experience that one does not soon forget.
Arrangements can be made by your B&B.
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