December 2020 ~ Road Trip
Truth be told, Bacalar was the ultimate destination of our road trip.
The day before we started our trip we were having dinner with a good friend in our home base of Zipolite on the coast of Oaxaca.
“If you DO go to the Yucatan on your road trip, then you guys will love Bacalar. It’s off the beaten track and has way less tourism than the rest of the coastline and an amazing lake.”
Had we ever heard of Bacalar? Absolutely not.
We looked it up on the map and when we saw how far away it was, how many miles of driving, we were dubious we would ever get there. Way too far! Still we held onto Bacalar as a viable “final” destination if we, and our car, have the stamina to get there.
Now, with all these miles under our belt we have made it to the Yucatan, we will push further South, to Bacalar, just above the Mexican border with Belize.
Bacalar is a small sleepy town at the most Southern tip of Quintana Roo, which sits on the edge of a huge fresh water lagoon. It was a city of the Mayan civilization in Pre Columbian times. Pirates ransacked Bacalar repeatedly in the 17th century. Today it is all about the lagoon as a destination for eco tourists. The Laguna de Bacalar stretches out for twenty six miles with crystalline waters which boast seven hues of blues.
The lagoon is nicknamed “Lagoon of seven colors”, due to the fact that there are cenotes located within the lake and there is a dramatic contrast between the depths of the water within the cenote and around it. As well, the bottom of the lake has white sand, created from limestones, which reflects the sunlight from above creating the range of blues.
We arrive here soon after weeks of down pour and a recent hurricane! The rain has stirred up the limestone at the bottom of the lagoon and created silt in the waters, thereby reducing the intensity and variety of colors until things settle once again.
Catamaran on la Laguna de Bacalar
Fortunately, by midday the fog has lifted and the sun has come out. We head to the dock and pretty soon we are off for a few blissful hours floating above the blues of the lagoon on a catamaran with an experienced sailor at the helm!
There are multiple ways of sampling Bacalar’s water filled ecosystem. While the catamaran is great for experiencing the breadth of the lake, discovering smaller tributaries is best done by kayak. Tomorrow is another day.
Kayaking the estuary
Town of Bacalar
The little town of Bacalar has a central plaza surrounded by small stores and restaurants which comes to life around sunset, as the locals mingle, while kids ride bikes and play games undisturbed by the “minimal presence” of cars. Bacalar is one of the pueblo magicos ~ a recognition of uniquely attractive and authentic villages throughout Mexico. (To date we have been to two other pueblo magicos; Malinalco and San Jose del Pacifico both very special mountain villages.)
It is with trepidation that we consider Bacalar today and extrapolate what Bacalar may become in years to come. Multiple articles compare Bacalar to Tulum, not Tulum as it is today, but Tulum as it used to be, over two decades ago before unchecked development took place. The buzz around Bacalar as an “undiscovered destination” does not portend well as the arc from beautiful out of the way locations to overdeveloped and saturated tourist destinations is a short one.
The town boasts a small collection of murals, which brighten the streets. We also find some memorable fine dining spots.
Next to the central square stands a beautiful small 18th century fort that once protected the town against pirates. Its odd shapes are best appreciated from the air, as seen in the photo below. Even though Bacalar is over fifteen miles from the Caribbean, pirates found their way into the lake and plundered the town repeatedly.
Now that we made it to our ultimate destination we must contend with the obvious next question, which we frankly had not addressed until now… And that is, what route do we take to get back home? We are very tempted to keep going South to enter Belize and then circle back up to Oaxaca on the other side of Belize. Unfortunately, Belize is closed to visitors at this time, due to the pandemic.
One option therefore is to double back on the entire trip, and another, is to go through the jungle and then brave the infamous “most dangerous road in Mexico” through Chiapas!
Stay tuned…
This place looks wonderful. Let’s hope its natural beauty is preserved and no development takes place. We went on a catamaran in The British Virgin Islands and loved it. So relaxing. I look forward to the next instalment.
Darlene I think it’s probably unrealistic to think that no development would take place, apparently in the past five years it is almost like a boom town compared to how it was before. Now all the property prices have shot up as so often happens once a place is discovered.
Where we live here on the coast in Oaxaca we hear about foreigners buying land almost every week in the next beach over. So much so that there are only a couple of fishermen left there and all the new owners are foreigners and the traffic is quite the nightmare.
Love the experience of being on a catamaran.
Peta
Another lovely day in your paradisic lives!
Of which we are happy to share with you!
xoxo
Bacalar is so beautiful! I hope that it remains undiscovered (I won’t tell anyone 🙂 ). So smart to enjoy the water first on a catamaran with someone else at the helm, then by kayak. Very different experiences. I’m looking forward to learning what your decision was for your journey back to Oaxaca.
We loved Bacalar and really enjoyed the variety of experiences on the lagoon. We also did a boat ride but were less enthralled by that as we not such fans of the noise of the motor. Catamaran and kayaks are definitely more our speed.
Thanks for stopping by to read us and to leave your comments.
Peta
Your dinner-guest steered you right didn’t they? Great photos as ever, of a special little place so far untouched except by your beaming smiles. Very telling, that. Thank you for yet another lovely post.
Thank you Johnny, that is such a sweet thing of you to say! We had a wonderful few days there and felt very disconnected, in a positive way, from the “outside world”. Bacalar really does have the feeling of being away from the madding crowd. A very special place.
We would love to go back again to see the blues in their full spectrum of color.
Peta
It’s so great to see your post on Bacalar and I’m pleased to learn that this place remains somewhat of an “undiscovered” gem. We were there in 2009 and were completely taken by the gorgeous lake and peaceful surroundings. I remember being so impressed by the clarity of the water. It was a very different Mexico from what we had experienced in the past. I think we were the only gringos there at the time. I thought to myself then that it probably wouldn’t be long before it became a popular tourist spot. Perhaps it has escaped mass tourism because, as you say, it is quite “out of the way” and maybe because most folks are happy to get their beach/water fix on the ocean…hope it stays that way!
Wow Caroline, you were here way back in 2009. You were definitely ahead of the curve. I am not all that surprised. Apparently ten years ago people bought land here for very little on the waterfront, which today is worth millions… the usual story. Yes, probably the majority of folks are more interested in the ocean than a lake/lagoon, so perhaps that will save it from the masses. Also the fact that one does have to do that extra 3-4 hour drive.
Thanks for stopping by to read us and comment. We are way behind on our blog reading, but will get to it soon and looking forward to seeing what you two have been up to these days.
Peta
I’m always behind in blog reading and writing! For the first time in a long time, your post did not end up in my junk file…not sure what I’ve done differently but I hope it remains this way.
We were lucky to learn about Bacalar when we stayed at a beach house rental near the Belize border. Our son, then only 11, still raves about swimming in Laguna Bacalar.
What a gorgeous place you found! It’s been so lovely to follow along on this epic trip. Looking forward to finding out how you got home!
(We also went sailing on a catamaran in Cuba – one of our best days there.)
Thanks Alison.. It has been fun reliving it for us by finally catching up on the blog posts.
Yes, the catamaran we went on in Cuba took us to a pristine coral reef for snorkeling. It was very memorable indeed. I need to go into my blog archives to find the name of that beach (one of the reasons I love writing a blog).
Peta
Well, it was worth the extra effort to go there. The scenery is just glorious. Please tell me you didn’t go on the most dangerous road. I’m not sure I’ll be able to cope with reading about that.
It was definitely worth the extra effort to go there yes! After driving so far, another three to four hours was not going to make that much difference for us. Plus of course we still have the longgg drive back. One more post inbetween and then the finale.
Peta
Oh wow, what a great addition to the must-visit list.
Bacalar is worth the extra effort. Of course most people stop at Tulum and never go further South. We would love to go back to see it in all its glory without the silt and then continue on to Belize just below. Love driving across borders of countries.
Peta
Just lovely Peta and Ben. It’s always great to trek along where you’ve been and the accompanying photos. At the moments we have relatives from the US in our little neck and they’re blown over by the beauty of Plettenberg Bay. Last evening after a lovely beach walk, I drove along millionaire’s row, and it was sad to see how many homes are boarded up during the winter … many are local owners from different parts of the country, but many are foreign owned. I THINK brakes have been applied to foreign owned houses and homes.
Susan, every time I read your comments I now think of my memories of Plettenberg Bay. It is such a gorgeous place in the world and I do hope to get back some day, with Ben. It has been years since I returned to South Africa. I look forward to having the opportunity one day to visit other parts of Africa too.
Enjoy your family time. That sounds great.
Peta
That water is just beautiful! I love the way you share you trip on your blog, as I’m enjoying it very much!
Ann great that you are enjoying our blog. It has been fourteen years running now and it has been a way to chronicle our nomadic lifestyle. This so far is already the longest and biggest road trip we have done together and it far exceeded any expectations we might have had.
Thanks for reading us and for leaving your comments.
Peta
That lagoon is mind blowing! I remember Laguna de Bacalar, but we must have passed through on a cloudy day, because I can’t recall the lake and if it would have been as stunning as in some of the photos, I surely would remember. I think. Of course, this was almost two decades ago. And, we did end up going and going in our truck camper. First Belize… then Guatemala… and before we knew it, we had reached the Panama Canal. But, you might have read about that. 🙂
I’m glad you enjoyed the catamaran experience. Which is quite different on a tranquil lake and other protected waters than on an ocean. 🙂
Liesbet how interesting that you passed by lake Bacalar two decades ago. Imagine if you had stopped and bought land there if it had been a sunny day. Today it would be worth millions. So they say.
Ah, if the border to Belize HAD been open we may well have kept going. We had no time limit whatsover, had the dog and were ready for more adventure. We fantasized about going all the way to our first ever home base together outside the U.S. in Nicaragua.
Peta
What a great discovery! Loved all the photos of relaxing time on the water, from catamaran to kayak to dock. Speaking of docks, look at brave Esco walking out there! His confidence level seems to have multiplied under your loving care.
Thanks Lex ~ for fire signs like both of us (Aries and Sagittarius), being on a body of water for three days, was blissful. The catamaran was for us both the most memorable.
Esco indeed came into his own during this road trip. He was secure confident and adaptable surprising us both. As long as he had his bed, his food and us, he was a happy puppy. So often with adopted dogs, they need time to settle into trust, understandably.
Speaking of which, how is your little pup doing?
Peta
He’s maturing a little bit! He’s a great traveler and adapts very well to new places and people, etc., but I am waiting for his energy level and urge to eat everything in sight to abate a little bit!
Listening to the sound of the water in the little video is absolutely soothing. Looking at the map it does indeed look like a long way to go. However those aerial photos showing the variety of colors are enough to convince me. I do like to think that with it being harder to reach it won’t be overrun with your buses any time soon.
Sue the catamaran experience was hypnotic… gliding on the top of the water, the sound of the water, the wind. I twas totally worth going the extra distance. I hope we get to revisit Bacalar to experience it in its full glory.
Peta
What a fabulous, serene place! I hope it doesn’t get “discovered” and developed. We need those wild places, and it makes me happy that it’s there even if I never get to visit in person (although I must say, seeing your photos really makes me want to go there. But I feel that way about almost every place you go).
Your sentiments about how undiscovered destinations can quickly go from beautiful out-of- the-way locations to saturated tourist destinations is exactly what we hope will not happen to the Forgotten Coast here in Florida. So far, we’ve escaped the overdevelopment that plagues so much of Florida. We’re hoping it stays that way.
I absolutely love the photo of you two in the kayak!!
Laurel even though Bacalar is definitely still off the beaten path, especially in comparison with Tulum, Cancun and so in, it is already “on the map”. It will be interesting to see how things develop there, or not.
That’s a lovely compliment and makes us happy to read that our photos make you want to go to the places we have enjoyed. I do hope you get to visit Bacalar one day.. not TOO far for your RV is it?
We were surprised to read that the Forgotten Coast is considered the “last remaining stretch of unspoiled pristine gulf coast beaches”, we always assumed all of Florida was developed. It must be beautiful.
Peta
Such a lovely, little paradise you found, Peta! The water and the sky put up some show for you, and kayaking was a great experience too, such interesting formations these Estromatolitos, never heard of🙂
Ah yes, paradise indeed. The Estromatolitos were definitely new to us and we found them to be fascinating and beautiful. The whole ecosystem here was incredible. So much tranquility and beauty.
Peta