Riviera Maya Cenotes · Mexico · Cenote · Cave & cavern · Freshwater
El Pit
Tree branches standing out of a sulphide cloud at 30 m
Photo: Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 4.0
A narrow gash in the jungle floor 2.8 km past Dos Ojos that drops further than anything else divers reach on this coast. The guided profile descends the middle of the shaft through a halocline to a hydrogen sulphide cloud at 30 m, with dead tree branches standing out of it, and the walls carry on narrowing into darkness past 40 m.
Also known as The Pit, Cenote El Pit.
Where it is and how deep
20.3232° N, 87.4099° WPublished position for this site.
The dive
The descent starts in the middle of the cenote rather than along a wall, so there is nothing to hold on to and the whole thing runs on buoyancy control. A shallow halocline blurs the view early on, then clears, and the shaft opens out below into a space far wider than the hole in the jungle above it suggests.
At 30 m you reach the hydrogen sulphide cloud. It sits across the shaft like a floor that is not there, and dead tree branches protrude through it from below, which is the image the site is known for. Below the cloud El Pit narrows and continues into darkness past 40 m, and that is where the guided dive turns.
Everything deeper belongs to cave teams. The passage below is the deepest known in Quintana Roo at 119.1 m, found in 1996 about 1,500 m from the main Dos Ojos entrance, and none of it is reachable on a guided cavern profile. Coming back up, the light through the opening is the reason for the early start: later in the day the shafts flatten out.
Background
El Pit is part of Sistema Dos Ojos, whose surveyed extent runs to 82 km through 28 known sinkhole entrances. The deepest known cave passage in Quintana Roo lies here, 119.1 m down, discovered in 1996 roughly 1,500 m from the main entrance of the system.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good |
Season follows Riviera Maya Cenotes: Cenote water temperature holds steady all year; Dos Ojos gets busier in the December–April peak season while most other cenotes stay quiet.
Know before you go
- The profile goes past 30 m in fresh water with no wall to reference, so descent rate and gas planning matter more here than at any other cenote on the coast.
- The walk in is steep and narrow with awkward footing; use the pulleys for tanks rather than carrying them down.
Photos from El Pit
Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 4.0
Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 4.0
Questions divers ask
How deep is The Pit cenote?+
The guided dive works down to about 40 m, passing the hydrogen sulphide cloud at 30 m. The cave passage below reaches 119.1 m, the deepest known in Quintana Roo, and is cave-team territory rather than part of any guided profile.
What is the cloud at 30 m in El Pit?+
A hydrogen sulphide layer produced by decomposing organic matter. It hangs across the shaft at 30 m with dead tree branches standing out of it, and divers pass through it on the way down.
Sources
- El Pit Cenote — Pro Dive International
- Sistema Dos Ojos — Wikipedia
- Cenote El Pit — Scubago
Photo credits
- Divers in deep blue water below the rock rim of a narrow cenote shaft by Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Diver finning through deep blue water with daylight coming from far above by Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Diver with a bright torch in near-dark blue water deep in the shaft by Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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