Riviera Maya (Quintana Roo)
Sistema Camilo (Cenote Muchachos)
- CertificationFull cave
- Water temperature≈ 24–25 °C (75–77 °F)estimated, no reports yet
- SpecialExperienced divers
Diving and fills
Dive here with
Fills nearby
- Zero Gravity'Mixed gas fills' — ask which mixes exactly (trimix, O₂, sorb)
- Pro Dive International (Catalonia Riviera Maya)Air and nitrox (alu 80/12 L); no trimix, O₂ or CCR support
- Cave CCRTrimix and CCR support
What it looks like
Muchachos Cenote Sistema Camilo: Cave Diving, Quintana Roo, Mexico Secrets of the Yucatan. Episode Two: Sistema Camilo Black Forest (cenote Muchachos)
All 3 videos and posts
Videos and posts
From other divers, via YouTube, Instagram and Facebook. They only load when you click; after that, Google's or Meta's privacy rules apply.
Muchachos Cenote Sistema Camilo: Cave Diving, Quintana Roo, Mexico Secrets of the Yucatan. Episode Two: Sistema Camilo Black Forest (cenote Muchachos)
Search for more onYouTube ↗Instagram ↗Facebook ↗
Other people's footage, not advice: how someone else dives here says nothing about what suits your team. Dive within your training.
The dive
Sistema Camilo is richly decorated with dry-cave formations and rimstone. In the 'Grand Canyon' the line runs in fresh water above a salty floor; the 'Black Forest' is a side passage you reach via a jump.
1 earlier accident or incident has been reported at this cave. Read what happened ↓
Profile and sections
Sistema Camilo is richly decorated with dry-cave formations and rimstone. In the 'Grand Canyon' the line runs in fresh water above a salty floor; the 'Black Forest' is a side passage you reach via a jump.
Over 11 km has been surveyed: the Cambrian Foundation explored and mapped ~11 km in the early 2000s. Muchachos (Spanish: ‘boys’) is said to honour the local volunteers who helped the first expeditions. Carri's Loft (also Carrie's Loft) is a cenote of the system, found in 2001 by Terrence Tysall and Mike St. Germain: about 20 min of diving from Cenote Camilo, less than 150 m over land. In 2002 it was a second base camp for the upstream exploration.
- Depth and profile
- Halocline about -21 m (relatively deep); max depth unknown
- Configuration
- Unknown; jumps and a slot canyon
- DPV: unknown
- No info on scooter use; slot canyon (Grand Canyon) and decorated side passages, access only via a local guide
Who can dive where
- At least Full cave
- Configurations: Backmount / twinset / Sidemount / CCR / Small cylinders / no-mount (speleo sumps)
- Configuration unknown — research beforehand
- Experienced divers only
This is how the planner decides who in your team may dive this cave. Rules your own trip adds (organizer, a mail, the AI) show with your trip.
How to get there
Off the Tulum–Cobá road; entrance via Cenote Muchachos, which the landowner sometimes closes or alters — arrange through a local guide only. No map pin.
Around Sistema Camilo (Cenote Muchachos)
Fills3 fill stations · nearest 1 km
Zero Gravity
Carretera 307 km 269,5, Puerto Aventuras
'Mixed gas fills' — ask which mixes exactly (trimix, O₂, sorb)
Daily 7:30–19:00
Nearest centre. Rental and servicing, also lodging. Arranges access to Otoch Ha (Nariz) and La Concha.
Pro Dive International (Catalonia Riviera Maya)
Avenida Xcacel Lt1 Mz18, Puerto Aventuras
Air and nitrox (alu 80/12 L); no trimix, O₂ or CCR support
Daily 8–17, including public holidays
Resort centre on the beach of hotel Catalonia Riviera Maya, with sister bases at Allegro and Royal Hideaway Playacar. Mainly reef and cenote dives (Dos Ojos, Chac Mool); also sells a two-dive cave excursion for certified cave divers — ask beforehand which caves and which requirements. Not a tech centre.
Cave CCR
Bahía Akumal 31, Puerto Aventuras
Trimix and CCR support
Mon–Fri 8–18, Sat–Sun 8–17
Rental of OC backmount/sidemount, CCR and scooters; official JJ-CCR service centre. Also Cozumel trips.
Drive times from Puerto Aventuras: we don't know this site's exact spot.
News
All (1)
Accidents and incidents
What happened at this cave before, with the sources. No names are given; read it as a lesson for your own planning.
- Fatality (Feb 2015): a 72-year-old left the continuous line three times on the way out, surfaced at Cenote Camilo instead of Muchachos and died of a heart attack walking back in the heat. One line to the exit; the overland walk is a risk too.
Access and rules change: check what applies locally right before your trip. Source: GDELT Project and the news feeds of diving magazines. Search for more news ↗ Searched automatically, last on 11 Nov 2026.
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