El Corchito

Minutes from Progreso's malecon, a little dock sends open boats puttering across the coastal lagoon to El Corchito - a mangrove island reserve where the peninsula's underground rivers surface as ojos de agua, "eyes of water": three or four spring pools of cool, clear freshwater ringed by boardwalks under a closed canopy of red and black mangrove. The contrast makes the magic - the lagoon crossed to get here is warm, salty and murky green; the pools are cold, sweet and transparent to their sandy floors, upwelling gently where the aquifer breaks through. Swimmers share the water with small fish and turtles, herons stalk the margins, and the island's famous residents - a bold clan of coatis, plus raccoons and iguanas - patrol the picnic palapas with professional interest in unattended sandwiches. Lockers, simple facilities and shaded tables keep it family-easy; rules keep sunscreen and food out of the water. It is a small, gentle wonder - the cenote experience in mangrove form.

What you actually see

• The ojos de agua - clear spring pools inside the mangrove.
• The boat crossing - the lagoon shuttle to the island.
• The coatis - ring-tailed opportunists on the boardwalks.
• The mangrove canopy - herons and roots over dark water.

When to go

Weekday mornings for pools at their calmest and clearest; dry-season months for the most comfortable water. Progreso's cruise-ship days spill visitors here by noon.

Honest expectations

The pools are small - a busy Sunday queues at the ladders. Coatis will take food; guard bags and follow the no-feeding rules. No sunscreen in the water is enforced.

Nearby

Progreso's malecon and pier, the Chicxulub crater museum and the flamingo lagoons toward Uaymitun line the same coast road.