Much More than Snorkeling, Starfish and a Beach on Cozumel

Almost two years ago, I rented a car on Cozumel to visit several beaches where I intended to snorkel reefs that were not too far off shore. Windy conditions creating choppy seas prevented me from swimming to most of the sites. And an aggressive barracuda scared me away from the reef I actually almost reached off Punta Sur on the Mexican island's southern tip.

From a cruise ship on my most recent stop on Cozumel, I joined a morning tour that promised visits to two additional sites on my original must-do list that were not reachable without a boat: Columbia Shallows Reef and El Cielo. I'm happy to report that this time the weather and marine life cooperated with my plans. And not only did I snorkel those places, but the tour added an unexpected third stop for a close-up encounter with sea turtles.

The short title "Snorkel, Starfish, and Beach" didn't quite convey how exciting my excursion turned out to be. Of course reading the details offered a better description. A high-speed inflatable boat to the southern shores of Cozumel. A forty-five minute guided excursion on Columbia Reef. A stop at El Cielo's crystal clear waters to see an environment teeming with starfish. And finally, a quick dash to a local beach club for a Mexican lunch.

Zipping down the southwestern coast of Cozumel in an inflatable Zodiac-like boat is quite a contrast to taking a cruise. We had to be racing close to three times the average speed of my cruise ship. Our small group of sixteen held our hats and sunglasses as we watched the coast's beach clubs and water parks give way to deserted strips of sand facing a flat seascape of blue and turquoise water. We were headed to an area a short way off Punta Sur Ecological Park that protects the southern portion of the island. And we soon found ourselves in the middle of Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park that preserves a section of the vast off-shore reef system.

We stopped for a quick snorkeling and safety lesson, then all slid over the low, smooth sides of the watercraft into the clear, warm Caribbean Sea above Columbia Shallows Reef. The water might have been twenty feet deep but we could easily discern the wide array of corals like elkhorn that thrived below us. I noticed a few jellyfish but ignored them and started snapping photos of the undersea creatures. A grey triggerfish. A black triggerfish. A pair of large white-spotted filefish. A half yellow, half black angelfish known as a rock beauty. A barracuda! I paused a while near this one, giving it plenty of space and time to go its merry way.

As our escorted group drifted toward our boat, I noticed a turtle feeding on algae or sea grass deep below. I surfaced to call out the news to a guide who soon started snapping pictures. While the turtle never surfaced, I was able to identify it by my own photos as my very first hawksbill sea turtle. Its carapace was more jagged, like the teeth of a sawblade, than the green sea turtle's that I'm much more familiar with. And appropriate to its name, its beak was sharper, more birdlike. Alas both species are critically endangered, with the hawksbill struggling with a much smaller worldwide population than the green.

I swam over additional sections of reef populated with many fish and suddenly realized most of my group was either back on or already headed toward the tour boat. Nonetheless I stayed back a few minutes, lingering over a sandy expanse where I spotted two southern stingrays as they calmly foraged for a breakfast of mollusks or crustaceans.

Our next stop was just a few minutes away but wasn't to see starfish as billed in the tour description. We dived into shallower water where sea grass sprouted over a wide stretch of sand. It didn't take long to find a green sea turtle chomping below, and then another, and another. There might have been five in my general vicinity. Conditions were fortunately ideal that morning for our crew to surprise us with this exciting encounter.

At this location there was also a lone, rocky outcrop of corals where hundreds of fish schooled tightly. I identified sergeant majors along with some grunts and snappers. As I circled the underwater island I spied a spotted moray. Peering open-mouthed for prey, it hid its long body in a tight crevice.

While I saw one starfish at the turtle stop, many more awaited at our third stop, El Cielo sandbar, seemingly seconds away. In a ten-foot deep stark and sandy landscape, starfish in hues of yellow, red, and orange lay scattered randomly. Except for color, they seemed identical and comparable in size, their five points spreading maybe eight inches tip-to-tip at the farthest. I looked for some kind of group formation or order but only found one straight line of three individuals equally spaced. It was fascinating to see them but I think the lives of starfish will remain a secret from me for a while longer.

The next stop was an early lunch to quench our snorkeled-up appetites. Our inflatable boat was quite close to the deserted shore and started headed directly there. However there was no sign of a beach club, just a tideline of seaweed and a long expanse of beach fronting empty grassland and woods. It turned out we'd be having a beach-towel picnic on Playa El Cielo instead of a palapa-covered fiesta.

The revised agenda was no problem; it seemed fitting to the rugged theme of the morning. When was the last time I really picnicked? Or watched a hermit crab scurry in its shell across my towel? When would I see this corner of the vast Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System again?

Gazing out at the languid seascape painted by a composite of reefs and cloud shadows, I was happy to be marooned for a short time in a seemingly unspoiled corner of Cozumel. Of course I could also see our boat's crew wading ashore with our bento boxes of guacamole, chips, pasta salad, and sandwiches. Civilization is always calling us home.