Bacalar Chico National Park

Bacalar Chico National Park (BCNP) is found on the northern section of Ambergris Caye, bordering Mexico. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site that was set up in 1996 under the National Park Systems Act (Laws of Belize Chapter 215, Revised 2000) as a result of lobbying from local fishers from the village of Sarteneja. The Bacalar Chico Marine Reserve (BCMR) together with the National Park, the terrestrial area of Bacalar Chico, encompasses 60 km2 and includes mangroves, lagoons, sublittoral forests and coral reef habitats.
The coastal reaches of the Bacalar region also support many unique natural characteristics, not the least significant of which is the area known locally as Rocky Point, which is the only location in Belize where the Belize Barrier Reef touches the shoreline. During the 1990’s, the coastline from Rocky Point southwards to Robles Point was recognized as an important marine turtle nesting area, supporting the largest number of Loggerhead and Green Sea Turtle nests in Belize, as well as periodic visits by nesting Hawksbill Turtles.
The Bacalar region has a long history of cultural importance. Archaeological studies conducted in the 1980’s recognized the coastal reaches of the Bacalar region once supported several trading, agricultural and fishing settlements established by the ancient Maya; and the area has intermittently been utilized by settlers from colonial times to the present day. The Bacalar Chico channel provides fishers from the mainland villages of Sarteneja and Corozal access to the inner lagoon, the main barrier reef and deep waters from the western side of Ambergris Caye, but the coastal reaches of the Bacalar region are also easily accessed by fishers entering from Mexico in the north as well as fishers entering from San Pedro Town in the south.