A beautiful forest

It takes almost an hour to get to plot 3 in Carmelita’s forest concession. The road becomes even narrower due to the dense vegetation and everywhere there are deep holes that make it very difficult for the pickups to get through. I hope we would not get stuck somewhere and would have to push the car.

We stopped by a Chico Zapote tree where Don Luis made a demonstration how resin is collected. The tree is not cut completely, so it can produce more resin. It was also explained the exploitation of the Chico Zapote tree follows the same harvesting scheme as the whole concession: after the plot has been harvested, it will not be harvested again until 40 years later.

1 km further we went into the forest to see mahogany “father trees”, which are mahogany trees of specific characteristics that were left in the harvested plot to provide seeds for future mahogany trees. Along the small roads, the community plants mahogany, cedar, and other secondary trees, so the ecosystem keeps its balance.


It was nice walking in the Maya Biosphere Reserve. I am glad these communities are preserving the forest while also making a living. Thanks to sustainable forestry practices future generations would also get the chance to enjoy this beautiful environment.