Tecolutla is a town and municipality located on the

Tecolutla River The Tecolutla River is a river in the state of Veracruz in Mexico, and the main drainage of the historical and cultural region of Totonacapan. It is principally fed by four rivers that rise in the Sierra Norte de Puebla: from north to south, they ...

on the eastern coast of the state of

Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. It has the closest beaches to

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

, and much of its economy is based on tourism, as it is only a four- or five-hour drive from the capital. It is the northern end of a tourist corridor along the Gulf of Mexico called the "

Emerald Coast The Emerald Coast is an unofficial name for the coastal area in the US state of Florida on the Gulf of Mexico that stretches about through five counties, Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, and Bay, which include Pensacola Beach, Navar ...

," which extends down to the city of

. Tecolutla's biggest attraction is its natural settings of

wetlands A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

with

estuaries An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...

, canals and

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evoluti ...

s associated with the river. The town is known for the "Tecolutla Monster,"—probably a dead

whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea, i.e. all cetaceans apart from dolphins and ...

—that was washed ashore in 1969. Its remains are kept at the Marine Museum. The name Tecolutla means "place of the tecolotes or owls."

Tourism

The most important and growing economic activity in the zone is tourism. Tecolutla has the closest beaches to Mexico City. The town has about 15 km of beaches which face directly onto the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

. (The municipality has a total of 40 km.) These beaches generally have gentle waves and warm water, except during storms called "''nortes''." These are strong cold fronts that come down from the north along Mexico's Atlantic coast between December and February and can cause sudden drops in temperature and winds. This fickle weather keeps Tecolutla and many other Gulf coast communities from becoming major resort areas like Cancun. The oldest hotel is the Hotel Tecolutla, built in 1949, which has been preserved in its period. It used to be the only sizable building in town, but since the turn of the 21st century, numerous hotels have been developed. They generally cater to budget travelers from Mexico City, also attracting travelers from

Xalapa Xalapa or Jalapa (, ), officially Xalapa-Enríquez (), is the capital city of the Mexican state of Veracruz and the name of the surrounding municipality. In the 2005 census the city reported a population of 387,879 and the municipality of which ...

, the state capital. This tourism is mainly concentrated during peak seasons, such as Christmas and Easter holidays, and special events such as the annual fishing tournament. During the rest of the year, it is fairly empty. The beaches of the town of Tecolutla divide into North and South beaches, each with their own hotel zones, restaurants, and camping areas. Both offer boat rides and bicycle paths. At the South Beach, where breakwaters protect the mouth of the Tecolutla River, there are also beachside cabins. Docks serve boat rides up the river, as well as fishing expeditions on the river and in the Gulf. A type of boat often used to navigate around the estuaries is called a ''panguita,'' which looks like a very long canoe. Cultural attractions include the Hueytepec archeological zone, the Parish of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, the old lighthouse, the Hotel Tecolutla, the Municipal Palace and the Marine Museum, which contains an exposition of river and ocean products. This museum, located on Matamoros Street, is a space containing more than 300 aquatic species both alive and preserved. TecolutlaBeach10

The town also hosts a number of events. From April to September each year, the beach known as Vida Milenaria is reserved for sea turtles returning here to breed. This project is led by Fernando Manzano, better known here as "Papá Tortuga" (Daddy Turtle). This group hatches and frees between five and six thousand baby marine turtles each year. The returning turtles lay about this number of eggs which volunteers collect and protect. Tourist are invited to help free the baby turtles when they hatch. The annual fishing competition in May draws many visitors locally, from Mexico and even beyond. There are events for

shad The Alosinae, or the shads,Alosinae

sea bass Sea bass is a common name for a variety of different species of marine fish. Many fish species of various families have been called sea bass. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, the fish sold and consumed as sea bass is exclusively the European ba ...

and

tarpon Tarpons are fish of the genus ''Megalops''. They are the only members of the family Megalopidae. Of the two species, one (''M. atlanticus'') is native to the Atlantic, and the other (''M. cyprinoides'') to the Indo-Pacific Oceans. Species an ...

and take place both on the sea and on the

. This is one of the few times of the year the resort is packed. Another annual event is the Coconut Festival in February, when local restaurants and hotels get together to make "the world's largest

coconut custard Coconut jam, also known as kaya jam or simply kaya, is a sweet spread made from a base of coconut milk, eggs and sugar. It is popular throughout Southeast Asia. Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore The word for coconut jam in the Malay language, ...

in the world." In 2008, the dessert measured 2.15 by two meters, taking about 6,000 coconuts and two tons of sugar. After it is presented and measured, locals and tourists are invited to have some free. One notable nearby attraction is the

El Tajín El Tajín is a pre-Columbian archeological site in southern Mexico and is one of the largest and most important cities of the Mesoamerican chronology, Classic era of Mesoamerica. A part of the Classic Veracruz culture, El Tajín flourished from ...

archeological site, built by the same people who have inhabited this municipality, the

Totonac The Totonac are an indigenous people of Mexico who reside in the states of Veracruz, Puebla, and Hidalgo. They are one of the possible builders of the pre-Columbian city of El Tajín, and further maintained quarters in Teotihuacán (a city wh ...

s. Tecolutla is the closest beach to this site, which is about 40 km away. This was the most important ceremonial center in the area and it still host celebrations each year at the spring equinox.

Geography and climate

However, Tecolutla's biggest attraction is its geography and climate. Situated on the Veracruz coast, Tecolutla has

, canals and

mangroves A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in several ...

. These estuaries are at the mouth of the Tecolutla River which flows through the states of

Puebla Puebla ( en, colony, settlement), officially Free and Sovereign State of Puebla ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its cap ...

and Veracruz, with an extension of 7,950.05 km. It is surrounded by the Sierra de Huachinango to the east and the Sierra de Zocapoaxtla to the south. The river is fed by summer rains in the lower elevation and by year-round rains in the higher elevations. The river passes by a number of cities and towns such as

Cuetzalan Cuetzalan () is a small town set high in the hills in the north of the Mexican state of Puebla, from Puebla, the state capital. Franciscan friars founded the town in 1547. Overview Cuetzalan is located in the Sierra Norte region. The climat ...

Zacapoaxtla Zacapoaxtla is a city and seat of the Zacapoaxtla Municipality, in the Mexican state of Puebla. The city has a population of 8,062 inhabitants, while the municipality has 49,242 inhabitants at the 2000 census.''XII Censo General de Población y V ...

, Zapotitlán,

Huauchinango Huauchinango is a city in Huauchinango Municipality located in the far north of the state of Puebla in central Mexico. It is located in the rugged Sierra Norte de Puebla mountain region, filled with peaks, ravines and rivers that form waterfalls. ...

, Tajín, Tecuantepec, El Espinal,

Papantla Papantla () is a city and municipality located in the north of the state of Veracruz, Mexico, in the Sierra Papanteca range and on the Gulf of Mexico. The city was founded in the 13th century by the Totonacs and has dominated the Totonacapan regio ...

Gutiérrez Zamora Gutiérrez Zamora is a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz. Gutiérrez Zamora is bordered by Papantla, Tuxpan, Poza Rica and Coatzintla, and it is served by both the railway and Federal Highways 180 and 190. It was named in honour of Manuel ...

Cazones Cazones de Herrera, or Cazones, is a town and municipality located in the north of the Mexican state of Veracruz on the Gulf of Mexico. While it has tourist attractions along its shore, especially in the Barra de Cazones area, the municipality, inc ...

Coatzintla Coatzintla is a municipality in Veracruz, Mexico. It is located in the north zone of the State of Veracruz, about from the state capital Xalapa. It covers an area of . It is located at . The municipality of Coatzintla is delimited to the north b ...

, Chumatlan,

Poza Rica Poza Rica (), formally: Poza Rica de Hidalgo is a city and its surrounding municipality in the Mexican state of Veracruz. Its name means "rich well/pond". It is often thought that the name came to be because it was a place known for its abundance ...

, then finally to Tecolutla at its mouth. These estuaries have abundant vegetation and aquatic, and semi-aquatic wildlife such as crabs, lobsters,

red snapper Red snapper is a common name of several fish species. It may refer to: * Several species from the genus ''Lutjanus'': ** ''Lutjanus campechanus'', Northern red snapper, commonly referred to as red snapper in the Gulf of Mexico and western Atlanti ...

, shad, white and black

herons The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychus ...

and in the mangroves, two species of

alligator An alligator is a large reptile in the Crocodilia order in the genus ''Alligator'' of the family Alligatoridae. The two extant species are the American alligator (''A. mississippiensis'') and the Chinese alligator (''A. sinensis''). Additiona ...

. There are three estuaries that are visited most. The first is called Del Silencio, which has about five km of navigable waters and filled with mangroves. The name comes from the relative lack of sound, except for the buzzing of insects, and water dripping from trees. The second is called De la Cruz, with very clear waters, 25 km of navigable waters in which sea bass can be fished in season. The third is called Del Narajo and is the largest with 40 km of navigable waters and is bordered by ranches and orange groves. There is also an abundance of wild birds such as

ibis The ibises () (collective plural ibis; classical plurals ibides and ibes) are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, that inhabit wetlands, forests and plains. "Ibis" derives from the Latin and Ancient Greek word f ...

cormorant Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the IOC adopted a consensus taxonomy of seven ge ...

s, parrots,

guinea fowl Guineafowl (; sometimes called "pet speckled hens" or "original fowl") are birds of the family Numididae in the order Galliformes. They are endemic to Africa and rank among the oldest of the gallinaceous birds. Phylogenetically, they branched o ...

, eagles, falcons,

stork Storks are large, long-legged, long-necked wading birds with long, stout bills. They belong to the family called Ciconiidae, and make up the order Ciconiiformes . Ciconiiformes previously included a number of other families, such as herons an ...

s and others. The municipality has 40 km of beaches. For ten km north along the coast from Tecolutla are the most important beaches: Santa María del Mar and Barra Boca de Lima, which have warm waters with some motion. At Barra Boca de Lima is the Largartos Estuary. A bit further away (32 km) is Barra Tenixtepec, which is suitable for aquatic sports. Tecolutla is the beginning of a small tourist corridor which includes beaches such as La Guadalupe, La Vigueta, Playa Oriente, Monte Gordo, Casitas and Maracaibo. This area is known as the Costa Esmeralda because of the green ocean near the beaches, and many contain three and four star hotels, bungalows and trailer parks.

History

Tecolutla started as a pre-Hispanic settlement that had been dominated by a number of other peoples. The Tecolutla River was visited by Juan de Guijalva in 1518, three years before the

Spanish Conquest of the Aztec Empire The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, also known as the Conquest of Mexico or the Spanish-Aztec War (1519–21), was one of the primary events in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. There are multiple 16th-century narratives of the eve ...

. The Colonial period for this area began in 1522, with the first Spanish settling here. This caused violent confrontations between the Spanish and the local people at first but eventually led a mixing and the native and the European, in culture, flora, fauna and economic activities. The old pagan ritual centers here were abandoned and have become archeological zones. In 1787, a major conflict over agricultural resources broke out when the native peoples and two Spaniards, Juan de Vidal and Joaquin Suarez over ownership of lands in Tecolutla and surrounding areas bordering the Tecolutla River. Much of this land had been inhabited by native peoples with no formal title. In 1810, the

Mexican War of Independence The Mexican War of Independence ( es, Guerra de Independencia de México, links=no, 16 September 1810 – 27 September 1821) was an armed conflict and political process resulting in Mexico's independence from Spain. It was not a single, co ...

began, with Serafin Olarte leading local efforts. In 1813, the ports of Tecolutla and

Nautla Nautla is a settlement in the Mexican state of Veracruz. ''Nautla'' comes from the Nahuatl ''naui'', 'four'; and from ''tlan'', that means 'place'; so it is known as 'Four Places'. History First it was a prehispanic town that was in Casitas, ...

are taken by insurgents and used to bring in arms. In 1814, the insurgents were driven out by the royalist army under Juan Navajero. In 1824, the state of Veracruz was created and Tecolutla became a community under the jurisdiction of the Papantla province. In 1825, the commercial port was constructed, which was blocked by the French during the

Pastry War The Pastry War ( es, Guerra de los pasteles; french: Guerre des Pâtisseries), also known as the First French Intervention in Mexico or the First Franco-Mexican War (1838–1839), began in November 1838 with the naval blockade of some Mexican po ...

in 1838. In 1847, the U.S. frigate, Gemanten, anchored itself in Tecolutla as part of the initial phases of the invasion of Mexico during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

. In 1857, sixty Italian families settled here as part of an agreement between the Mexican and Italian governments to promote immigration to Mexico. In 1866, Tecolutla was occupied by imperial forces under

Maximilian Maximilian, Maximillian or Maximiliaan (Maximilien in French) is a male given name. The name " Max" is considered a shortening of "Maximilian" as well as of several other names. List of people Monarchs *Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (1459� ...

five days after they took Papantla. The municipality was created in 1879, combining the parishes of Tecolutla, De Cristo and Boca de Lima, and the community of Tecolutla was elevated to the status of town in 1882. In 1942, two ships, the Tuxpan and the Choapas, were torpedoed while in the port of Tecolutla. Major flooding of the Tecolutla in October 1999 cause widespread damage in the town, including washing away a number of homes and businesses. Most of this damage has now been repaired and many reconstructed roads and bridges are better than before. Tecolutla suffered another natural disaster August 27, 2007, when the eye of

Hurricane Dean Hurricane Dean was the strongest tropical cyclone of the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season. It was the most intense North Atlantic hurricane since Hurricane Wilma of 2005, tying for eighth overall. Additionally, it made the fourth most intense A ...

came ashore here. The intensity of the winds and rain led Civil Protection to issue a red alert for the region. The storm knocked out power as rivers and streams overflowed, closing down much of the infrastructure such as banks, roads and gas stations. It also forced 15,000 people into shelters in the tourist areas of this part of Veracruz state. On the early morning hours of August 21, 2021, Tecolutla suffered yet another natural disaster when the eye of

Hurricane Grace Hurricane Grace was the strongest tropical cyclone to make landfall in the Mexican state of Veracruz. Grace impacted much of the Leeward Islands and Greater Antilles as a tropical storm, before causing more substantial impacts in the Yucatán ...

came ashore. The cyclone had winds of 125 mph, making it a Category 3 hurricane, the strongest hurricane on record in the

Bay of Campeche The Bay of Campeche ( es, Bahía de Campeche), or Campeche Sound, is a bight (geography), bight in the southern area of the Gulf of Mexico, forming the north side of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. It is surrounded on three sides by the Mexico, Mexic ...

The Tecolutla "Monster"

In the Marine Museum there are bones and photographs from 3 or even 4 mixed, uncompleted sperm whales of the species Physeter macrocephalus (Linnaeus, 1758). These evidences are presented as a single animal called the Tecolutla monster. This legend becomes from an unreported stranding of a cetacean and its appearance after being cut off, burned, rotten and transported to Tecolutla's beach. At first, it was falsely identified as a narwhal, but other people thought that the carcass was from a fin whale (Balaenoptera sp.), or another whale. However, the lack of an immediate and certain identification of the animal, and the loss of the original material, makes the cetacean unidentifiable. Few fin whale specimens are found in the Gulf of Mexico. But the stranding of whales have been recorded on Mexico's Atlantic coast. A whale arrived as far south as Quintana Roo (extreme southern Mexico). In Tecolutla itself, a sperm whale body washed up in 1976 and a pilot whale body in 1991. The descriptions of the dead creature vary because of imagination and ignorance, therefore the popular name is "monster". Some people found the animal looks like a giant worm, or with fibers hanging like a mane, or with either "wool" or armor plating, or both, or with a gigantic beak or bone-like fang sticking out of its head; the weight of the carcass was estimated between 24 and 35 tons, measuring 22 m long and 2 m wide. It was also rumored that an unknown Biology Institute of California wanted to buy the creature, also believing it to be prehistoric. The carcass arrived to the Palmar Susana's beach between Tecolutla and Nautla. It was found by locals who kept its existence secret at first. It took 14 hours to get the animal out of the water and to raise it onto shore. It was thought that money could be made from the "ivory" of its bones and they began to cut it apart on the beach. Eventually, they informed the municipal president of Tecolutla, César Guerrero, that it was a crashed plane. A volunteer rescue party was organized but what they found was an enormous head, with the rest of the creature partially buried. It was decided to bring the carcass to the town of Tecolutla, using a truck with a fifteen-meter platform borrowed from Mexican state oil company (PEMEX). It was placed on beach in front of the lighthouse, and photographs were taken. Word of the discovery and mystery of the washed-up creature spread and many people came to see the carcass. It was recommended to bury the creature, which was decomposing rapidly, but the mayor of Tecolutla refused, and kept it as a tourist attraction in spite of the odor. The Marine Museum which was reopened in 1997 after being closed for a number of years. Besides the bones of the "monster", there are also paintings of the monster in the museum. Despite this, few nowadays in Tecolutla know about the monster. Most witnesses from the time have moved away or have died. There are no local newspapers in Tecolutla and the nearest publication in Poza Rica did not keep papers from the time period. The city government does not have records, and only a few photographs survive.

The municipality

The municipality of Tecolutla is located in the north of Veracruz state in a region known as

Totonacapan Totonacapan refers to the historical extension where the Totonac people of Mexico dominated, as well as to a region in the modern states of Veracruz and Puebla. The historical territory was much larger than the currently named region, extending fro ...

. Most of the municipality's borders are defined by the Tecolutla River and the Gulf of Mexico. The municipality contains 375 communities(inegi) and has a surface area of 471.31km2 and an average altitude of ten meters above sea level. It borders the municipalities of Papantla, Martínez de la Torre, and Gutiérrez Zamora with the Gulf of Mexico to the east. The climate is hot with average rainfall for Mexico with an average temperature of 23.6 °C. The area is suited to fast-growing trees with soft wood such as guarumbo, chancarro, jonote, guanacaxtle and sangrado. Much of the municipality is rural, with agriculture and livestock as the economic basis. Important crops grown here include corn, green chiles, beans, "platano roatan" (a species of banana), vanilla, sugar cane, tobacco, pineapple, oranges, limes, grapefruit, mandarin oranges and coconuts. Livestock raising includes dairy and beef cattle, pigs, sheep, fowl and bees. Second is fishing with only a fraction of the municipality's land developed. Fishing here is developed by way of cooperations, harvesting common bass (mojarra), crabs, shrimp, oyster, shad and sea bass. One native crop is the growing of vanilla beans. They have been grown here since far into pre-Hispanic times and they were sent to the Aztecs as tribute. Harvest time is November and December and one can see the beans drying in the sun. The developed areas, basically the town of Tecolutla, also rely on tourism, mostly in the way of hotels and other lodges as well as restaurants. The population of the municipality is 24, 258 with only 4,523 living in the town proper. There is still a definite Totonac presence here. About 6% of thepopulation speaks Totonac. These people can be spotted by their distinctive dress. The men wear white, wide-leg trousers, gathered to a tight cuff above the ankle and a loose white shirt, gathered from a yoke, which sometimes has a small cape at the back. The women wear embroidered blouses and lacy skirts, both in white. Over the skirt, they wear a brightly colored half-apron. They also wear a brightly colored scarf similar to a

quechquemitl The quechquemitl (also spelled quezquemitl) is a garment which has been worn by certain indigenous ethnicities in Mexico since the pre-Hispanic period. It usually consists of two pieces of rectangular cloth, often woven by hand, which is sewn toge ...

. This is tied at the back of the neck, draped over the chest and then tucked into the apron.

References

External links

Mexico Connect

International Sábalo Fishing Tournament

Tecolutla page by Dean and Yoly Hughson
{{Authority control Populated places in Veracruz Beaches of Veracruz