Coiba National Park
This morning we had a spectacular sunrise while reaching Coiba National Park in Panama. We stopped at “Granito de Oro” to go snorkeling. Granite de Oro is a small islet of the 38 islands that form the beautiful archipelago of the National Park. This incredible place is 430,825 acres, and makes a great refuge for many endemic and non-endemic species of animals from Panama. The name Coiba was the name of one of the indigenous leaders from Panama in 1520 that dominated this area of the country.
While snorkeling at Granito de Oro we found it difficult to decide which fish were most colorful and interesting. It was hard to count how many species we had seen. We also found a couple of hawksbill sea turtles and white tipped reef sharks. They took our breath away while we explored the corals around the island.
During this fantastic morning, we talked about how this National Park had turned from a prison into a protected area, saving the great biodiversity of animals and plants of this planet. Eighty percent of the vegetation from Coiba Island is primarily forest, certainly giving the opportunity to future generations to enjoy this healthy habitat.
In the afternoon we started our voyage towards Panama Bay for our next day’s adventure. While navigating the Pacific Coast of Panama, a nice group of pantropical spotted dolphins followed the National Geographic Sea Lion. This gave us the opportunity to see them jumping in and out of the water.
