Coiba National Park, Panama
This morning we arrived at Coiba National Park, the biggest marine national park in Panama, with 270,000 hectares. Being a penal colony for almost 85 years, it allowed the rainforest and marine surroundings to remain almost untouched until 2004 when the last prisoners were transferred out. Just as the sun rose, we were on an early bird-watching outing at the station, where we spotted red legged honeycreepers, Tennessee warblers, crimson backed tanagers, emerald garden hummingbird, red crowned woodpecker and barred antshrike among other species. After breakfast, we repositioned the Sea Voyager to a tiny little amazing island, Granito de Oro (little grain of gold), where we were able to snorkel, kayak, swim or just rest on the beach. The sunny skies made it perfect to snorkel and to spot different species such as king angelfish, reef cornet fish, guineafowl pufferfish, white tipped reef sharks, bicolored parrot fish, Pacific boxfish and the elusive hawksbill turtle.
After another excellent lunch prepared by the galley, and an afternoon visit to the park headquarters, we were on our way to the Bay of Panama, finding in our way Pacific green marine turtles and pan tropical spotted dolphins as we cruised into the sunset.
This morning we arrived at Coiba National Park, the biggest marine national park in Panama, with 270,000 hectares. Being a penal colony for almost 85 years, it allowed the rainforest and marine surroundings to remain almost untouched until 2004 when the last prisoners were transferred out. Just as the sun rose, we were on an early bird-watching outing at the station, where we spotted red legged honeycreepers, Tennessee warblers, crimson backed tanagers, emerald garden hummingbird, red crowned woodpecker and barred antshrike among other species. After breakfast, we repositioned the Sea Voyager to a tiny little amazing island, Granito de Oro (little grain of gold), where we were able to snorkel, kayak, swim or just rest on the beach. The sunny skies made it perfect to snorkel and to spot different species such as king angelfish, reef cornet fish, guineafowl pufferfish, white tipped reef sharks, bicolored parrot fish, Pacific boxfish and the elusive hawksbill turtle.
After another excellent lunch prepared by the galley, and an afternoon visit to the park headquarters, we were on our way to the Bay of Panama, finding in our way Pacific green marine turtles and pan tropical spotted dolphins as we cruised into the sunset.
