Coiba Island National Park
Sunrise found the Sea Voyager anchored in front of the ranger station in one of the newest national parks of Panama, Coiba Island. This park, created around the mid 1990s and protected by law on November of 2004, guards the second biggest coral reef of the Eastern Pacific. Its forest was kept pristine for years since the island used to be Panama’s most feared penal colony. Named after the Indian Cacique Cobaye, the island has an area of 271,000 hectares (677,500 acres) in which only 50,000 hectares (125,000 acres) are main land and the rest is marine area.
Having a great biodiversity, we were eager to go on an early birding walk on the island. Right before breakfast, we disembarked at the ranger’s station and once on shore, the place did not prove us wrong that it is one of the best birding sites in Panama. Our first sighting was a juvenile bare-throated tiger heron fishing for his breakfast along the shore of the beach. Crimson-backed tanagers, red-legged honey creepers, red-lored Amazon parrots, Panama flycatchers, great kiskadees, blue-and-gray tanagers, palm tanagers, and many more were some of the sightings. What a wonderful morning!
Back on board for breakfast, we repositioned the Sea Voyager next to a lovely islet known as “Granito de Oro,” Little Grain of Gold. Just as a cartoon, this little islet with a couple of palm trees and thousand of hermit crabs was our snorkeling destination. We jumped in the water with our gear ready for action. Moorish idols, bicolor parrot fish, reef cornetfish, hawksbill turtles, white-tipped reef sharks, barberfish and many different species of hard coral were some of the natural marine scenario painted for us.
The morning passed so fast, and soon we found that we had to continue our trip towards our next destination. So back on board, we lifted anchor and started sailing. A pod of Pantropical spotted dolphins showed up to give us a farewell by bow riding. While the sun began to set, we gathered at the lounge to see the famous and elusive green flash. It was just another day in Paradise!
Sunrise found the Sea Voyager anchored in front of the ranger station in one of the newest national parks of Panama, Coiba Island. This park, created around the mid 1990s and protected by law on November of 2004, guards the second biggest coral reef of the Eastern Pacific. Its forest was kept pristine for years since the island used to be Panama’s most feared penal colony. Named after the Indian Cacique Cobaye, the island has an area of 271,000 hectares (677,500 acres) in which only 50,000 hectares (125,000 acres) are main land and the rest is marine area.
Having a great biodiversity, we were eager to go on an early birding walk on the island. Right before breakfast, we disembarked at the ranger’s station and once on shore, the place did not prove us wrong that it is one of the best birding sites in Panama. Our first sighting was a juvenile bare-throated tiger heron fishing for his breakfast along the shore of the beach. Crimson-backed tanagers, red-legged honey creepers, red-lored Amazon parrots, Panama flycatchers, great kiskadees, blue-and-gray tanagers, palm tanagers, and many more were some of the sightings. What a wonderful morning!
Back on board for breakfast, we repositioned the Sea Voyager next to a lovely islet known as “Granito de Oro,” Little Grain of Gold. Just as a cartoon, this little islet with a couple of palm trees and thousand of hermit crabs was our snorkeling destination. We jumped in the water with our gear ready for action. Moorish idols, bicolor parrot fish, reef cornetfish, hawksbill turtles, white-tipped reef sharks, barberfish and many different species of hard coral were some of the natural marine scenario painted for us.
The morning passed so fast, and soon we found that we had to continue our trip towards our next destination. So back on board, we lifted anchor and started sailing. A pod of Pantropical spotted dolphins showed up to give us a farewell by bow riding. While the sun began to set, we gathered at the lounge to see the famous and elusive green flash. It was just another day in Paradise!
