Bona & Otoque Islands, Gulf of Panama
Today we found our self in the water of the Gulf of Panama making our way to the Panama Canal.
This are very rich water that are booming with life thanks to what is known as a seasonal up welling, that make this waters teeming of life.
This particular up welling is trigger by the famous trade winds that are constantly blowing across the Atlantic Ocean and bringing humidity to the Caribbean side of Central America.
These winds become stronger at this time of the year and are capable of blowing across the continental divide becoming dry winds at the pacific side strong enough to blow away the clouds of the pacific and giving Central America the dry season, and in so parts of the isthmus like here in the Gulf of Panama where the mountain are not very height they created and up welling, by blowing away the warm sterile waters of the surfaces and letting it be replace by nutrient rich water from the bottom.
When this happen it cause a booming of life where there is a explosion of platoon thanks to the rich waters and this attracts small fish that in place attracts bigger fish and so on.
Today we became live witness of the upwelling as we explore the seabird nesting colonies that are maintain by this rich waters by zodiacs and got to see brown boobys, blue footed boobys, brown pelicans and magnificent frigatebirds in full display of courtship and for some of us a grant finale with dolphins feeding.
After our morning excursion we cruise our way to Panama Canal on of the modern wander of the twenty century where we begun our transit by going up the first three set of locks to 85 feet about sea level.
