Granito de Oro, Coiba National Park
Coiba, a fairly large island of 125,000 acres full of primary forests in the middle of the Pacific, was used as a penal colony from 1919 to 2004. It is unbelievable how such a paradise was used for this purpose.
After a long sail from Costa Rica, we finally arrived to this paradise starting with an early walk through the island of Coiba for some birdwatching. We were able to spot some tanagers, woodpeckers, flycatchers and the beautiful garden emerald hummingbird.
Granito de Oro (little grain of gold) is a very small island with a white sand beach near the main island. In these transparent waters, we went for snorkeling, which gave us a good opportunity to see life in the coral reefs. Through our masks, we saw fishes like parrot fish, snappers, puffers, cornet fish, moorish idol, and even white tipped reef sharks!
These calm and clear waters were just perfect for more water activities, namely swimming and kayaking. We spent all morning at this white sand beach. Some relaxed in a chair observing hundreds of hermit crabs.
Lunch was just the best of the trip so far! We had a barbecue at the beach surrounded by some wildlife, especially birds. Walking through the premises we had good sightings of iguanas, flycatchers, herons, agoutis, tanagers, and – quite a surprise – a crocodile! This crocodile, which we noticed in the early birding walk, was still in his spot, being patient for his next meal.
What a fantastic place to combine relaxation with nature!!!
Coiba, a fairly large island of 125,000 acres full of primary forests in the middle of the Pacific, was used as a penal colony from 1919 to 2004. It is unbelievable how such a paradise was used for this purpose.
After a long sail from Costa Rica, we finally arrived to this paradise starting with an early walk through the island of Coiba for some birdwatching. We were able to spot some tanagers, woodpeckers, flycatchers and the beautiful garden emerald hummingbird.
Granito de Oro (little grain of gold) is a very small island with a white sand beach near the main island. In these transparent waters, we went for snorkeling, which gave us a good opportunity to see life in the coral reefs. Through our masks, we saw fishes like parrot fish, snappers, puffers, cornet fish, moorish idol, and even white tipped reef sharks!
These calm and clear waters were just perfect for more water activities, namely swimming and kayaking. We spent all morning at this white sand beach. Some relaxed in a chair observing hundreds of hermit crabs.
Lunch was just the best of the trip so far! We had a barbecue at the beach surrounded by some wildlife, especially birds. Walking through the premises we had good sightings of iguanas, flycatchers, herons, agoutis, tanagers, and – quite a surprise – a crocodile! This crocodile, which we noticed in the early birding walk, was still in his spot, being patient for his next meal.
What a fantastic place to combine relaxation with nature!!!
