Coiba National Park
Our expedition today centered 28km offshore on a 493 sq. km. island known as Coiba. The island is a great example of the power of fear. Left alone for the past century due to the creation of an infamous penal colony on its shores, Coiba is probably one of the last places in Panama with an untouched primary forest.
Despite its dark and shrouded past as a penal colony, Coiba seems to be heading into a different future. In 1991 the Panamanian government established Parque Nacional Coiba which protected Isla Coiba and its surrounding waters as a National Park. Finally, in 2004, the remaining inmates were removed from the island and the colony abandoned. By 2005 UNESCO declared the park a World Heritage Site.
Developers and investors seem not to be afraid anymore. Due to its pristine forest teeming with wildlife, and equally spectacular underwater world with one of the largest coral reefs on the Pacific coast of the Americas, Coiba island stand as an untouched ecological paradise that seem to them just as a prime piece of real estate ready to be develop. However, it still remains an exotic and lost world.
Our first stop in the morning was a great spot for snorkeling known as Granito de Oro or “Gold Nugget.” This cartoon-like little islet, made of white sand and a few palm trees, is home to numerous fishes on its coral reef and even more hermit crabs.
Some common sightings in this precious place were Moorish Idols, Cortez Rainbow Wrasse, King Angelfish, Guinea fowl Puffers, Panamic Sergeant Major, Triggerfish, Yellowtail Surgeonfish, Barberfish, among others. Highlights were the White Tip Reef-Shark and the Hawk-Bill Turtle.
Later in the afternoon we made a stop at the Park Ranger Station where we were able to kayak and walk down trails looking for the always elusive endemic birds of Coiba and the already famous ranger’s pet “Tito” (a 15-foot American Crocodile). It was a great way to say goodbye to Panama as we sailed to Costa Rica with a beautiful sunset on the horizon.
Our expedition today centered 28km offshore on a 493 sq. km. island known as Coiba. The island is a great example of the power of fear. Left alone for the past century due to the creation of an infamous penal colony on its shores, Coiba is probably one of the last places in Panama with an untouched primary forest.
Despite its dark and shrouded past as a penal colony, Coiba seems to be heading into a different future. In 1991 the Panamanian government established Parque Nacional Coiba which protected Isla Coiba and its surrounding waters as a National Park. Finally, in 2004, the remaining inmates were removed from the island and the colony abandoned. By 2005 UNESCO declared the park a World Heritage Site.
Developers and investors seem not to be afraid anymore. Due to its pristine forest teeming with wildlife, and equally spectacular underwater world with one of the largest coral reefs on the Pacific coast of the Americas, Coiba island stand as an untouched ecological paradise that seem to them just as a prime piece of real estate ready to be develop. However, it still remains an exotic and lost world.
Our first stop in the morning was a great spot for snorkeling known as Granito de Oro or “Gold Nugget.” This cartoon-like little islet, made of white sand and a few palm trees, is home to numerous fishes on its coral reef and even more hermit crabs.
Some common sightings in this precious place were Moorish Idols, Cortez Rainbow Wrasse, King Angelfish, Guinea fowl Puffers, Panamic Sergeant Major, Triggerfish, Yellowtail Surgeonfish, Barberfish, among others. Highlights were the White Tip Reef-Shark and the Hawk-Bill Turtle.
Later in the afternoon we made a stop at the Park Ranger Station where we were able to kayak and walk down trails looking for the always elusive endemic birds of Coiba and the already famous ranger’s pet “Tito” (a 15-foot American Crocodile). It was a great way to say goodbye to Panama as we sailed to Costa Rica with a beautiful sunset on the horizon.
