Our day began with a cool breeze as we approached our anchorage location in the gulf of Panama to visit Bona Island. This is the most important site for nesting pelicans, boobies, and frigatebirds. The Zodiacs were dropped, we boarded, then headed landward to have a closer look at the adults and their young. Few encounters move one’s senses the way a large colony of wildlife does.
Later on our way toward the canal’s entrance, we paused to survey the charming Toboga Island, where we disembarked for a cultural and historical experience. There we visited the town church, one of the oldest throughout the Pacific Americas. Color is everything here, a fact that makes itself clear when one pulls out from the bay, seeing the large sweep of bright houses in the verdant Panamanian backdrop.
Following several hours of touring and exploration, we re-boarded for lunch and a light afternoon dance on the sundeck. Having reached the canal, we approach then pass through the massive Miraflores and Pedro Miguel locks. Later we went through Gaillard Cut, which is the narrowest location in the canal to dropped anchor in the Gatun Lake.
It has been a wonderful day exploring the Panama Canal, and one we shall not easily forget!
