Thunders, lighting, and showers at dawn, preceded a wonderful, calm, and adventurous day.
Gorgona Penal Colony in the morning was followed by a wonderful snorkelling and Zodiac day in a pristine coral reef and a “humpback whale festival.”
The visit to the penal colony could be best described and to be kept in our memories through the sad and moving poem of an inmate, who lived there during the period 1960-1984. His name was ignored!
POEM OF A PRISONER
Damned this place……..it be damned
Here,…. one breeds only sadness
Here,…. one drinks from the most bitter chalice,
which toasts pains and poverty.
Here,…. life has no Spring
Here,…. the soul has no feeling
Here,…. loves has no partner
and the heart losses its illusions.
(Free translation from Spanish original: Grace O”Malley- T. Antezana)
Present and future are nevertheless promising for Gorgona Island. A paradise of biodiversity and science, a sanctuary which hosts 147 birds species, more than 100 species of insects, hundreds of terrestrial and marine flora and fauna. Among them: six species of butterfly, terrestrial snail, lung crayfish, marine worm, blue lizard, and several subspecies such as brown throated sloth, capuchin monkey, Georgina spiny rat, etc.
We experienced part of this paradise by snorkeling in a pristine coral reef, where we saw colourful fish, ferocious moray-eel, etc., in a very friendly and easy going atmosphere. This place was next to a site for an experimental coral growth study.
Late afternoon we all enjoyed from the ship deck and from Zodiacs, a festival of humpback whales breaching and jumping to the excitement of all of us. The festival lasted hours, to end in a most lively and enjoyable recap on botany by Denis Cornejo, on Embera culture by Maitu Cristino, and an underwater film by Carlos Navarro.
The Island of Gorgona, is part of the marine corridor of the Easter Tropical Pacific together with Galápagos, Del Coco, Malpelo, and Coiba Islands, a natural treasure, and an unforgettable visit for Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic.
Recent scientific literature:
1.- “Investigaciones en el Parque Natural Nacional Gorgona”. Revista de Biología Tropical vol 62, 2014
2.- “Isla Gorgona. Paraiso de Biodiversidad y Ciencia”. Alan Giraldo and Bellineth Valencia ( Eds). Universidad del Valle, 2012.
