The morning sunrise at Gulf of Chiriqui with orange and yellow hues was a perfect scenario to fully continue our exploration in the third largest marine park of the world: Coiba Island National Park.
After a smooth navigation of more than 200 nautical miles from the Panama Canal and our adventures in the Gulf of Panama, we were all prepared to have a full day of water and cultural activities in Coiba. First, the low tide and calmed wind conditions gave us the perfect opportunity to snorkel, kayak, or swim in placid waters. With outstanding conditions and temperatures in the low 80’s Fahrenheit degrees or high 20’s Celsius, It was just like a swimming pool! It seemed like we could not get enough snorkeling, swimming, and kayaking. We returned several times back to the water to fully immerse our bodies and soul with this unique marine environment.
Right in front of our snorkel mask, a carnival of colors with aggregations of king angelfish, bicolor parrotfish, giant damselfish, rainbow wrasse, including the rarely seen starry moray lurking at the bottom of the reef. Spectacular morning!
After lunch and a siesta, with a high tide condition by mid-afternoon, our plan was to witness the former penal colony at Coiba’s main island. In 1919 a prison was stablished in the area; thus, the island was avoided in general by visitors. Its unspoiled condition made it ideal to create a national park in 1991. On the other hand, all prisoners were removed to other facilities in 2004, leaving behind a naval base, a ranger’s house, a biological station, along with a vast forest cover.
In spite of the warm tropical temperatures our guests, staff, and a good number of crew members were curious to witness the infamous infrastructure that kept dozens of inmates isolated from the rest of the world. By the end of the day a talk about Central America’s natural history by Margrit and our social hour ended up a fantastic experience visiting Panama and its hidden treasures.
