Coiba Island, Bay of Chiriqui, Panama
On leaving Costa Rican waters, we cruised almost fourteen hours into our second destination: Coiba Island. In the Eastern Pacific of Panama, the 493 square kilometers island is part of a protected scenic area and it was the country’s own Devil’s Island. For decades this spot had been the site of a federal penal colony until 1991, when it became the center piece of a 270,000 hectare national park, of which over 80% is oceanic. Because of its use as a prison, the area was kept pristine and almost untouched until now. As of this year, this island, along with the Galápagos, Coco’s, Malpelo and Gorgona islands, have become part of a biological oceanic corridor with the intention to create a safe pathway for marine life. Today we took the opportunity of visiting the area to a very small islet called Granito de Oro. This island is the quintessential tropical island paradise, covered with white sand, innumerable hermit crabs, and the best underwater ecosystem in the Eastern Pacific. As we snorkeled, swam or kayaked around the island, parrotfishes, wrasses, surgeonfishes, chubs, scorpionfishes, and even a couple of white-tipped reef sharks, tolerated us into their home.
At noon, most of us came back on board for the short repositioning cruise to the main park ranger’s station, where our galley and waitstaff had prepared for us a phenomenal BBQ lunch. Some others though, a little less sun-beat and a little less hungry, took a kayak the whole 5 miles from Granito de Oro to the station. As we repositioned the ship, one of our Zodiac drivers spotted and rescued a juvenile hawksbill sea turtle that was wrapped around a plastic sack. We had the chance to liberate it from its burden and send it off with a bit more of a chance of surviving. After a little swimming, a “little” food, and a little exercising with a soccer match, we came back on board to start our cruising towards the Bay of Panama, for the beginning of our Panama Canal crossing.
On leaving Costa Rican waters, we cruised almost fourteen hours into our second destination: Coiba Island. In the Eastern Pacific of Panama, the 493 square kilometers island is part of a protected scenic area and it was the country’s own Devil’s Island. For decades this spot had been the site of a federal penal colony until 1991, when it became the center piece of a 270,000 hectare national park, of which over 80% is oceanic. Because of its use as a prison, the area was kept pristine and almost untouched until now. As of this year, this island, along with the Galápagos, Coco’s, Malpelo and Gorgona islands, have become part of a biological oceanic corridor with the intention to create a safe pathway for marine life. Today we took the opportunity of visiting the area to a very small islet called Granito de Oro. This island is the quintessential tropical island paradise, covered with white sand, innumerable hermit crabs, and the best underwater ecosystem in the Eastern Pacific. As we snorkeled, swam or kayaked around the island, parrotfishes, wrasses, surgeonfishes, chubs, scorpionfishes, and even a couple of white-tipped reef sharks, tolerated us into their home.
At noon, most of us came back on board for the short repositioning cruise to the main park ranger’s station, where our galley and waitstaff had prepared for us a phenomenal BBQ lunch. Some others though, a little less sun-beat and a little less hungry, took a kayak the whole 5 miles from Granito de Oro to the station. As we repositioned the ship, one of our Zodiac drivers spotted and rescued a juvenile hawksbill sea turtle that was wrapped around a plastic sack. We had the chance to liberate it from its burden and send it off with a bit more of a chance of surviving. After a little swimming, a “little” food, and a little exercising with a soccer match, we came back on board to start our cruising towards the Bay of Panama, for the beginning of our Panama Canal crossing.
