74 » OpenRoad Driver
The world’s finest coffee beans grow in abundance on
the slopes of the Barú Volcano in Boquete, located in
Panama’s highlands.
Thick, lush tropical vegetation surround
me and the sound of the rushing river fills
my ears as a cool breeze cuts the 35-degree
Celsius heat of Panama’s rainy season. “Ten
years ago it was much cooler here,” Isabel
notes sadly. “Global warming is changing
everything and we’re losing species as a
result of climate change.”
We travel west on the Americana Highway
later in the day to join a rafting trip down
the Old Chiriquí River, whose whitewater
tumbles from the slopes of the volcano,
flanked by forests and narrow canyon walls.
It’s a fast rollercoaster down class 3-4
rapids that leaves us breathless, exhilarated
and soaking wet. So we’re sleepy for the
next part of our journey, a drive over
the continental divide that separates the
highlands from the Caribbean coastal port
of Almirante, the gateway to the Bocas del
Toro archipelago’s 130 islands.
Prime among Panama’s attractions, Bocas
has it all: turquoise waters where dolphins
are easily sighte d, white-sand beaches with
palm trees leaning at precarious angles,
and island towns filled with West Indian
Caribbean sounds and flavours. It’s a
scene straight out of a postcard and one
that forces even the most work-addicted
travelers to put their phones away and soak
up the beauty.
We head straight to Isla Bastimentos,
checking into Eclypse de Mar, a small
hotel with bungalows suspended on stilts
above the sea. From the hammocks on our
deck we throw fish food into the water and
are soon entertained by a swirl of activity
as tropical fish swarm to the surface.
Old Town Bastimentos, just across the
water, was once a haven for 17 th -century
pirates who repaired and rebuilt their
ships on Bocas’ islands before continuing
their pillaging journeys. Later, wealthy
aristocratic settlers arrived with their black
slaves, and after slavery was abolished,
those slaves turned to fishing and farming,
many of them working in the banana
industry.
Today tourism supplements the subsistence
farming while water taxis zoom, readily
available to transport visitors on snorkeling
trips and meal excursions between the
islands. We brandish a white flag from our
dock to hail one, commuting five minutes
across the water for a dinner of plantains
and Caribbean fried chicken. At night
we’re lulled to sleep by the vibe of joyful
music that drifts over the Caribbean.
The Bocas archipelago is home to the
Isla Bastimentos National Marine Park.
Before our trip draws to a close we board
a day-long boat tour to explore the park.
Our captain careens through islets thickly
populated with mangrove trees, pointing to
a sloth hanging nonchalantly in the crook
of a branch. We snorkel around massive
chunks of brain coral at Isla Zapatillas,
circle the islands powder-soft beach by
foot, and bask in the perfect beauty of this
Caribbean jewel. When a gleaming pod
of dolphins cavorts near our boat it’s the
cherry on top of a trip that will live long in
memory.
While Costa Rica is hot on the tourist
map, Panama’s highlands and Caribbean
islands remain quiet spots, relatively
undiscovered. For adventurous travelers
that journey this way, the rewards are
plenty.
W H E N YO U G O
Fo r g e n e r a l i n f o r m a t i o n
o n Pa n a m a , v i s i t Pa n a m a
To u r i s m .
visitpanama.com
Ad v e n t u r e L i f e s p e c i a l i z e s
in creating customized
itineraries for travelers to
Pa n a m a , p re a r r a ng i ng a l l
details, from water taxis
and fl ights to hotel s and
excursions.
adve nture - l i fe . c om
1 (800) 344-6118