Early in the morning a Panama Canal pilot came on board National Geographic Sea Lion. His duty was to take us to our anchorage area for the morning activity. It was still dark when we weighed anchor and started cruising. Very closely to dawn, we dropped the anchor in front of Barro Colorado Island. This natural monument was created during the construction of the Panama Canal, at the beginning of the last century, when they flooded the valley of the Chagres River to create Gatun Lake.
During breakfast time, we had a visit from Doctor Egbert Leigh. He is one of the principal staff scientists on the island. He has spent around 45 years trying to understand the tropical forest interaction and is author of several books like “The Magic Web.” He kindly gave us a brief introduction to this important open lab in the forest and all the research that is being done at the moment on the island.
After his presentations, we grabbed our gear and went to explore two trails on the island while or take an inflatable cruise around the island. The presence of wildlife did not let us down. Crested guans, red-capped manakins, slaty-tailed trogons, troops of howler monkeys, agoutis and many others animals delighted us during our visit. What really caught the attention of our guests was a tiny black and green dart frog that tried to hide under the leaf litter.
We return to the ship shortly before lunch. Our next pilot of the canal had arrived and was waiting to take us to complete our transit through the last set of locks. As we arrived to Gatun Locks, a water taxi approached, bringing on board the crew of line handlers. The locomotives were waiting to take us in. It was hard to believe that our voyage was about to come to its end.
When the last miter gates of Gatun Locks opened, we had the mighty view of the Caribbean Sea. We all concluded that on this voyage we had explored many different tropical ecosystems, from lowland rain forests to mangrove-lined shores, to inshore reefs. We had viewed the wonders of Costa Rica and Panama by ship, inflatable boat, kayak, and of course, by foot. Wildlife sightings had been remarkable, as we saw many tropical mammals, reptiles, colorful birds, insects (bees) and fish. As a finale, the marvel of the Panama Canal, standing side-by-side with the essential element of the rain forest, which keeps it working in all of its simplicity. It has been a great voyage that will always remain in our minds and hearts as a unique experience.
