Barro Colorado Island and the Caribbean Locks, Panama Canal
A beautiful sunset and warm ocean breeze witnessed our crossing under the Bridge of the Americas, the landmark to the entrance of the Panama Canal. The National Geographic Sea Lion entered the first set of locks in tandem with the Zia Belle cargo ship around 7pm, reaching the Miraflores Lake perfectly on time. Everyone enjoyed a Central American buffet dinner and right after dessert as we rose up the last lock to reach the 85ft of the Culebra or Snake Cut and the Gatun Lake, our destination for the night.
Early morning as the sun was rising, the lifting of the anchor made us aware of the new day and our last expedition excursion, a visit to Barro Colorado Island. The island is one of the most well-known research stations within the tropics. It has been under the administration of the Smithsonian Institute since the 1940’s, and therefore a major source of data, experiments, and scientific papers. Not only did we have the unique chance to be able to walk through this open laboratory, but we were also granted the opportunity to have on board Doctor Egbert Lee, one of the most preeminent tropical researchers of all times, to introduce us to the magic web of the tropical rain forest.
After his lecture, the hikers were sent ashore all geared up with hiking boots, pants tucked into our socks, cameras and plenty of water, while the Zodiac riders got coated in sunblock. As you can tell we had a great sunny day. The Zodiac riders saw snail kites, crocodiles, crested guans, and small bats lined up on tree trunks. On the other hand, the hikers were amazed once again by the lushness of the forest, sights of howler monkeys looking for their morning meal, a troop of Geoffrey’s Tamarin monkeys chasing birds in the canopy and a couple of White-faced Capuchin Monkeys shaking branches in search of fruits, insects or whatever close enough to their hands. The long hikers’ goal was to reach the Big Tree, a Kapok Tree approximately 300 years old. This tree was a major source of insulation material for life vests and mattresses for several decades, and for the native cultures of Central America it is their most important sacred tree, which represented for them a connection from this world to their gods.
After lunch we left anchor and progressed across the lake to the Gatun Locks, the last three steps down to the Caribbean Sea, 85ft down. The transit through the three chambers ran smoothly and, as yesterday, we were accompanied by a cargo ship. The lushness of the forest in this set of locks gave us the chance to do some bird watching and as we went through the last lock of the canal, we had great views of four large American crocodiles basking on shore.
All good things come to an end, and so applies for our great expedition through the wonders of the rain forest in Costa Rica, the magnificence of the underwater ecosystems in Coiba Island and the impressive crossing of the Panama Canal. All of this done in just a week, which our memories and pictures will remind us of forever.
