Bocas del Toro Archipelago
Bocas del Toro is the name of an island chain in the Atlantic just off the Panamanian coast and near the border to Costa Rica. It is largely covered by thick steaming rainforest and is world famous for its eco-diversity. The people there are also very diverse with local Indian tribes mixing with Spanish Panamanians and Black West Indians. The West Indian population means that English is widely spoken... a very good thing for me!
Our bus from Panama city leaves at 8pm and we arrive at the town of Almirante 5am having had very little sleep. We immediately take a taxi to the local docks and catch a water taxi to the main Bocas Town which is situated on the main island of Colon. The ride is only 30mins long owing to some hefty outboard motors on the small packed tourist boat. I see the sun rise over the ocean which is quite spectacular.
Dawn at Bocas del Toro
We walk around Bocas town looking for accommodation. Most places are only open at 9am which does not help. The prices and cleanliness of places vary greatly but eventually we settle on a very clean hotel called Don Chicho which was also nice and cheap! We promised to limit ourselves to only a 2 hour kip before hitting the tourism trail but the snooze button is too tempting and we overslept by 4 hours.
Hotel Don Chicho
A little prayer to protect all the hotel guests
Waking up after noon and feeling very hungry we catch a water taxi to Dona Mara restaurant on a separate but close island. We shared a pound of camarones (small shrimp) with assorted sauces and a pile of fresh fruit and fruit juice. It was all really delicious but decidedly more expensive than what I was used to.
Bastimentos island where we had lunch at Doña Mara
With full bellies, the next stop is a small enclosed beach with a nearby reef. The place had a lot of ants which had a tendency to bite you, so care needed to be taken in selecting a good spot, free of the little critters. After snorkeling around with a bunch of other tourists we relax until the sun begins to set prompting us to head back to our island and hotel for dinner. After organising with a local "tour guide" for a trip to see some more islands the next day, we find a small Italian restaurant to eat. One large pizza goes down the hatch and we aim to go out for a drink at a local bar to meet up with the Aussie girls we met on our boat trip. However exhaustion overrides and we crash early.
Our beach claimed by South Africa
Big nasty black sea urchins
El Capitan Panteras Water Taxi
The next morning we were greeted by torrential downpours. Alex our tour organiser assured us that all would clear up shortly but our tour was leaving a bit later. So we go to Don Chicho restaurant (a locals place) for some breakfast. I tried a bunch of fried stuff like empanadas, sausages and bacon which were ok but seriously greasy. The fresh pineapple was much better though. After breakfast we are yet to hear from Alex and we finally find out that our tour has already left. Nice guy right? Anyway we are quickly greeted by Santiago who can also take us on a tour. We haggle with him and the captain a bit to get a package tour that includes fishing, dolphin watching, snorkeling at a coral reef and visiting the red frog beach for $65. For 2 people on a private hire boat for a whole day it was a pretty good deal.
We start off with a course towards Dolphin Bay in the rain. The rain soon tapers off as promised and the weather gets really hot. Fishing along the way yields bites but no fish until we arrive at the mangrove forests where I hook and land a small barracuda. We spot a turtle in the distance but it is a bit shy to see up close. We reach Dolphin Bay and see that all the dolphins have already left for the day... a bit of a disappointment.
Onboard meditation
My small barracuda
We move on to get some lunch at Coral Cay. En route I see a manta ray launching high out of the water. When we arrive, the restaurant is already shut so we just put on our snorkeling gear and explore the reef. This coral was absolutely stunning. There were a lot of pipe like formations and everything seemed to be covered in colourful brittle stars (very thin spindly starfish). I took a bunch of pictures here and was amused that some of the local fish were so territorial that they tried to peck on my camera to make it go away!
The reef at Coral Cay
The colours were vivid!
A sort of sea fan that retreats into it´s pipe when danger comes close
Red Frog Beach as the name suggests, is home to tiny Red Frogs. These frogs are of the poison-dart variety so people are advised not to touch or eat them. We have to pay a small admission to get in and there is a short walk through some jungle. The beach isn´t that great but I suppose the fact it was still overcast didn´t help. We weren´t interested in lying down to sunbathe but instead only wanted to see the red frogs. A short hike round the beach ended up at a small hut where some local kids had some and were willing to show us for $1. I bargain down to 50c and get a look at them. The little kid seems totally relaxed, picking them up and playing with them... definitely not as poisonous as suggested.
Jungle path to the beach
Red Frog Beach. Not so great
Deadly Red Frogs
Cheeky bugger only allowed one picture before withholding the frogs
Squirt, an unusually named but popular soft drink. Tastes like mix between sprite and lemonade
Angelica got a 6 year old admirer at the Almirante bus stop
Our bus from Panama city leaves at 8pm and we arrive at the town of Almirante 5am having had very little sleep. We immediately take a taxi to the local docks and catch a water taxi to the main Bocas Town which is situated on the main island of Colon. The ride is only 30mins long owing to some hefty outboard motors on the small packed tourist boat. I see the sun rise over the ocean which is quite spectacular.
Dawn at Bocas del ToroWe walk around Bocas town looking for accommodation. Most places are only open at 9am which does not help. The prices and cleanliness of places vary greatly but eventually we settle on a very clean hotel called Don Chicho which was also nice and cheap! We promised to limit ourselves to only a 2 hour kip before hitting the tourism trail but the snooze button is too tempting and we overslept by 4 hours.
Hotel Don Chicho
A little prayer to protect all the hotel guestsWaking up after noon and feeling very hungry we catch a water taxi to Dona Mara restaurant on a separate but close island. We shared a pound of camarones (small shrimp) with assorted sauces and a pile of fresh fruit and fruit juice. It was all really delicious but decidedly more expensive than what I was used to.
Bastimentos island where we had lunch at Doña Mara
With full bellies, the next stop is a small enclosed beach with a nearby reef. The place had a lot of ants which had a tendency to bite you, so care needed to be taken in selecting a good spot, free of the little critters. After snorkeling around with a bunch of other tourists we relax until the sun begins to set prompting us to head back to our island and hotel for dinner. After organising with a local "tour guide" for a trip to see some more islands the next day, we find a small Italian restaurant to eat. One large pizza goes down the hatch and we aim to go out for a drink at a local bar to meet up with the Aussie girls we met on our boat trip. However exhaustion overrides and we crash early.
Our beach claimed by South Africa
Big nasty black sea urchins
El Capitan Panteras Water TaxiThe next morning we were greeted by torrential downpours. Alex our tour organiser assured us that all would clear up shortly but our tour was leaving a bit later. So we go to Don Chicho restaurant (a locals place) for some breakfast. I tried a bunch of fried stuff like empanadas, sausages and bacon which were ok but seriously greasy. The fresh pineapple was much better though. After breakfast we are yet to hear from Alex and we finally find out that our tour has already left. Nice guy right? Anyway we are quickly greeted by Santiago who can also take us on a tour. We haggle with him and the captain a bit to get a package tour that includes fishing, dolphin watching, snorkeling at a coral reef and visiting the red frog beach for $65. For 2 people on a private hire boat for a whole day it was a pretty good deal.
We start off with a course towards Dolphin Bay in the rain. The rain soon tapers off as promised and the weather gets really hot. Fishing along the way yields bites but no fish until we arrive at the mangrove forests where I hook and land a small barracuda. We spot a turtle in the distance but it is a bit shy to see up close. We reach Dolphin Bay and see that all the dolphins have already left for the day... a bit of a disappointment.
Onboard meditation
My small barracudaWe move on to get some lunch at Coral Cay. En route I see a manta ray launching high out of the water. When we arrive, the restaurant is already shut so we just put on our snorkeling gear and explore the reef. This coral was absolutely stunning. There were a lot of pipe like formations and everything seemed to be covered in colourful brittle stars (very thin spindly starfish). I took a bunch of pictures here and was amused that some of the local fish were so territorial that they tried to peck on my camera to make it go away!
The reef at Coral Cay
The colours were vivid!
A sort of sea fan that retreats into it´s pipe when danger comes close
Red Frog Beach as the name suggests, is home to tiny Red Frogs. These frogs are of the poison-dart variety so people are advised not to touch or eat them. We have to pay a small admission to get in and there is a short walk through some jungle. The beach isn´t that great but I suppose the fact it was still overcast didn´t help. We weren´t interested in lying down to sunbathe but instead only wanted to see the red frogs. A short hike round the beach ended up at a small hut where some local kids had some and were willing to show us for $1. I bargain down to 50c and get a look at them. The little kid seems totally relaxed, picking them up and playing with them... definitely not as poisonous as suggested.
Jungle path to the beach
Red Frog Beach. Not so great
Deadly Red Frogs
Cheeky bugger only allowed one picture before withholding the frogsThe last part of the day was spent at a restaurant having a very late lunch and then doing a little more fishing (Angelica caught a baby) and finally getting dropped off as the sun was setting. A very long and fun day! We went out to Iguanas bar that evening for a few drinks which was fun but relatively chilled out and the Reggae music didn´t give enough motivation to hang around late.
A tiny fish caught on a lure almost its own size
The last day was one of leisure. Waking up late and taking a very large breakfast at a nearby restaurant we then tried to find a nearby beach to lounge on. The beach was rubbish so we went to Lili´s Cafe to have some drinks and food... a much better option. At 5pm we got on a water taxi back to Almirante and caught the 7pm bus back to Panama. Another 10 hours on a bus... sigh.
A tiny fish caught on a lure almost its own size
The last day was one of leisure. Waking up late and taking a very large breakfast at a nearby restaurant we then tried to find a nearby beach to lounge on. The beach was rubbish so we went to Lili´s Cafe to have some drinks and food... a much better option. At 5pm we got on a water taxi back to Almirante and caught the 7pm bus back to Panama. Another 10 hours on a bus... sigh.
Squirt, an unusually named but popular soft drink. Tastes like mix between sprite and lemonade
Angelica got a 6 year old admirer at the Almirante bus stop
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