5/2/10
[Lara's notes from the arrival in Panama - On my watch at 2am the boat traffic had picked up dramatically, and it was obvious that we were nearing the major sea port marked by the Panama Canal. Monstrous ships lurked everywhere, many seeming to march back and forth around the entrance of the canal. I recently read that if you have doubts about a harbor it is best to maintain “sea room” and wait until daylight to seek landfall, never making a hasty decision for the sake of an anchorage and a shower. In anticipation of this busy port and our night arrival, we had slowed the boat down and we arrived at the entrance of the Chagres River at first light.]
Dan at the helm as we head up river with the early morning mists in the trees.
The Rio Chagres River was dammed in 1910 to create the Gatun Lake and it supplies the water for the locks of the Panama Canal. The river/lake is surrounded by a seemingly untouched and quite remote tropical rain forest whose wild bird and animal sounds had captivated us when we were here in December. Desiring a closer look, we arrived about 7am and began the 5 mile trip north into the river.
I'm sure we could have gotten a closer shot if we had remembered to bring Fruit Loops.
We were immediately greeted by two toucans, one of which flew in front of our boat and landed on one of the very few barren trees giving us a perfect view of his vivid colors. His beak and neck were bright yellow, his body black and his tail feathers red. Dan claimed he heard him say, “Anybody got any fruit loops?” We also saw egrets, buzzards, hawks, green parrots and some birds we could not identify. The silence of the immense forest is broken only by the sounds of our boat, the shrieks of the howler monkeys and cries of the birds.
Once anchored, we dropped the dinghy, packed a picnic and headed out to explore. Despite the wet heat, we dressed head to foot and then coated ourselves in 50% DEET bug spray which is somewhat unnerving when it melts the plastic on the watch band and causes your lips go numb. However, I felt this was a necessary evil in a malaria infested area.
Shy monkey feeding in the trees.
We were surprised to see only one other boat which was anchored in the shallows at the foot of the Gatun dam. We chatted with them and they told us of their frightening experience the previous night when the husband went hiking and got lost. He missed his designated pick up at 2pm and was not found until 8pm that night when his wife finally located him along the shore in this thick jungle.
We found a tributary off the main river and followed it up for a mile by dinghy hoping to find a crocodile or two. There is something unbelievable about the sounds of the jungle causing me to marvel at the great job Disney did recreating this in their Jungle Cruise ride. It is just like that! In response to these sounds, we found ourselves making loud howling, grunting noises. Jim’s imitations seemed to get the best howler monkey response. Having taken a compass (GPS doesn’t work since the Jungle is so dense), we tied up the boat and ventured out in search of the Smithsonian Research Crane located at 09° 16.868; 79° 58.476 . We found an abandoned camp and ate lunch. A few butterflies with neon blue wings flitted past us and millions of large, black ants trudged in the wet undergrowth (Inspiring me NOT to sit down anywhere).
Tarzan's Park-n-Ride Lot
I was surprised by the strength and length of the thin vines that create a tangled web that shoots up hundreds of feet to the dense canopy. I can now see how Tarzan had no problem swinging from tree to tree on these thin vines. The size and variety of leaves is fascinating. Apparently the Smithsonian Institute has maintained an active research effort in this Jungle for nearly 100 years. Only after a short distance we regretted our lack of a machete and honestly fearing getting lost, we made our way back to our dinghy and continued our own “Jungle Cruise” for a few more hours.
Just what you want to see when you're swimming.
Dan was brave enough to swim in the brackish water – even after we saw more than a few very large jellyfish.
Relaxing departure from the Chagres River.
In the morning we slowly made our way down the river at an idle to avoid scaring the wildlife. It was glassy calm and the monkeys were out in force with their unearthly howling. Parrots flew back and forth across the river and hundreds of other, unseen birds added to the chorus of exotic sounds.
Lovely pictures and great descriptions!
Where is “Martin Denney” when we need him? (Old music with jungle sounds imbedded. “Quiet Village” — I believe — was one of his better known instrumentals.)
Great post! Very descriptive, I almost felt like I was there!
You inspired me to get the book, “Passage Between the Seas” by McCullough. Don’t know when I’ll read it, but it is now in line on the bed stand! Sure wish I could have made it for the trip myself.
Glad you had an extra crewman aboard for the rough seas.