2012-4 Gatun Lake, Panama
Hello
All,
Once we cleared the Gatun Locks our ship moved into Gatun Lake and dropped anchor. Tenders were lowered from the ship into the lake and commenced ferrying passengers to the departure points for the various excursions booked. After disembarking passengers, the ship would load the tenders and proceed back through Gatun Locks. Once it cleared the locks it would proceed to Colon, Panama, to await returning passengers.
Once we cleared the Gatun Locks our ship moved into Gatun Lake and dropped anchor. Tenders were lowered from the ship into the lake and commenced ferrying passengers to the departure points for the various excursions booked. After disembarking passengers, the ship would load the tenders and proceed back through Gatun Locks. Once it cleared the locks it would proceed to Colon, Panama, to await returning passengers.
There
were Frigate birds flying overhead as we boarded our tender. They are large,
with iridescent black feathers, long wings (male wingspan can reach 7½ feet)
and deeply forked tails. They are found over tropical oceans and ride warm updrafts.
Therefore, they can often be spotted riding weather fronts and can signal
changing weather patterns. Amazingly, the birds do not swim, cannot walk well,
and cannot take off from a flat surface. Having the largest wingspan to body
weight ratio of any bird, they are essentially aerial, able to stay aloft for
more than a week, landing only to roost or breed on trees or cliffs.
There
were many excursion choices for us to choose from. For example we could travel
the hemisphere’s first transcontinental railroad, built in 1855, and see the
Panama Canal in style in a deluxe 1938 vintage railway car. It travels from
Colon across the Isthmus to Panama City, on the Pacific side of the canal. Or,
we could see the rainforest by aerial tram. The nice thing was that there was
something for everyone. Excursions were catered to your age, physical condition,
and interest. Trust us when we say that traveling through the jungle canopy on
a zip line was not on the agenda for us!
Our choice was to take an hour and a half guided eco-tour through the jungle-covered islands of Gatun Lake onboard a small tour boat. After touring the lake we would board an air-conditioned bus that would take us to Gatun Locks for a 1-hour in-depth tour. We then boarded the bus that would take us to Colon where we would return to our ship.
Our tour group boarded tenders that ferried us to Melia Panama Canal Resort where we would get a bite to eat and then board our lake tour boat. The resort was stunning inside and out.
Our choice was to take an hour and a half guided eco-tour through the jungle-covered islands of Gatun Lake onboard a small tour boat. After touring the lake we would board an air-conditioned bus that would take us to Gatun Locks for a 1-hour in-depth tour. We then boarded the bus that would take us to Colon where we would return to our ship.
Our tour group boarded tenders that ferried us to Melia Panama Canal Resort where we would get a bite to eat and then board our lake tour boat. The resort was stunning inside and out.
Tropical
trees were growing everywhere. Most of which we had never seen before. The one
in the following photo is a Barrigon Silk Cotton Tree. The only reason that we
know is that the name of it was on a little tag attached to it! Note the
bromeliads (air plants) growing on the trunk and tree limbs.
Here
is another shot of air plants on limbs.
The views of Gatun Lake from the resort were fantastic. Talk
about being in a tropical paradise!
Our
open air tour boats were perfect. In addition to being clean and comfortable
they were well stocked with life preservers and had a roof overhead to protect
us from the elements. This was a popular excursion. As soon as one full boat departed
the dock another one would pull up to load more passengers. They really had
their act together.
The
deep emerald green water of Gatun Lake with the jungle coming right down to the
shoreline was awesome. Bet it would be a paradise for a fisherman. Many of the
trees were blooming like the one in the distance on the left in the following
photo.
Here
is a closer shot of one of the trees in bloom.
It
was amazing how thick the vegetation was and the variety of trees and bushes.
Petals that had fallen from tree flowers were floating on the water surface in
many areas, which added to the ambiance.
On
one of the islands we noticed some huts with roofs of grass appearing above the
tree line. Our guide explained that it was a village of native Embera Indians.
The tribe still lives in harmony with their natural surroundings in the
rainforest. One of the excursions offered, would take you to the village where
they would perform traditional songs and dances along with music performed on
handmade instruments. This is a photo of some of the performers that were relaxing
near the shore.
When
our guide would spot and animal or bird in the trees he would have the boat
driver maneuver the boat in close and then stop. He made sure everyone had the
opportunity to see the jungle wildlife. It was an awesome experience.
We
saw numerous bands of Howler Monkeys. Howlers are New World monkeys found in
tropical Central and South America. They are aptly named for their cries. When
a group of howlers let loose, often at dawn or dusk, they can be heard up to
three miles away. Male monkeys have large throats and a specialized vocal
chamber that helps turn up the volume of their distinctive calls. Howling is
how they mark the troop’s territory. They are the largest of the New World
monkeys. Unlike Old World monkeys, howlers and other New World species have
wide, side-opening nostrils and no pads on their rumps. They also have a
prehensile tail which they use as an extra arm to grip or even hang from
branches. No Old World monkeys have such a tail. A gripping tail is
particularly helpful to howlers because they rarely descend to the ground.
To our disappointment we seemed to have caught all the howler bands during their afternoon siesta. We did find it interesting how they would lay on a branch, belly down with their hind legs hanging straight down while snoozing. Their prehensile tail would be wrapped around a branch as an anchor.
To our disappointment we seemed to have caught all the howler bands during their afternoon siesta. We did find it interesting how they would lay on a branch, belly down with their hind legs hanging straight down while snoozing. Their prehensile tail would be wrapped around a branch as an anchor.
Another
tree living mammal that is common to the area is the Sloth. Both the three-toed
and two-toed sloths inhabit the rainforests of Central and South America
although they are a distinctly different species and unrelated. Two-toed sloths
are much larger and faster moving than the three-toed variety.
Here’s some trivia for you. Do you know the difference between a three-toed sloth and a two-toed sloth? If you said one has three toes and the other has two toes you would be only partially correct. While the three-toed sloth has three toes on all four limbs the two-toed sloth has two toes on its fore arms and three toes on it hind legs.
The sloth in the following photo is a three-toed species. Although quite slow in trees, they are agile swimmers. They cannot walk on all four limbs, and so they must use their front arms and claws to drag themselves across the rainforest floor. Unlike other mammals they do not maintain a constant body temperature which limits them to warm environments. They live high in the rainforest canopy but descend once a week to defecate on the forest floor. They have long, coarse, grayish-brown fur which often appears greenish. This is not due to pigment but to algae growing in it. Their color and sluggish habits provide an effective camouflage.
Here’s some trivia for you. Do you know the difference between a three-toed sloth and a two-toed sloth? If you said one has three toes and the other has two toes you would be only partially correct. While the three-toed sloth has three toes on all four limbs the two-toed sloth has two toes on its fore arms and three toes on it hind legs.
The sloth in the following photo is a three-toed species. Although quite slow in trees, they are agile swimmers. They cannot walk on all four limbs, and so they must use their front arms and claws to drag themselves across the rainforest floor. Unlike other mammals they do not maintain a constant body temperature which limits them to warm environments. They live high in the rainforest canopy but descend once a week to defecate on the forest floor. They have long, coarse, grayish-brown fur which often appears greenish. This is not due to pigment but to algae growing in it. Their color and sluggish habits provide an effective camouflage.
We
thoroughly enjoyed touring the islands of Gatun Lake and would recommend it
highly. The in-depth tour of Gatun Locks was excellent. But, since we talked
about the locks in our last Picture of the Week we won’t bore you with more
details about it.
Our bus ride to Colon was relaxing and they dropped us off at a shopping mall near where our ship was docked. We wandered through the shops till we got the “all clear” to board the ship.
Our bus ride to Colon was relaxing and they dropped us off at a shopping mall near where our ship was docked. We wandered through the shops till we got the “all clear” to board the ship.
Although
the ship remained at the dock for another two hours we chose to go back aboard,
take a shower and have some dinner. As you can see in the following photo many
folks were returning to the ship via the ramp in the foreground. While others
that stayed onboard through the locks were getting off via the stairs in the
distance to do some shopping.
Our
next Port of Call will be Limon, Costa Rica. We look forward to stopping there
as we have another rainforest tour booked in the Tortuguero Canals.
Until next time,
Dave & Barb
The Traveling Browns
Until next time,
Dave & Barb
The Traveling Browns