Roam: March 2014

Bocas del Toro ("mouth of the bull") consists of a mainland section of the Caribbean coast of Panama, bordering Costa Rica, and an archipelago that includes nine islands in the Caribbean Sea. We had heard that this was a very special place, and we needed to take a trip outside of Costa Rica in order to renew our tourist visas. This was the perfect opportunity to visit Bocas de Toro! We had tried to drive into Panama on a previous "border run" in October but did not have the correct paperwork to take our car into Panama (blog post here). This time we drove to Puerto Viejo, just northwest of Panama on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica, and spent the night in a hotel. The next morning we took a shuttle service across the border into Panama and on to Almirante where we caught a water taxi to Isla Colon in Bocas del Toro. This time our border crossing was a breeze, but we still got to walk the somewhat rickety bridge across the Rio Sixaola that is the border between Costa Rica and Panama.

Border crossing adventure: watch your step!

Safely and happily on the water taxi to Bocas del Toro, about an hour-long ride.

Charming tropical views from the water taxi.

At our friends' recommendation, we stayed at the Pukalani Hostel, outside of Bocas Town on Isla Colon. It was a comfortable, relaxed place to be, and we took advantage of their lovely swimming pool and free kayaks.

Pukalani Hostel

Checking out the scene.

The hostel's dock, with a pool table over the water.

A slice of paradise.

Surf board shower.

Kayaking at sunset.

The next morning we took a short taxi ride into Bocas Town and arranged for a boat tour for the day, to several popular spots around the islands of Bocas del Toro.

Bocas Town

Ready to head out for some sightseeing and adventure!

Our first stop on the tour was Dolphin Bay, about 20 minutes away from Bocas Town. We arrived with several other small tour boats and immediately spotted dolphins swimming nearby!

Bottlenose dolphins in Dolphin Bay!

A fellow tour boat heading out from Dolphin Bay

Our next stop was another island (Isla Bastimentos, I think) where we could snorkel and have lunch. The island was stunning, with mangroves growing in the water, and coral visible through the super clear blue water. We ordered our lunch ahead and then geared up with masks, snorkels and fins that the tour company provided. We just had to step down a small ladder from the dock into the delicious water. Sullivan did not want to go far, so Nik and I took turns venturing out with Madeleine and Henry in search of fish and sea stars. We saw quite a few, though not like we had seen in Hawaii and off the coast of Playa Hermosa in Costa Rica. Still, for being so easily accessible, it was a great experience, and so warm and lovely!

Coral galore

Mangrove and guesthouse at our snorkeling spot.

Ready for lunch after some snorkeling

Cerveza with a view

Siesta.

Next we headed off to Red Frog Beach, within the Isla Bastimentos Nature Preserve. Part of the island and waters around it are also part of a national marine park. We docked at the Red Frog Marina and then walked in a mile or so through the nature preserve to the beach. We did not spot any of the namesake red (poison dart) frogs, but we enjoyed the spectacular beach very much.

The Red Frog Marina on Isla Bastimentos

On the way back to Bocas Town, we passed by Hospital Point on Isla Solarte. There used to be a hospital here, built by the United Fruit Company to treat plantation workers for yellow fever and malaria.

Hospital Point

After we returned to Bocas Town, our amazing day continued with a short water taxi ride across from Bocas Town to Isla Carenero where we walked (no roads on this small island) to the excellent Cosmic Crab restaurant and bar at the Careening Cay Resort where there was meant to be a geocache. We found the cache (hint: behind the bar) and enjoyed drinks and dinner overlooking the water.

Isla Carenera ("careening")

Just another "beer in paradise" picture to make his friends jealous!

Found the cache and some drinks.

After dinner we made another short hop, again by water taxi, back to our hostel. Such a nice way to get around!

Water taxi selfie after a busy day.

The water taxi departs after leaving us at our hostel. Door to door service was not typical, but it was worth the extra bucks.

The next morning we departed early, taking a taxi into Bocas Town, then catching a water taxi back to Almirante, shuttle bus back to the border, on to Puerto Viejo to get our car, then a 7-hour drive back to Nuevo Arenal! Whew!

Adios Panama!

Our drive back home was going well, until we stopped for ice cream in a small town along the way. There was a tope (horse parade) going on, so we enjoyed the views of many riders on horses while traffic crept through town. After ice cream we were getting back on the road and detected something amiss with the tire. We checked it out and discovered that there was a large tear in a rear tire. The garage in town was closed, but we used their parking lot as our pit stop to change the tire. I say "we", but Nik did all of the hot, dirty work, made more challenging by an insufficient jack.