Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the nesting season (May-Sept) by arrangement. None of these beaches is suitable for swim-
ming, with powerful waves and strong currents, but the thundering breakers on Bluff beach
are a sight to behold and the golden sands provide a lengthy, scenic promenade.
La Gruta
On the road to Boca del Drago • No fixed hours • $2 • To get there, take the Boca del Drago bus ($1); La Gruta
is signposted to the right off the main road, from where it is a short walk
Halfway across the island on the bumpy, tarred Boca del Drago road lies the small settlement
of
Colonia Santeña
. The main reason to stop off here is to visit a sacred cave, often referred
to simply as
La Gruta
, a place of pilgrimage on July 16 for the Festival de la Virgen del Car-
men. Push the fronds of greenery aside and, depending on the time of year and the amount
of rain, you'll be wading in a delightful freshwater creek or a stream of guano. The shrine to
the virgin is near the entrance; flash a torch around and you'll see hundreds of bats clinging
to the rock.
Boca del Drago
Get here on the Boca del Drago bus that leaves from the park in Bocas, or rent a bicycle; turn left at the T-junc-
tion at the top of the island
One of the most popular day-trips from Bocas Town is to take the bus to the Ngäbe com-
munity of
Boca del Drago
, at the northern end of the island. Supposedly the first place in
Panama that Christopher Columbus set foot, Boca del Drago is a pleasant place to spend a
relaxing day. The beach, though slight, consists of lovely white palm-fringed sand, but the
real appeal is the sheltered translucent water, perfect for safe bathing and a little snorkelling
while you wait for your seafood order at the beachfront
restaurant
.
Playa Estrella
A fifteen-minute walk along the shoreline from Boca del Drago takes you to
Playa Estrella
,
whose shallows are dotted with an amazing number of orange cushioned starfish, which
should not be touched. Here the beach is backed by a string of informal seafood restaurants
and bars, which are thronging at weekends and during the holiday season, though the place
can be quiet midweek.
Swan Cay
One of the area's main attractions is a bird sanctuary, a fifteen-minute boat ride off the north
coast, though it's accessible only when conditions are benign.
Swan Cay
, known locally as
Isla Pájaros (Bird Island), is an impressive 50m stack topped with cascading vegetation. Sea
birds wheel above, with star billing going to the elegant white
red-billed tropicbird
, which
shares this nesting spot with a colony of brown boobies. Both Swan Cay and Boca del Drago
feature on one of the popular
Bocas tour
routes or you can negotiate a rate with a local fish-
erman at Boca del Drago.
