Having spent a good part of the winter without a car in Coronado Bay, we did not get out there and venture as much as we would of liked. But, we did explore a little East and West of our area. Being situated pretty well in between the towns of Chame and Anton we got off the Pan-Americana highway, off the beaten path and spent one day in each area. We soon discovered how beautiful the mountains and valleys were. Immediately leaving the highway, there was a significant difference in the scenery. Well kept homesteads, farm lands and charming villages. Panama having multiple chains of mountains, offering spectacular views, we headed to El Valle de Anton. A unique little town high in the mountains, actually built inside the crater of an extinct volcano. A little place surrounded by mountains and "cloud" forests. The town sits on the floor of what was once a crater lake, the largest inhabited volcano crater in the world. It was once the home of Indians from surrounding mountains for thousands of years.
In the province of Coclé, this little town of approximately seven to eight thousand habitants is host to lots of touristic activities, like hiking trails in protected land, a market of authentic local arts and crafts, a museum, a charming Catholic Church, a few hotels, restaurants and cafés.
We enjoyed a short hike in the rain forest leading to one of the water falls, El Churro Macho. A 35 meter water fall with a natural lagoon at the bottom. A perfect hike in the clean moist mountain air, under a canopy forest. It was thrilling just to stand there quietly and inhale the beauty it offered. Butterflies, insects, giant trees, flowers and of course, birds. 339 species had been registered in that forest in 2010. If you where still enough, you could actually feel the life! The smell, the sounds, the refreshing mist of the rain on your skin. Other than the odd insect crawling on you, a pure delight for all the senses. An actual living forest. I was in awe. It was exactly how I had imagined a rain forest, this one was picture perfect.
Being there for only a short visit, I opted not spend too much time on trying to capture the butterflies or birds on camera and actually enjoy them, as I soon discovered you have to be an experienced and patient photographer to give justice to these beauties.
Unfortunately most of the time, photos don't give justice to the experience. Oh well, hope you can at least get a feel of how it was to walk in a rain forest. Enjoy!
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