Well, we didn’t crack the code of the Perlas Islands…and I don’t think we’ll be sticking around long enough to really figure this place out. Between the Humboldt current that whooshes around in the Gulf of Panama, the (up to) 17 foot tidal shifts, the strong tidal currents (sometimes exceeding 2.5 knots), the narrow passages and countless submerged (and poorly charted) rocks and reefs, this is a challenging place to cruise. You have to live and die by the tides and currents out here and if the current is nudging you in the opposite direction of your intended destination…it’s better to just kick back and let the current and wind dictate where you wind up.
The Perlas are stunning with colorful, oddly shaped rock formations, funky trees with curious seeds, mangroves for miles, hundreds and hundreds of flocking sea birds, migrating whales. The water swirls and rips and stagnates in the strangest places and boils with flying fish and effervescent dolphins. Out of the way coves and bays lie nestled between a mosaic of islands, each beach with its own unique personality. A beach that you first encounter at low tide will be undetectable or unrecognizable at an extreme high tide. There is much to be discovered but we will not be the ones to discover it…Western Panama is beckoning us back to her warm, clear, comparatively tranquil waters. Though beautiful…this place almost feels unknowable to me.
Highlights include…
An impromptu bonfire and beach party at Isla Chapera with no less than five other cruising boats all bound for either Ecuador or the South Pacific.
Watching the beach at Isla Pedro Gonzalez disappear as the tide rushed under the hammock Steph and I set up on the beach.
The lively upwind sail from Isla Pedro Gonzalez to Isla Bayoneta.
Drinking and cribbage.
A fluffy sand beach so heavily aerated that running in place caused bubbles to rush to the surface en masse, approximating a human powered jacuzzi.
Friendly locals eager to sell us fresh picked avocados.
Dinner of fresh caught Sierra aboard SV Brizo with new friends.
Another dinner of Sierra with fresh grilled pineapple.
Lounging naked on deserted beaches.
Quiet.
Finding shells, flowers, seeds, bark, leaves, and rocks unlike anything I’ve ever seen.
Living in a floating home, surrounded by so much beauty and wonder.
Being ushered out of the Gulf of Panama with a North wind and an outgoing tide at our back.
17′ tides is no joke. A while back we spent some time in Nova Scotia. While there, we visited the Bay of Fundy…50′ + tides! Nice Blog
50 feet! I didn’t even know that was possible. Wow. That would certainly take some getting used to!
Smart move… Western Panama was absolutely Dois and my favorite place. Love your blog Harmony, your photos are thought provoking. Would love to know what kind of bird laid those eggs. Fair winds. Lauri
Thanks, Lauri! I think your photos are magnificent – love checking in on you guys. Stay safe up there in Mexico!
The blue rock, it looks as though you’ve found copper minerals. Rain is rather acidic naturally pH of 5.7, when it falls through the atmosphere it picks up nitrogen forming a weak nitric acid. If this acid flows through copper bearing rock it dissolves the copper carrying it great distances perhaps as far as 25 miles. When the copper bearing fluids reach something that raises the pH the copper falls out of suspension leaving the blue rock.