Natural Panama Archives - Page 2 of 2

Animals In Panamá – A Trip To A Wildlife Sanctuary

The other day I was getting the broom out to sweep the terrace and something in our outdoor fireplace started moving. It was a long thin brown snake that had come to visit.

So armed with the broom I was going to use to sweep the deck with I escorted Mr. Snake out into the yard.

I eventually got him out into the yard and he seemed to be aggravated to the point where he turned around and opened his mouth as if to say “you better be careful who you’re messing with!”

Our daughter Lauren came for a visit (our first guest!) and earlier this week we drove to Volcán to visit Raquel’s Ark – a wildlife refuge. The place isn’t too much to look at from the outside but Raquel took us in to spend time with all of the residents. And Raquel is not running a zoo. You get one on one with the animals in their cages and you give her a donation to help keep her refuge going. The website for Raquel’s Ark is www.raquelsark.com

Raquel brought a sloth out to see us and he was very friendly but really sharp claws?

The next stop was the monkey cage where Nancy made a lot of new friends. The monkeys were all over her in between trying to pickpocket me. And we all smelled like monkeys until we finally got home and showered. Needless to say all the clothes went right into the wash too!

There were some coatimundis there and they also loved Nancy!

There was also a Jaguar there – he’s been there for a while awaiting relocation. Really an impressive animal! We hope he finds a permanent home soon!

We enjoy our visits to Volcán. Its a splendid part of the Chiriqui Provence. We had a fine day and thanks Lauren for being our first house guest!

Saludos, Craig

Banana Trees

We are lucky to have an abundance of banana trees in our yard. We both love them, and they are chock full of potassium. I also love making banana bread when I have lots of over-ripe bananas.

I learned that banana trees are actually large herbs. The succulent, juicy stems arise from a fleshy corm. Suckers continually spring up around the main plant with the oldest sucker replacing the main plant as it fruits and dies. Smooth, oblong to elliptical, fleshy stalked leaves unfurl in a spiral around the stem. A terminal spike, the inflorescence, shoots out from the heart in the tip of the stem. As it opens, clusters of white flowers are revealed. As the young fruit develops, they form slender green fingers which grow into a “hand” of bananas that droops due to its weight until the bunch is upside down.

When is the right time to harvest them? Generally, banana tree harvesting can begin when the fruit on the upper hands are changing from dark green to a light greenish yellow and the fruit is plump. Banana stalks take 75-80 days from flower production to mature fruit. The fruit will generally be 75% mature at picking, allowing the fruit to ripen in the next 1-2 weeks.

Banana plants take around nine months to grow up and produce banana tree fruit, and then once the bananas have been harvested, the plant dies. It sounds almost sad, but baby banana trees will replace the parent plant. This is when suckers, or infant banana plants, begin to grow from around the base of the parent plant. New suckers will form, which can be removed and transplanted to grow new banana trees and one or two can be left to grow in place of the parent plant.

Craig just harvested some of our bananas. Though they were a little greener than what we would have liked, we were anxious to harvest some before the gardener did. We noticed that some of our banana plants had been chopped down after the last time he was here. There is, however, plenty to go around. I look forward to monitoring their progress!

It’s early November and the wet season seems to be slowing dying down. We’ve had a few very nice days in a row. With the dry season on the horizon, so will be the winds that accompanies summertime in Panamá.

Backyard Wildlife

The elusive howler monkey. I’ve been on the lookout for a glimpse in and around my hood.

Working around the garden today, I heard a rustling that was out of the norm. Sure we have birds and squirrels constantly moving about, but this time it was rather brash. I stood for a while scanning the trees behind our terrace where the canyon descends. There it was, a lone howler monkey just relaxing on a branch. I was so excited! I’ve been hoping that our new neighborhood was a habitat for them. It didn’t pay any attention to me. Craig and I tried to catch its attention, it turned towards us and back again.

We also get to watch the hummingbirds, which are a constant sight. We strategically placed a feeder hanging from a tree branch on the terrace. As we sit outside they come to the feeder. As their rapid wings hover about, it sounds like a small engine. It is so amazing.

We have also witnessed some incredible feats of strength. This tiny ant carrying a large leaf trudges on to its destination inside a hidey hole on the outer terrace wall.

Then there are the very tiny ants that find their way into your home. You don’t even know they are there. Today I cut up some leftover banana bread that I had been saving in the freezer. It seemed like a good day to get it out. Placing it on the kitchen counter covered in saran wrap, I never gave it another thought. I wasn’t diligent about putting it in the refrigerator soon enough. I felt like a piece so I uncovered the wrap and tiny little ants were crawling all over it. Ugghhh!!! Having never lived in a tropical climate, I can see that I need to be more careful in the future.

And then there was the skinny green snake we saw slithering along the terrace by the patio door. It seemed to be as afraid of us as I was of it! We could not get a better picture because it hightailed it real quick when we walked outside. According to our pamphlet of Panamá wildlife, it looks like it could be a Satiny Parrot snake which is mildly venomous. (So not looking forward to seeing my first scorpion!)

Other frequent visitors are a plethora of butterflies, colorful birds and birds of prey, who fly across the canyon in search of its next meal.

Gulf of Chiriquí

On Saturday, we took a day trip away from Boquete to the Gulf of Chiriquí. Our friend Milagros got a group together. It has been on our list of places to visit, and we really had a blast.

We drove into David to meet everyone in the group, then traveled about an hour until we reached Boca Chica. The boat launch was a short walk. It was quite the adventure just getting in and out of the boat. We spent about an hour tooling around in the gulf until we reached an area known to have whales, and were not disappointed.

We boated to one of the small islands in the Gulf of Chiriquí that had gorgeous light sand. There were other boats there as well that brought people over to the island to enjoy. The island itself is a nature preserve. It was completely unspoiled. We enjoyed lunch on the island with our new friends. Although we packed sandwiches and snacks, there was plenty of Panamanian food to go around, which the others happily shared with us. Among them was a dish referred to as “mono” which means monkey in Spanish. I looked like a tamale, however these banana-leaf wrapped yummies consisted of chicken, rice, beans and plantain. It was delicious. We learned the name comes from when workers used to take these meals out in the fields or jungles to work and they would hang them from trees, as a monkey would hang.

We spent a few hours enjoying the scenery and the water. The boat came back after a few hours to pick us all up and we drove a short distance to another beautiful island. After a short while, the captain was ready to head back.

I feel so blessed to have the chance to explore such beautiful places in Panamá, just a short drive away.

We have our E-Cédulas!

The final step in our process had been completed. We had instructed our attorney in Panama City via power of attorney to pick our e-cédulas up and courier them to us. This card is an official government issued ID, similar to a social security card. Without a cédula, anything you do from getting a bank account, electricity, buying land, or even registering your car is done using your passport number. Unfortunately, every time you renew your passport you get a new passport number as well. Changing the passport number you have associated with almost everything in Panama is a nightmare and takes time. You don’t need to haul your passport around anymore. Just show your cédula. It entitles you to all the benefits of a Panama citizen, except voting.

Some Beach Time

We just got back from a short getaway to Las Lajas Beach. It was our first overnight trip since arriving almost 3 months ago. It was an easy 1.75 hour drive from Boquete. The ocean there is a bit calmer on that spot of the Pacific Ocean. There are other beaches that are closer, however swimming can be dangerous. Las Lajas reminds us of the beach on the TV show “Lost”. We walked quite a ways westward, enjoying nature’s splendor, until we reached the estuary of Río San Juan. We also walked on a boardwalk through a mangrove jungle and saw different species of mangroves and wildlife who call the habitat their home.

Weather

The weather here had been mostly dry of late, even though we are in the rainy season. It is considered winter now but we are having Indian summer, and it has been very pleasant. In Boquete about 114 inches of rain fall per year; rainfall exceeds 12 inches per month from May to November, while it drops below 4 inches per month from January to March. At altitudes above 6,500 feet, in the tierras frías (“cold lands”), nights can be cold, especially during the period from December to March. Above 10,000 feet, it can get cold even during the day. Where we live is around 3,900 feet or so above sea level. The temperature is perfect.

I cannot believe sometimes that we actually live here in this small piece of paradise. Hasta la próxima vez!

Pipeline Trail Hike

Today Craig and I went on one of the very popular hikes just outside the town of Boquete. Along with half a dozen or so other hikers, we took the trail along The Pipeline. You walk alongside a river through the jungle, as It winds through the cloud forest and passes through two micro-climates. It has various small wildlife, and is one of the best areas for the chance to see the very beautiful and colorful Quetzal. Although we did not see a quetzal today, another group on the trail who had a professional guide, did in fact see one. We learned that mating season between February and May is the best time to see them. We found the hike fairly easy, many of the others in our group being a bit older than us. The incline was gradual but a bit rocky. Since I broke my foot last December, I am very careful where I step, and watching where I step was first and foremost. There were some “iffy” bridges and water crossings, one being walking along wide metal pipes while holding on to a rail made of a branch. We did not make it all the way up to the waterfall today, but we shall return! The highlight of our hike was seeing a Glasswing butterfly, which has clear transparent wings, as well as the thousand-year-old tree. I was in awe of it. It was a great bunch of people hiking in easy pace enjoying the beauty that surrounded us.

There are various other trails, some easy and some that require a guide with steep terrain. We bumped into a guide along the way who does a Jeep 4×4 excursion to Volcán Barú, leaving at 3:45 AM, driving up 2 hours to see the sun rise, then 2 hours back down. I’m putting that one on my bucket list.

*Craig thought the bridge was for sissies, lol.*

Panamá Coffee

One of the highlights of living in the mountains of Volcán Barú is the coffee. It is one of life’s greatest pleasures. Panamá coffee will not disappoint. It’s the best I’ve ever had. This past week, we toured one of the local coffee farms, Finca Dos Jefes. Their coffee varieties, Cafés de la Luna, is grown, harvested, processed and roasted there. Their farming practices are based around the lunar calendar. It was very interesting indeed. It all starts off as a cherry on a tree.

Here are some of the facts I’ve learned about the subject. The simplest and most organic method of processing coffee is called dry process. … The coffee is laid on raised drying beds that allow air to circulate around the fruit. Another method is the washing process, which if not done ethically, can potentially damage the environment and water resources around it. Environmental regulations are not equally enforced, or do not exist at most coffee producing nations.

What makes Panamá coffee so good? The fertile conditions on the areas surrounding the Volcán Barú, regular rainfall and appropriate altitude are a key factor in the success of coffee production: The rich nutrients found in the volcanic soil, abundant moisture and cloud cover nourish the coffee plants producing high quality beans that develop a rich, deeper flavor. The environmental factors of Panamá is quite unique with mountainous regions and nutrient rich volcanic soil that together create numerous microclimates across the country. The winds blowing over the mountains from the north create a fine mist called bajareque that acts as a huge air conditioner slowing the ripening of coffee cherries and contributing, ultimately, to sweet and complex cups.

Panamá’s coffee industry is marginal, but the country has specialized in producing special coffees such as geisha, which is sold at record prices especially in Asia and Europe. Just recently, A U.S. coffee roasting company in San Francisco area, served up the pricey cups of coffee made from Elida Natural Geisha beans purchased in Panamá at a world record price of $803 per pound.

We’ve had the opportunity to taste coffee samplings from a handful of fincas. The jury is still out as we continue our Panamá coffee tastings, including Black Mountain and Kotowa. They are all so good!