A Walk in the Forest

 ¡Buenos Días from Gamboa!


It’s crazy how quickly Kirby and I fall into a routine on trips. Here in Panama we get up with the sun and go for what Kirby calls a “shoe walk” - a walk where tie-on shoes are preferred, as opposed to a “flippy walk.”  This is a stroll through the neighborhood checking out the old houses and the unique ways people have tweaked them to fit their lifestyle and you guessed it - we flip and flop our way through town in “flippys.”

We are early risers for a few reasons: they say there is a better chance to see wildlife early in the day, we can wear ourselves out hiking and limp back to the house before it’s hot enough to turn us into puddles and with the sun setting around 6:30pm, the evenings are long. The many tv channels - all in Espańol - lead to hitting the sack early. 

This morning we hiked the Matapano trail for over an hour until the mosquitos reclaimed their territory and we turned back.  (Tomorrow we take the bug spray with us!) It was an interesting walk through marshes, over small streams and up good sized hills. Here are a few photos to get you in the mood. Based on the weather reports from home, this may be just what is needed where you are.




At one point, coming around a bend, the forest took on a new look. A grove of trees that look a little like very short palm trees with huge long leaves caused us to stop and ponder. The forest floor was littered with leaves. Was this done by man or beast? A question we find ourselves asking often - especially pertaining to sounds. Most of the time our guess is beast. 



We came to the conclusion that these were banana trees (though we saw no bananas) and the forest around them had been cleared to make them more productive. We tested this theory by comparing them with a banana tree growing by our house and not only confirmed our theory but were treated to a wonderful surprise! As we investigated the tree, a toucan that had been enjoying a banana snack flew out! My goal was to see a toucan in the wild this trip and we did! Unfortunately I didn’t get a picture. He was too fast and I too flabbergasted. 🤪

Yesterday’s walk ended not because of mosquitoes but because the trail turned to a muddy, slippery slope that was sure to land us in the river.  In some places a quick dip in the river might sound refreshing, however pictured below is a good reason to stay on land around Gamboa. The baby caiman paid the price for snacking on our fishing bait by allowing us to check ?him/her? out before being deposited back in the river. This big guy was waiting on the shore when we returned from fishing, hoping to take any fish remnants off our hands - which he did. The snap of that snout and the speed with which he moved definitely gained our respect. 




After recovering with several glasses of iced tea and a little housekeeping, it was time for a traditional Panamanian lunch - pollo frito (fried chicken) for KP,  jamón ahumado (smoked ham) for JP, both with rice, lentils and plántanos - at Mary Gaby - a roach coach style restaurant “downtown.” I have been attempting to practice Spanish with her. She’s a good sport. 😵‍💫

Buenas tardes por hoy, amigos! We’ll try as hard to stay cool as you are to stay warm! 

¡Hasta la próxima!

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