Santa Catalina Stories Part 2: Snorkeling and Isla Coiba

The whole reason behind choosing Santa Catalina as our destination for Carnival break was for the amazing snorkeling around Isla Coiba. That, and the surfing, which at the beginning, neither of us knew how to do, and, now, thanks to D.C., we know at least some basics.

Isla Coiba used to be a prison where they would just drop prisoners on the island and say “good luck,” and, not only would they be trapped on the island, but they would have to find a way to survive. (Like Survivor mixed with Hunger Games?)

Mami and I traveled on an hour-long boat ride out to Isla Coiba with a Coiba Dive Center snorkeling tour (recommended to us by the Pills who are avid scuba divers), and were pleasantly surprised with what we discovered.

The snorkeling was truly amazing! There were so many colorful fish: ones that you’ve only seen on the glossy pictures of national geographic, like a fish whose scales flashed the colors of the rainbow and another whose entire body was covered with tiny blue dots.

We stopped on Isla Coiba to eat our packed lunches and see the island. For all the talk about it, the island looked to me like many other islands I’d seen in Panama: lush jungle filled with monkeys, coconut trees, hidden sloths and lizards and all sorts of strange looking birds. This particular jungle was crisscrossed by rugged paths that had been created by the National Park association. Our group stumbled upon one of these paths by accident.

Our snorkeling group was sitting together, enjoying our peanut butter/granola tortillas and watching an elderly tour group cross through a “crocodile zone” section of the beach. We watched their tour guide point out the various birds and the fact that the crocodile was nowhere in sight. Then, the guide led them over by some low-hanging trees, and we lost sight of them. We finished our lunches and continued making observations about the island, when suddenly a thought came to my mind. “Where did the tourists go?”

“Over by those trees,” Mami pointed in the direction where the tourists disappeared. “But I don’t think they ever came out.”

“Hmm..I wonder what’s over there.” I jumped to my feet. “Let’s go investigate!”

Mami and I made our way over to the trees hanging low over the sand, and I cautiously peered past the branches. Sure enough, there was a path! The path was a set of stairs leading upwards into the jungle. It was like an Indiana Jones movie (minus the rolling stone about to crush us).

We called the rest of our snorkeling group over and began a ten minute tromp up the stairs and around the island. We spoke in hushed voices and would pause every so often to listen for monkeys or other wildlife. We did see monkeys, and our curiosity continued to pull our tired legs forward, urging us to see what was around the next bend.

Around the corner was a tiny stream with a narrow plank bridge. Granted, it was about 4 feet off the ground, but it still took some courage to cross. We went a little farther, marveling at the variety of plants and the strong vines that looked they were strangling the trees like boa constrictors, then, due to time, had to turn back the way we came. I knew my group was right about the time, but someday I would love to make it back to see what’s on the other side of the island and what lies along the path and where does it really lead.

Our snorkeling team returned to the beach and clambered aboard the boat, sweaty and relieved to feel the cool ocean breeze as the boat sped away. I sat backwards, watching Isla Coiba grow smaller, more distant, and finally recede into the horizon. The wind whipped my hair, and I dipped my hand into the ocean to splash on my forehead. What an adventure!

And what a blessing! We had one more snorkeling destination to visit, and by this time, we were confident enough to swim after our snorkel guide and watch people take turns doing flips underwater or dive down with their underwater cameras. My favorite part though was snorkeling along and noticing a series of bubbles coming up from a certain area. As I swam closer, I saw large cylinder-shape objects, metallic in nature, with the sun glinting off the sides. Then through the shifting sand and waves, I could see heads. Heads and metal canisters..must be Scuba Divers!

Wow! I had always wanted to see what it was like to scuba dive, and there were eight of them right below me. I shifted my position, in case any of them needed to “come up for air” and observed how they drifted and bobbed along the sea floor. One scuba diver told me later that they had been looking at sea turtles and had maybe spotted a manna ray camouflaged into the sandy ocean bottom.

Oh yeah, did I mention that on our way there, a whole pod of dolphins started swimming next to our boat and jumping out of the water? Magnificent!

As our snorkeling group swung ourselves up and over into the boat again, we laughed as we exchanged stories of undersea life that we had seen. It was a whole new world we got to peek into: “under the sea”. In some ways the day had been exhausting, in some ways thrilling, and in some ways unexplainably peaceful. Our boat captain passed us each a packet of Maria cookies, and we took in the views of the gentle ocean waves pushing us towards the mainland. I contemplated how such a great expanse contained so much mystery and how God had designed it all and how much I still hadn’t seen. The wonders of the ocean, the beauty in that moment, and the adoration of my Creator left me utterly speechless.

Psalm 24:1‑2

   The earth is the LORD's and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.

“The Heavens declare You are God
And the mountains rejoice
The Oceans cry "Alleluia"
As we worship You Lord
For this is our song of love

Jesus, I am in awe
Of the love that You have shown
Jesus, how precious you are
To me, To me” (Rebecca St. James)