Isla Boca Brava

Public transportation in Panama appears crude to western sensibilities, but our experience is that it works very well. From Cerro Punta, a small town in the corner of Chiriqui province, we bussed down to David, then caught a bus to Horconcitos (another tiny town), and hired a taxi to the Gulf of Chiriqui. A short water taxi ride later we found ourselves in a tropical paradise called Isla Boca Brava.

Because traveling in Panama can have its disappointments, we weren't sure what this trip to the island would be like and we had committed to a week here, so we were wary. But when we saw how beautiful and peaceful was the place with a nice room besides, we felt a huge weight fall off and the peaceful feeling never wore off for the next ten days.

In the jungle on this island is a troop of howler monkeys that make a throaty and fabulous racket. Some mornings they were right outside our window! Needless to say Isla Boca Brava is a rustic gem of a place, and it won't stay secret for long. The travel guides haven't caught up to the fact that the road to the gulf has been paved and getting here is easy, and I predict that in the next five years this area will change dramatically as people come in and invest money.

Well worth going.