01 Nacional De Cuba Hotel

2007 Panama

Folder: Central America
Scenes and wildlife from our first visit to Gamboa in Panama at the side of the Panama Canal. We stayed at a hotel overnight in Cuba both ways to change airlines for this visit.
19 Black Vultures (Coragyps atratus)

19 Black Vultures (Coragyps atratus)

05 Oct 2019 186
This little creek off the Rio Chagres was quite popular with these local birds, and you could often see them bathing in the shallow areas.
20 Rio Chagres Main Bridge

20 Rio Chagres Main Bridge

05 Oct 2019 185
The only road into Gamboa town, the road part seemed to be an add-on to the rail bridge. The road section was made up from railway sleepers, and not all were fixed down so could be displaced. It always felt a challenge to cross this bridge and we felt relieved to get to the other side.
21 Watching The Canal Traffic

21 Watching The Canal Traffic

05 Oct 2019 174
A bit of a slow occupation, but it was fascinating to see these sea-going vessels creep past so close to us. This vantage point close to a small lighthouse for night-time transits provided a good view up and down the Canal.
22 Leaf-cutter Ant Run

22 Leaf-cutter Ant Run

07 Oct 2019 209
These large ants were everywhere in this area, and their runs were quickly de-foliated of anything growing to make transport of their leaf bits easy.
23 Small Butterfly near Canal

23 Small Butterfly near Canal

07 Oct 2019 202
Presumably another Riodinidae member, small and colourful, feeding close to where we were watching the ships going by.
24 Road, Rail, and Canal Traffic

24 Road, Rail, and Canal Traffic

05 Oct 2019 161
As the shipping is moving from salt water to fresh water, ships get lower in the water as their bouyancy reduces, so container ships need to shed part of their sea-going load when navigating the Canal. There is a rail link alongside the Canal which ferries the removed containers to the exit end for re-loading once safely back in the salt water estuary at the end.
25 Container Train Crossing Rio Chagres

25 Container Train Crossing Rio Chagres

05 Oct 2019 181
North-bound container train taking the ship containers to Colon, on the Caribbean end of the Canal.
26 Vehicle Carrier MORNING GLORY Passing By

26 Vehicle Carrier MORNING GLORY Passing By

05 Oct 2019 195
Judging by the height above water level, this ship is travelling empty, going back for a new load.
27 Moving Canal Service Equipment back to Gamboa

27 Moving Canal Service Equipment back to Gamboa

30 Oct 2019 193
There was a lot of "service" movement activity on this day, not least of which was this floating crane.
28 The Hotel Safari Truck

28 The Hotel Safari Truck

05 Oct 2019 192
The main hotel transport for tours or event groups.
29 All Aboard the truck for the Aerial Tram Trip

29 All Aboard the truck for the Aerial Tram Trip

05 Oct 2019 168
This time we are off to the Aerial Tram which takes visitors up to the observing tower at the top of the hill behind the hotel. Hard bench seats made the ride pretty uncomfortable, but hey, we are on safari!!
30 Our Aerial Tram Guide

30 Our Aerial Tram Guide

05 Oct 2019 198
The Aerial Tram ride is a slow progress up through the hillside forest, and each "gondola" had a local guide with anyone travelling to point out various interesting things on the way.
31 Floating Through The Rain-forest by Aerial Tram

31 Floating Through The Rain-forest by Aerial Tram

05 Oct 2019 183
As the gondola slowly and silently progresses along, you will hear birds calling all about you and get occasional glimpses of animals in the trees.
32 Canal View From Hill Top Tower

32 Canal View From Hill Top Tower

05 Oct 2019 184
A great view along the Canal from the Observation Tower at the top of the hill. The buildings below are the hotel on this side of the Rio Chagres, which feeds water into the Canal.
33 On the Spiral Tower

33 On the Spiral Tower

05 Oct 2019 180
The tower has a spiral ramp around the outside making an easy, but quite long, walk to get to the top. There are many vantage points as you climb up the tower to see the wildlife at different elevations in the trees about the tower.
34 Howler Monkey From the Tower

34 Howler Monkey From the Tower

05 Oct 2019 194
A great way to see wildlife from the tower. Eye to eye contact at this level, with a small family of Howler Monkeys. Not sure who was watching who, but they were quite at ease in their home environment. This is a still frame from our DV video camera.
35 Hotel Main Building Balcony

35 Hotel Main Building Balcony

05 Oct 2019 172
The front of the main building had a number of full width balconies across the front. This is a view from just outside the bar area, where you could partake of your favourite beverage, whilst watching for wildlife in the gardens. A good place to watch the Parrots and Parakeets coming in to roost in the adjacent trees in the evenings or even when they were visiting through the day.
36 View From Balcony Up the Rio Chagres

36 View From Balcony Up the Rio Chagres

05 Oct 2019 198
A very park-like scene in front of the hotel around the pool area and up the river.
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