Diablo River

After a week on islands it was time for our first mainland trek in Panama. Having made dough the night before, Helen baked some bread rolls for lunch and we packed three bags with food, water, soda, towels, cameras, etc.

I had used the chart in our guide to waypoint the mouth of the Diablo River. With five of us in the dinghy working against the wind and waves it was a bit of a splash and those up front got a little wet. We entered quite a tight river mouth where I thought we should be going having to raise the motor at times as we bumped our way over a shallow sand bar. I wasn’t entirely convinced we had gone in the right entrance as the point I had plotted was off to the side. We went back out again to look along the coast but there was nothing else that close so we went back in again, this time entering the darkness under the trees that closed above us.

We did in fact reach the waypoint I had plotted at a point were the river branched into two separate arms, each going out to the sea. The river was now wide and easily navigable. We traveled a further mile and a half up the river carefully looking for submerged logs and occasionally stopping to take pictures of river birds and a Kuna cemetery on the bank of the river. On a couple of occasions we saw lizards running across the river and Helen was convinced she saw a crocodile which are known to inhabit the area. We also passed an occasional Kuna in their ulus (dugout canoes). The vegetation around us was tropical and lush – very jungle like.

At this mile and a half point we came to what looked like a crossroad in the river presenting us with a choice of three directions to take. We took the right turn as it looked marginally wider. The river was now getting harder to navigate with very shallow water on the inside of turns and many submerged and semi-submerged logs making the navigation a challenge. At the back of the dinghy I could see very little and at times it became like a committee leading the blind. But we got our act together eventually.

According to our guide we were supposed to find a landing where a white pipe enters the river about 3 miles from the entrance. At the 2 mile mark we saw about 5 ulus tied to the bank but no white pipe so we pressed on. The river was now getting very shallow. I frequently had to raise the motor to protect the prop. We used the oars at times and on one occasion we all got out and waded. Then the river became shallower still and I decided we could go no further. The trip was supposed to be easily navigable by dinghy so somewhere we must have made a mistake.

The obvious possibility was the ‘crossroads’ in the river so we headed back there. We passed the ulus again looking hard for a white pipe but saw none. Back at the ‘crossroads’ we headed straight over – what would have been originally a left turn. The river here was a little wider than the previous choice so I immediately felt we were onto a good thing. The optimism soon took a bashing as we came across a tree fallen across the entire river. Evaluating the three possible options (over, under, around) I decided the under option had merit. There was one point, right at the edge of the river, where the dinghy could be squeezed under while we made our way over the tree trunk. This we managed to do and soon we were off. I tried not to think too hard about the possibility of the river level rising and making our return trip harder. We passed another kuna in his ulu. In broken Spanish Sam asked directions to the ‘agua pipe’ and he pointed the way. At least we felt we were heading in the right direction.

It’s amazing how a twisty river can make you lose all sense of direction. We were all completely surprised when we suddenly found ourselves back in familiar territory. Having taking the second option from the ‘crossroads’ we ended up reappearing out of the third. The river had joined up with itself at this point recently enough that the loop created had not silted up and indeed was still flowing.

The directions from the kuna took us back up the river we first chose. The last thing we could try was going ashore where the five ulus were tied up and seeing if we could find the pipe that the trail was supposed to follow.

We did in fact find the pipe here so the walk was on. Unfortunately I discovered at this point I had lost my sunglasses. No idea when. My best guess it was when we were squeezing the dinghy under the log but it could have been anywhere.

Close by the landing was another little cemetery and just a short way up the trail we found a third. The first mile or so of the path was fairly straight and flat. It was a little muddy in places. The trail followed a white water pipe up to a lake which we hoped to reach. The pipe was often buried for long distances and sometimes took a different path to the trail. Often we would see little sticks plugging holes. The path was most likely a maintenance trail.

The path at this stage would occasional cross small streams. The pipe would be suspended and logs would be placed in parallel for foot traffic. We didn’t dare cross these logs more than one at a time as they were invariably wobbly and sometimes rotten. We saw many trails of leaf cutter ants, sometimes the trail would form trenches and tunnels, at other times they would use the water pipe to cross the streams.

After about a mile and a half the trail ceased to be flat and became more of a series of climbs and descents. The stream crossings became deeper and muddier with scrambles up orange clay slopes. Fortunately there were enough footholds and roots to grab to make these climbs straight forward.

We were now deep into the jungle with only the trail to follow. At one point Helen and I heard a loud, low growl to our left followed by some movement. This reminded Helen so much of the sound of large cats from her time growing up in Burma that we felt we should all stay closer together. The Panama jungle is known to be a home for jaguars so this was no time to split up and present dinner sized targets.

Shortly after this I was in the lead along a stretch where the pipe was buried. I must have kicked out a stick plugging the pipe below the soil because a little fountain sprung up and a puddle began to form. This had to be fixed so I tried putting a small twig into what I felt must be a small hole based on the size of the fountain. All I managed to do was knock out the rest of the plug as I now had a huge fountain spraying up mud and lots of water. I stashed my camera and GPS and returned to help the others find a stick. I stopped the flow by sticking my finger in the hole which made the scene less chaotic. All the sticks we could initially find were so rotten with the damp that we could not find an effective plug. Eventually we did manage to find one and brought the leak under control.

Another 15-20 minutes later we came to a point in the trail where it ended at the edge of a large running stream. This meant either getting our feet wet or skipping across the shallowest portions where rocks and stones offered stepping points. We found the trail on the other side but this only ran a short distance before dropping steeply into a deep part of the stream that would require wading. It was not obvious if the path continued on the the other side of the stream. After checking around to see if we’d missed a more obvious trail we returned to examine this option closer. I noticed a fallen tree about 50 feet up stream which was about 10-12 feet above the river. I stomped my way through the foliage to reach the tree and gingerly made my way across it. After only a few steps I slipped causing my heart to jump. I covered the rest of the distance shuffling along on my bum. No one wanted to follow until I’d checked for the path on the other side of the stream. I soon found it and called everyone over. Helen and John decided to wade while Annie and Sam took the log over.

The path was now less traveled and muddier. We kept having to cross the stream we were following. Our progress over ground was now very slow. We reached a point where the stones by the river were quite dry. We had no idea how much further the trail went so we decided to stop there for lunch.

John found a tick on one of his legs so we all checked ours. Everyone else was ok bar me. I found one on each leg. I could only remove them with tweezers from the medical pack we were carrying.

For lunch we had the rolls Helen had made with cheese. We had a pack of crisps each, some wafers and an apple. After our exertions of the morning this was a welcome feed. After lunch I took a dip in the river which was quite chilly. I could feel the fish nibbling at me which felt a little disconcerting but overall I felt refreshed. No one else seemed inclined to do the same.

Soon we were on our way back to the dinghy. Our return trip was swifter as we knew the way, not having to search around for where the trail continued as we recrossed the stream each time. Back at the log Annie and I both took this option while Sam switched deciding to wade with Helen and John.

Our plug of the pipe was still holding when we passed by and we heard no further sounds of large cats in the jungle. Now that the skies had cleared and the sun was higher the jungle took on new colours. It felt less dingy than earlier when it had been quite dark at times.

Back at the dinghy we washed our clothes and boots in the river before heading back. We soon realized the river level had dropped since the morning. This made it even harder to navigate back to the ‘crossroads’ where after it became deep and wide again.

Our next trouble came when trying to cross the sand bar. Such that it is round here, the tide was out leaving the sandbar too shallow to cross. We turned back to the point where the river split into two to try the other exit. This one too ran into the sand bar but at least this time the water was clearer and the bottom sandy. Except for Annie, we all got out and waded, pulling the dinghy with us until we were over the sand bar. Getting back to the boat with the wind and current behind us presented no issues.

Back on the boat we showered down and relaxed before dinner. Our last calamity of the day came when a number of our unbreakable plates fell out while Helen was trying to extract a bowl. The plates shattered into tiny pieces and went everywhere. We swept and vacuumed up all the pieces – it’s nice to have a vacuum aboard and the power to use one. On the upside, while looking for a bottle of tequila (which I never did find) I found five bottles of rum which we’d forgotten we’d bought in Trinidad and a bottle of pina colada mix. I think the mix will run out first.

Dinner was again very welcome which we followed up by watching a movie together.

This morning we’ll go ashore to see if we can pick up some fresh fruit/veg before leaving Nagana for the islands again.