Path The Cochea River Canyon, a new attraction in Boquete

Path The Cochea River Canyon, a new attraction in Boquete

By: La Estrella de Panama

The trail is already open to visitors, but its official opening is in April, when the fauna and flora information is completed for signage. 

The interest to know the nature of Panama and the beautiful places of the interior of the country, every time takes more force. This summer a new tourist product is attracting locals and foreigners in the district of Boquete.

This is the El Cañón del Cochea trail, recently certified as safe by the National Civil Protection System (Sinaproc), and whose official opening is scheduled for April 2018, reported the Tourism Authority of Panama (ATP).

The El Cañón trail is located within the Hacienda Los Molinos project, in El Francés. It can take two hours to go through it. However, it is recommended to go with a hotel guide or authorized by the ATP, registering before to make the reservation. "You can not enter the path alone," he said.

Isabella Gormaz, hotel manager, confirmed that it has invested in infrastructure and two viewpoints, one where the visitor does not necessarily have to go down to take pictures of the canyon and another halfway more immersed in nature.

This week the hotel will hold an event to introduce the new product to the Association of Guides of Boquete. Although the trail is already open to visitors, its official opening is scheduled for April when the fauna and flora information is completed for signaling, said the ATP.

According to Gormaz, at the moment they are working on raising fauna and flora with a team made up of biologists, bird specialists and certified guides from Boquete.

The hotel, besides working on the tourism quality certification of the ATP since November 2016, is one of the three hotels nationwide that completed a certification process of hotels prepared on the subject of risk management with Sinaproc. It covered training, training, adaptation of the area and evacuation routes, among others.

According to Gormaz, the canyon has become a very peculiar natural attraction because it is surrounded by vegetation, contrary to the canyons of other parts of the world that are usually arid.

The specialized guide, Plinio Montenegro, explained that El Cañón del Río Cochea is a geological formation of the Barú Volcano - the highest point in Panama - and is located within a rain forest, between the districts of Dolega and Boquete.

On the way to the canyon you can enjoy two beautiful views. One exactly towards the imposing volcano and another towards the Gulf of Chiriqui, in the Pacific.

In the place there are endemic species of fauna and flora. That is, they are typical of highlands. Here you can see migratory species of birds, howler monkeys, cat alone and different types of butterflies, amphibians and reptiles, varieties of trees and plants such as orchids and waterfalls (waterfalls).

To walk the path, the specialist recommended to wear closed shoes, long pants, sunscreen, hat or cap, jacket for rain, repellent, water (1 or 2 liters), walking stick, energy bars, chocolate and have good health and physical condition.