The wing of our 9 seat Islander is dipping hard to the left as we lose altitude and dive rapidly towards the small swatch that has been cut from the Darien Jungle. At the moment the opening is wide enough for our plane, but the jungle is always fighting to reclaim its lost turf. The stall light flashes, the siren blares, the canopy reaches and tries to grab hold of our landing gear and in a sensory whirl of noise, greens and browns we bounce onto the the grassy clearing and roll to a stop. We are on the ground in Cana just 10 miles from the Colombian boarder and 40 miles from Jurado a place that in years past was seized by narco rebels, an attack that left 42 guerrillas, 23 Colombian marines and a police officer dead. But in the Darien Gap the fer-de-lance pit vipers are our biggest threat. Our guide Rene“Chepe”Alvarado had been struck after dinner one evening. One single fang pierced the skin on his left calf. And with the radio not working his friend embarked on a heroic 10 hour donkey ride through the jungle at night to the nearest village with a radio, Boca de Cupe. Chepe was airlifted out the following day, his leg three times its normal size, but he survived, the donkey was not so lucky. Even with all of these tales we could not avoid the allure of the deep jungle experience. Cana rests deep within undisturbed rainforest and is one of the most remarkable birding locations on the planet. With the first inkling of dawn deep hues of Chromium green emerge and chase the ghostly sounds of howler monkeys and the birds come alive. The chestnut-colored squirrel cuckoo, a turquoise blue swallow tanager, a quetzal, keel-billed toucans. In Panama, nature is undeniable.
-Brown Cannon III
