Canopy Tower, Panama: a view from the top
www.canopytower.com/canopy-tower
Introducing Canopy Tower, an ex USA-military base turned ecotourist retreat, owned and staffed by Panamanians and one of the best places in the world to see wildlife.
1988: the then USA radar tower was part of a network detecting airplanes suspected of carrying drugs from South America.
1997: the Panamanian government signed a contract with Raul Arias de Para, a human rights and environmental activist, to transform the site consisting of 35 acres of rainforest on top of a hill in Soberanía National Park, into a research centre and ecotourism resort.
Now: the former observation deck is a fantastic place to see toucans, tanagers and tamarins at eye level perching, moving through and sleeping in the trees. We had just arrived when we saw a female brown-throated three-toed sloth with a baby hanging from a cecropia tree almost near enough to touch. It was magical.
Why stay?
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This award-winning lodge is one of the best places in the world to see wildlife. On the observation deck you see animals and birds at your level in the canopy while you enjoy a morning coffee or an evening wine and marvel at the views of Panama City and Panama Canal.
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The guides, all local Panamanians, are wonderful. They are passionate about the wildlife and can answer all your questions or if they can't, will find out and tell you what you want to know. They also work hard to find particular species you are interested in.
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Group sizes are restricted to 8 so you can see everything there is to see. Guides also carry a telescope so you can see difficult-to-see birds and animals as if they were right in front of you.
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Although specialising in birds, Canopy Tower also offers tours for animal lovers. We did the Tamarin Tour which was a wildlife viewing holiday and it was fantastic. Or you can just stay at the tower and hire a guide for your own activities, or join in whatever's on offer. There are night drives too.
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The food... wow. The chef only uses locally grown produce and you can tell. It's fresh, delicious and as healthy or as naughty as you like - buffet-style. And there's wine :)
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You are contributing to Panama's conservation efforts and the upkeep of gorgeous Soberania National Park by staying here.
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You are giving Panamanians jobs: the more people staying in Canopy Tower, the more guides and staff are needed.
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This place is not only fantastic, it's unique. There's no other ex-army base turned tourist lodge in the middle of a rainforest anywhere else.
Things to do
Wildlife watch in Canopy Tower
You don't have to leave the tower to see lots of wildlife. From 6 am, guides are on the observation deck pointing out birds, animals and reptiles and even finding them for you through
a telescope. Photographers and videographers can set up their tripods, attach their zoom lenses and snap or video away. There are comfy chairs here where you can spend the whole day surveying the national park before you for wildlife, or take in superb views of Panama City and Panama Canal.
The floor beneath holds the airy, comfy dining room where you can enjoy a meal while watching wildlife in the trees. At night, little mastiff bats fly in and even roost for a while in the rafters. You can curl up in a hammock or on a couch and read a book, catch up with your journal or photo storage or chat to your fellow guests. They're an interesting bunch: birders, wildlife enthusiasts and photographers from heaps of different countries.
You'll sleep amongst the trees on the floor beneath, seeing green honeycreepers, brightly-coloured lizards and mantled howler monkeys through your bedroom window and hearing nocturnal animals such as kinkajous, owls and Panamanian night monkeys moving through the trees.
On the ground floor there's a colourful reception area with a few souvenirs. Outside, hummingbird feeders attract several different species and you can watch or get stunning photos white-necked Jacobins, long-billed hermits, blue-chested hummingbirds and more....
Talk to people. As the tower is also involved in research projects, researchers are often present and eat with the guests. When we were there, an Israeli gentleman was counting numbers of hawks migrating from North America. Apparently, 2018 was a good year.
Walk down Semaphore Hill Road
Semaphore Hill Road goes from Canopy Tower to the road leading to Panama City. On either side lie the lovely rainforests of Soberania National Park packed with animals and birds. At the bottom of the hill there is a bridge over a pristine river and on the right, Plantation Trail that goes further into the park. You can walk on your own or with a guide: the latter is recommended as you see heaps more. We took a stroll down the road in the early morning, and saw:
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brown-throated three-toed sloths (pictured here)
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red-tailed squirrels (pictured here)
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variegated squirrels
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Central American agoutis
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white-nosed coatis
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lesser white-lined bats
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common tent-making bats.
We also saw heaps of birds, including:
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keel-billed toucans
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broad-billed motmots
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great jacamars
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rufous mourners
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blue dacnis
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eastern peewees.
Go to Ammo Ponds
Ammo Ponds are a short drive from Canopy Tower or about an hour-and-a-half drive from Panama City. Situated by the Panama Canal, the American army built them during World War 2 to protect ammunition stores from fire. Now they are protected and are a good wetland for native birds and animals. We saw black caiman, black and green iguanas, and heaps of birds including the rufescent tiger heron (pictured here), wattled jacana, greater ani and greater kiskadee.
So much more...
There's so much to do around Canopy Tower and we'll be covering these activities in our videos in future weeks. In the meantime, enjoy this and other videos on our MaD destinations site.
Do you have questions or comments about this article? Email maddestinations@gmail.com or leave a comment under the video.
