The wonderful water world of Santa Catalina

Panama is blessed with natural beauty, but the wonders of the landscape are nothing compared with what is hidden underwater. One of the best places to go and experience an out-of-this-world trip is Santa Catalina Beach, in Veraguas, located in the Gulf of Chiriquí.

Santa Catalina is renowned for having the best surfing beach in Central America. It is also famous for its scuba diving, due to the clarity of the water and the amount of sea life found in that area.

A company in Santa Catalina called Scuba Coiba S.A. offers scuba diving expeditions and will allow you to see the wonder of the Gulf of Chiriqui in all its glory. They run daily trips from Santa Catalina to Coiba and other sites closer to this area. Both trips include two boat dives (a third is possible) and leave at 8:30 a.m. and return at 1:00 p.m. (Santa Catalina) or 4:00 p.m. (Coiba).

Herbie Sunk, owner of Scuba Coiba, said that diving in these waters is spectacular all year round. In September and November there is a lot of rain, but the water is quite clear. From December to April the water is colder and murkier, but you can find more fish and in June the water gets warmer and clearer.

You can see sharks, turtles, schools of sardines, tunas, barracudas and a big variety of reef fish. There are corals on some sites, but mainly rocks. As for whales, from July to October the Humpback surface; in February and March Orcas can be spotted in the area. The cost of a scuba diving trip varies depending on your requirements. The prices start at $70.00 up to $120.00. These include the rental of equipment (the whole set). All the expeditions are accompanied by a dive master. If you do not have certification, Scuba Coiba offers training to gain a basic certification (open water or one star).

The staff of Scuba Coiba is trained in first aid, especially for diving accidents. They have first aid kits and medical oxygen available, as well as waterproof emergency and evacuation plans with all contact information. In case of decompression accidents, the evacuation would be by medevac helicopter to Panama, where a recompression chamber and divemedical doctor are available.

You can get to Santa Catalina by bus from the terminal in Panama to Santiago, Veraguas, but it is more practical to hire a car. The trip to Santa Catalina takes about three and a half hours by road. It is better to rent a four by four because the roads can be very rough and muddy, especially during the rainy season.