A Tower in the Treetops
By Nancy Hanna. Published on The World & I, February 1999.
A former U.S. military radar facility
in the Panama Canal Zone is transformed into a unique wildlife
observatory and lodge with an eye-level view of Panama's rich
wildlife.
Nancy Hanna,
a freelance writer with twenty years of experience in Latin America,
now resides in Panama. For information about Canopy Tower, visit
the Web site or call (507) 264-5720.
Raúl Arias de Para picked me up at 4:45 A.M. at the
McDonald's on Via Espana in his 4-by-4. This is my second trip
to Canopy Tower, a world-class wildlife observatory Raúl
is inaugurating. Our objective this time is to be there before
dawn to experience from the very first moments the procession
of events that unfold in a new day in a tropical rain forest.
Within minutes, we are cruising along Panama City's new beltway
into areas of what was formerly the U.S. Canal Zone.
Canopy Tower is Raúl's pet project. A distinguished former
Panamanian banker who is now an environmentalist and ecotourism
businessman, he was twice imprisoned as a political opponent of
the Noriega regime. After a daunting search and cutting through
thickets of both American and Panamanian red tape, Raúl
managed to find and receive permission to transform a U.S. military
radar station into a nature lodge and observatory.
The rain forests of the former Panama Canal Zone where the lodge
is located are overwhelmingly rich in biodiversity, but until
recently they were off limits because they were part of the U.S.
Canal Zone and used for military purposes. Since the signing of
the Carter-Torrijos treaties in 1977, giving Panama full control
of this territory by the year 2000, there has been a gradual return
to Panama of the land in this ten- by forty-mile swath that cuts
the country in half at its middle and runs ocean to ocean.
The Canal Zone has been a source of grievance for Panamanians
from the beginning. So it is ironic that if it weren't for the
United States placing this territory off limits for the last ninety
years, Panama would not now have this enormous treasure--the most
accessible rain forest in the world.
Most of the rain forest is now a national park, a wise decision
on someone's part, since the dense forest is necessary to maintain
the level of rainfall required to operate the canal's system of
locks.
Moonlight observation
In just twenty minutes, we arrive at Soberania National Park and
begin winding our way up the access road through a thick forest
to Canopy Tower. We arrive in the dark and, binoculars in hand,
climb the curving staircase of the world's most unusual nature
observatory tower. A stunning edifice, this bulbous tower, once
a military radar station, sits upon one of the highest hills in
the park. As I anticipate observing the glories of the creation
from a site once used for warfare, the scriptural quote that men
shall "beat their swords into plowshares'' comes to mind.
Fortunately, it is not pitch dark. The stars are many, and serendipitously,
we have chosen the night of a full moon. It looms large and majestic,
shedding light over the terrain through scattered clouds. Now
on the observation deck on top of the tower, we listen intently
to the forest. In the predawn, there is only the chirping of crickets
and the hooting of an owl.
Minutes later, dawn is heralded by one of the colorful sunrises
typical in the tropics: first in intense colors of magenta, red,
and orange, later in the softer hues of the same. The glorious
sunrise plays out in the east, as the moon is still in full display
in the west. I think to myself that if all I got to see today
was this double celestial splendor, it would be enough.
But lo--with the sun's rising nature begins its morning procession
in the rain forest canopy. The canopy is the top of the trees
in a forest, and while 50 percent of forest life takes place there,
it is normally hard to observe. This former radar tower, however,
puts the canopy squarely at eye-level for us. As birds begin to
twitter, Raúl aims his mounted telescope, allowing us to
view dozens of bird species and animals going about their morning
business, unaware of our close observation.
Suddenly blood-curdling sounds pierce the air. It is howler monkeys,
which are somehow biologically equipped to throw the most eerie
howls about the forest. These chilling, unforgettable cries are
bouncing between the surrounding hills. Raúl explains to
me that this is how the monkeys, which are in rival troops, stake
out their territory for the day.
On my first trip to the tower I observed a bevy of titi monkeys
eating breakfast in the canopy and a sloth, dead asleep atop a
high tree limb. Today the only mammals in sight are the tropical
coati, something like a raccoon, feeding on bananas that Raúl's
staff put out on the ground below for them.
Birdwatcher's paradise
Before my first trip to Canopy Tower, I confess, I would arrogantly
dismiss bird watching as a boring activity. Now I am an enthusiastic
convert, ooing and aahing as we spot and identify one fascinating
species after another and ogle them with binoculars and telescope.
If birds are a primary indicator of biodiversity, then Panama
takes the grand prize. This tiny isthmus has 936 species of birds--more
than in the United States and Canada combined. In fact, until
1996 Panama held the Audubon Society's world record for identifying
the most species of birds in a single day--357 species were counted
here in one 24-hour period!
The birds that can be observed so clearly from Canopy Tower are
not your everyday birds. Exquisite small birds of fluorescent
yellow, blue, and red flit about the top of flowering guayacan
trees. We spot a pair of handsome toucans, Panama's national bird,
perched proudly together. This toucan is a large bird with an
extraordinary mix of seven colors, including a long orange and
magenta bill.
With the telescope, we can closely observe all manner of exotic
birds at leisure in their natural habitat. We spot a baby Black-breasted
Puffbird chirping. Maybe it is calling for its mother. A few minutes
later, sure enough, the mother answers its call and is at its
side.
One reason Panama is an exciting place for bird watchers is that
so many of the migratory birds from the north pass through the
narrow isthmus. I greet some familiar bird friends whose relatives
I last saw in my backyard in New York. Among the wonders that
can be observed here is the Arctic Tern, the marathoner of migratory
birds, which travels from the Arctic to Antarctica!
Canopy Tower is one of five ecotourism pilot projects included
in a tourism master plan being developed by Hana Ayala, a consultant
to the Panamanian government and a former professor at the University
of California at Irvine. The idea is to create a synergy between
the lucrative tourist industry and developing nations that need
to preserve their natural environment but don't have the funds.
Entrepreneurs given permission to develop tourism sites must sign
agreements to preserve and enrich the lands they occupy. They
are even asked to conduct environmental research on site.
For example, those who stay at Raúl's lodge will have the
opportunity, if they choose, to monitor bird migration in cooperation
with researchers at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Facility
located here. This they do to keep track of the fate of migratory
species.
Before descending the curving staircase, I take a moment to appreciate
the unsurpassed 360-degree panoramic view the tower provides.
I almost forgot that this is not just a rain forest but the canal
zone! There below, a gigantic ship in the Panama Canal makes its
way silently through the jungle. I observe trucks and caterpillars
that look like so many Tonka trucks, busily widening the treacherous
Galliard Cut, the largest and longest cut through a mountain in
excavating the canal. In another direction, Panama City's skyline
on Panama Bay looks like the city of Oz.
Treetop quarters
On our way down, Raúl shows me the beautiful lodge bedrooms--each
with a huge picture window with a spectacular view--set out in
a circular pattern around the tower. While admiring the high teak
doors I learn that they are from a teak plantation Raúl
owns in western Panama. The dining room has huge windows with
the same panoramic 360-degree view as the observatory deck. There
is also a library with all the materials one needs to look up
information on the surrounding wildlife and vegetation.
Canopy Tower is far more than a business venture for Raúl;
it is a project born of his love for nature and of a creative,
resourceful personality that found a way to share his love of
nature with others. One of Raúl's key beliefs is that man
has an innate need to live in nature. In the last two years, he
has spent countless hours alone on top of the tower, thinking
and planning how to convert this abandoned radar station into
a first-class wildlife observatory. His personal touch is everywhere,
from the marble floors in the bathrooms (recycled from his city
apartment) to the reading selections in the library.
He explains his personal philosophy of conservation and respect
for the environment. In remodeling the radar tower into a lodge,
he used many materials recycled from the site itself. The lodge
will be run as a model of recycling, reuse, and respect for nature
and its resources. For example, he has installed a water recycling
system. He hopes that lodge guests will pick up something of that
philosophy and its practical application in their stay here.
We climb into the 4-by-4, and I return reluctantly to the hustle
and bustle of the modern Panama City metropolis. Yet I feel reborn
inside, renewed by the perfect harmony of the world of creation
I have just observed. I have had a chance to feel the same sensation
I felt the first time I went snorkeling and saw another fascinating,
unseen world of colorful creatures in enchanted surroundings.
As we speed along the beltway, I hope that Canopy Tower is the
harbinger of the new kind of venture we will see more of in the
next millennium. I long for the time when all men can commune
with nature as I just have, and war and poverty are a thing of
the past. Today a new day dawned for me in a very special way. |
