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An unexpected side trip finds a family happily marooned on an enchanted desert island.
by Ann Weir
photography by Ann Weir, Christine Guinness and Rob Batistic
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08/01/2005
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We went in search of Isla Coiba, which Panama City locals call
the most beautiful out island in the Pacific. Our guidebooks confirmed that it
was spectacular, but there was a catch – a big one: If you decide to go ashore,
you might want to take an armed guard, some books advised.
The world is a classroom for the four young children aboard the
126-foot Feadship Sirenuse as the owner family circumnavigates,
exploring pristine islands such as Jicaron. (Click images to enlarge)
Once a penal colony, Coiba is no longer used as such, although
some former prisoners still remain on the island. Some claim they are friendly
and willing to give you island tours; others make them out to be a little less
courteous.
We decided to take our chances and left Panama City on
our 126-foot Feadship Sirenuse, arriving a woozy 21 hours later after
the roughest passage we had made in quite awhile. The anchorages off Coiba
looked a little unsteady, so we decided to try nearby Jicaron, a smaller
island across the bay.
 For the last six months, we had been cruising the Bahamas, the
U.S. East Coast and the Caribbean side of Central America. Jicaron was our first
Pacific anchorage after transiting the Panama Canal. We immediately noticed the
swell at anchor was much more dramatic than anything on the east side, but the
water temperature was much warmer than we anticipated. The water was, however,
soup-like, filled with phytoplankton, tiny jellyfish and numerous mysterious
creatures that brushed up against us as we swam, making it something of an
unsettling adventure. (Click image to enlarge)
The following morning it peaked our interest when a few of our crewmembers attempted a kayak beach landing on Jicaron. Finding a rocky bottom
and larger-than-anticipated surf, they returned to the boat rebuffed. We then
decided to set off in our inflatable to check out the beaches, ledges and rivers
along the shore. We found only more of the same heavy swells breaking along
rough beaches. As we circumnavigated Jicaron looking for a landing spot, we
discovered Jicarita, a smaller island that clearly was once part of Jicaron in
its distant past. Eventually we found safe landing spots on both islands.
Pictures of picnics danced in our heads.
 Photograph by Jim Raycroft. (Click image to enlarge)
We have been traveling with our three children, who are ages
nine, seven and one-and-a-half. Our captain and his wife have their
five-year-old with them, and we have seven crew. With such a mixed entourage,
land excursions are always very popular – to put it lightly.
As soon as we were able to get ashore on Jicaron we found
magical solitude among the incredibly lush and dense vegetation and the
salt-and-pepper beach, littered with some never-before-seen shells. We spent a
glorious week here, fishing in the morning and picnicking for lunch.
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