Page 274 - The Rough Guide to Panama (Travel Guide)

272 The Darién anD easTern Panama
The Darién and eastern Panama

Mention of the Darién – Panama’s largest province, abutting Colombia –
conjures up a host of images, some alluring, others less so; some true,
others vastly exaggerated. What is not in dispute is the region’s status as
one of the last true tropical wildernesses – though even this is under threat –
encompassing swathes of mountainous forest containing an astounding
array of wildlife. This is most apparent in Parque Nacional Darién, which
provides unparalleled opportunities for serious hiking and birdwatching.

The Darién covers a sparsely populated, rugged expanse sprawling across almost twelve
thousand square kilometres; it reaches its highest point at Cerro Tacarcuna (1875m) by
the border, but includes numerous peaks of more than 1000m. The province also boasts
Panama’s longest river, the Río Tuira, which empties into the Golfo de San Miguel, a vast
mangrove-lined body of water that opens out into the Pacific Ocean. Yet travellers are
increasingly drawn to the Darién as much by its people as by its compelling scenery;
several communities populated by the closely related Emberá and Wounaan – the
region’s main indigenous peoples – have opened up to tourists. In the Comarca
8 Emberá-Wounaan or in communities outside the comarca, such as La Marea and Mogué,
you can stay overnight in a village and learn about the intricacies of basketry or
woodcarving, for which they are world-renowned, or hike through steaming rainforest
to spot harpy eagles – the area boasts the greatest concentration of these raptors in the
world. Guna communities also exist, mainly in eastern Panama province, historically
considered part of the Darién. Their two small comarcas stretch along the shores of Lago
Bayano, a vast reservoir 100km east of Panama City, which enjoys a picturesque setting
in an increasingly deforested landscape, and has an impressive network of caves.

Brief history
The Darién bore witness to some of the bloodiest confrontations between the invading
conquistadors, greedy for gold and power, and the indigenous groups desperate to defend
their territories – most notably at Santa María La Antigua del Darién, the first successful
Spanish settlement on the mainland since the time of Columbus (across the border in
present-day Colombia). Balboa took Santa María in 1510, and later intercepted an
attempt to reclaim the city, led by Cacique Cémaco, a pivotal figure in the indigenous
resistance; he captured all the alliance’s chiefs, bar Cémaco, and had them hanged as an
example. It is perhaps only fitting that Balboa, who first espied the Pacific from the
Darién, also met his end here – beheaded by Pedrerías Dávila in the coastal town of Acla
(in present-day Guna Yala) – while Santa María was eventually abandoned by the Spanish
in favour of Panama City, and was razed to the ground by indigenous forces in 1524.
The region’s population
The indigenous peoples most in evidence today are the Emberá and Wounaan. Both groups
may have migrated from the Chocó regions of Colombia (which is why they are often

The Emberá and Wounaan p.275 Visiting an Emberá or Wounaan village
Safety in the Darién p.276 p.283
Organized tours to the Darién p.276 Saving the harpy eagle p.285
El “Rey Negro Bayano” p.278 Tours from Sambú and Puerto Indio
Wildlife in Parque Nacional Darién p.281 p.287

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