Capurgana and Zapzurro: Caribbean villages and the Darien Pass

Village of Capurgana

is a small village on the Caribbean on the Colombian – Panamanian border.  There are no roads to get here; either one flies in  ($100 from Medellin to a small airstrip outside of the town) or comes in by boat - $20 from the city of Turbo on the mainland.

The difficulty getting here makes this place one of the best kept secrets in Colombia.

I took the boat from the port town of Turbo which  is a hot, rough frontier town. There's no reason to visit here except to catch the boat to Capurgana.  Most of the hotels are seedy at best.  The only descent hotel in town is Castilla de Oro or Hotel 2000 next to the bus terminal. A good place for fish is Restaurant Marinero.

The a.m. dock action is interesting with the fishermen coming into dock  and selling fish right off the boats. It's best to go to Turbo and spend the night. You have to get up at dawn to buy a ticket at 6 a.m. at a port terminal down at the docks to ensure your seat on a departing boat.  Speed boat launches leave around 8 a.m. They sell you plastic bags for $.50 to wrap your back packs and bags in to keep them dry. Do buy one as they store all the cargo in the open bow of the boat and if the seas are rough everything gets soaked.

Early in the morning they pack a couple dozen people into 24’ skiffs. Though there are a few larger boats that make the trip. On the way out they stop at a police dock to give them the  passenger list. Everyone has to show their passports or i.d. cards so make sure you have your passport at hand.

Then the boats leave pounding across the Gulf of Uraba a full speed  through 3'-4' chop. Not a pleasant 3 hour ride for the faint of heart or seasick prone. Stopping at a few little seaside towns and along the way they let you get off in the small fishing village of Acandi to stretch your legs take a bathroom break, get a coffee and snack.

After the open sea journey the boat slides up to the dock at Capurgana which is always bustling with activity. People from different hotels and hostels are there ready to take your bags and rent you a room.  I went with a guy to a hotel called Villa Victoria - a nice private room with a bath, fan and Wi-Fi (when the electricity was on) for $10 a night.

Until recently this sleepy fishing village was an important point for smuggling drugs into Panama with guerrilla activity. But now peace accords and a heavy military presence in town has put an end to that. In just the last 15 years the town has a warmed up to tourism. There are dozens of hotels and hostels in and around town at all different price points,  and a dozen restaurants serving fish, meat and chicken lunches and dinners for $5.

The beach to the north of town called La Caleta  is a very developed sandy beach catering to upscale weekend Colombian tourism with all inclusive hotels, artisan stalls, discos and kayak rental. The beaches to the south of town are quieter and rocky.

Sapzurro and La Miel - There are a few good day trips to neighboring beaches from here. One - is to take a boat north to the little town of Sapzurro. It's a hard one hour walk from Capurgana over a mountain in tropical heat. Or one can go to the dock and wait for a boat passage for a few dollars. There are also economical day trips that leave in the a.m. taking groups of tourists to Sapzurro and La Miel in Panama with lunch - choice of shark, tuna or snapper at one of the restaurants in Sapzurro.

Sapzurro is a clean little town with a few hundred residents.  It is much smaller than Capurgana but with a descent selection of  restaurants, hotels and hostels. Sapzurro would be one of those ideal, sleepy tropical towns in which to hide out, lay low and escape from it all. If you want to drop off the radar for a while - this is the place to do it.  On my next trip that is where I will be staying. Bring your passport as they check it at the dock as you get off the boat as this is the last town in Colombia before crossing over to Panama.

There are two sandy beaches. On the North beach is Hostel Playa di Oro which sits on a sandy beach on a calm water bay which is great for swimming. Off the south beach there are a dozen  40’-60‘ transient sailboats moor. Some of them are for rent and offer cruises to the San Blas islands in Panama - 4 days, sleep on the boat with food included for just $300 per person.

There’s a path over the mountain and down to a little beach called La Miel in Panama. It’s a steep climb up the hill and at the top there’s a a very laid back Panamanian border crossing.

It’s a 30 minute walk down to the sandy beach which has a little bay and a dock. There are huts along the beach selling cold beverages and meals. At the end of the dock there's a duty free.
Another day trip is to take a boat south to the beaches of Aguacate which has a small beach great for snorkeling and Playa Soledad – a white sand beach fringed with palm trees.

Another half day trip from Capurgana is to follow the footpath in back of town along the airstrip and up into the jungle for an hour leading to a nice little waterfall called El Cielo.

It can be a muddy trek with streams to cross. At El Cielo there are nice jungle water holes with cool water for bathing and cooling off. Perfect after the tropical trek. There's also a small restaurant serving patacones (a type of flatbread pizza spread with tomato and beans) and bottled drinks. Above the restaurant the path continues getting smaller turning into a muddy clay trek - follow it as far as possible then sit quiet to hear the howler monkeys roar. An unnerving sound at first – sounds like a lion coming at you. Welcome to the Darien pass.

The Darien Pass is 50 kilometers wide and 160 kilometer long - 16,671 square kilometers  with only 40,000 inhabitants living for the most part along the coast and rivers. It is one of the densest tropical jungles in the world - mountainous, steep, thick, hot and humid - one of the planets most untouched tropical jungles.

Trekking in the Darien is only advised with an experienced guide. They say those who venture off by themselves often get lost and die.  The hot, thick, wet jungle is unforgiving-  rife with malaria, venomous snakes, blood sucking vampire bats carrying rabies and tropical trees with shallow roots that come suddenly crashing down after a hard rain.

The indigenous communities living there don't like trekkers passing through Neither do the drug traffickers, kidnappers, bandits who hide in the forests making this a hostile environment where even armed hunters are afraid to go.

(For more on beaches in Colombia see the following articles:)

Colombia's Southern Caribbean Beaches: Arboletes to Tolu

Bahia Solano - Colombia's Pacific Coast

Santa Marta and the beaches north

The beaches of Tolu

La Guajira, Northern Colombia

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