Last updated on .
Uramba Bahía Málaga National Park (Parque Nacional Natural Uramba Bahía Málaga) is a popular ecotourism destination located on the Pacific coast of Colombia.
Introduction to Uramba Bahía Málaga National Park
Uramba Bahía Málaga National Park was created in 2010 as Colombia’s 56th national park. It’s located around Málaga Bay and covers 471 square kilometers (182 square miles). It consists of pristine tropical forests, mangroves, beaches, and protected waters in the ocean for migrating humpback whales.
The park encompasses the communities of Juanchaco and Ladrilleros, where it’s possible to organize tours in the park. This includes whale watching, kayaking and canoeing through mangroves and estuaries, birdwatching, ecological walks, and visiting swimming holes and waterfalls. Check the official website for more info.
Whale Watching at Uramba Bahía Málaga National Park
Between the months of June and October, people head to Colombia’s Pacific coast to get a glimpse of the humpback whale. After a long migration, the whales raise their calves in the area, making whale watching tours a popular activity. The best place to do this is in the protected waters of Uramba Bahía Málaga National Park.
Reasonably priced tours usually run between 9am and noon and can be booked directly with guides or through your accommodation. Our tour started at Reserva Aguamarina in Ladrilleros, where we signed up and paid for the tour. There were about 50 people in total and we were all taken to Juanchaco with a tractor.
In Juanchaco, we walked through the village to a building just in front of the pier. The guides gave a short lecture about the whales and the national park. We were told that the government only allows boats to be near the whales for 30 minutes at a time and at a distance of 200 meters.
After the lecture, we walked down the pier to board the boats. The guides called everyone out by room number to keep everything organized. The entire group ended up filling two boats.
The boats headed out onto the Pacific Ocean past a few uninhabited islands. They stopped after about a half hour and turned the engines off. A few smaller boats joined us and we were able to see about five different adults and calves.
The whales weren’t breaching, but it was still an incredible experience to get so close to these magnificent creatures.
Mangrove Tour
One of the popular tours of Uramba Bahía Málaga National Park takes you to the mangroves and natural swimming pools. They typically run in the afternoon and can be booked directly with guides or through your accommodation. Our guide, Armando, met us at our hotel in Ladrilleros and walked us down to a boat launch near the mangroves. Some boats have a motor while other guides use oars. Armando told us that with a motor, we would be able to travel further into the mangroves and reach the better pools.
We traveled quite a way into the mangroves through dense vegetation on both sides. We passed a few small waterfalls along the way. Armando pointed out some interesting features as well.
Natural Swimming Pool
We stopped at a natural swimming pool, Piscina Sardineras, where there were several people enjoying a dip in the crystal clear waters. We had about an hour to enjoy the area and swam upstream to a few more secluded pools. In those pools, we sat in the water with small tropical fish that you would normally see in an aquarium and also spotted a few shrimp. It was refreshing and absolutely enjoyable.
Armando called us back to the boat and we started our return to Ladrilleros. A few minutes into the ride, he shut off the motor to let everyone listen to the sounds of nature. We were able to spot a few birds and even a coral snake swimming in the water.
Wounaan Community
When we returned to the docks, we walked through a tiny village where the indigenous Wounaan people live. Their traditional homes are on stilts to protect from flooding. Some members of the community make a living by selling crafts and hats in Ladrilleros.
1 Comment
The humpbacks migrate through HI, though our season is the opposite of Colombia’s (November through March). So amazing to see their final destination after their travels!