Panama Rainforest Discovery Center

Local Parks

The Panama Rainforest Discovery Center is in the Pipeline Road, on the border of the Soberania National Park, just 40 min from Panama City.

Things to do in Panama

The Panama Rainforest Discovery Center is located on the Pipeline Road within the boundaries of Soberania National Park just 40 minutes from Panama City.

It is an ecotourism and environmental education project managed by the Eugene Eisenmann Avifauna Foundation, whose objective is the conservation of birds through environmental sustainability projects.

Visitors Center: An open infrastructure of 140m2 with 2 bathrooms, a terrace with feeders for hummingbirds. The center is reached by a road for cars of 600 meters from Pipeline Road, and there are parking for 7 cars and 1 coaster. Trails leave from this center. This center is self-sufficient in energy thanks to solar panels and a rainwater collection system for the use of the bathrooms. It has been built 70% with recycled materials from old buildings in the Canal Zone.

Observation tower of the canopy: At 200 meters from the center by a gravel path and a wooden footbridge is an observation tower 100 feet / 32 meters high. Climb up a spiral staircase of 174 steps, with rest and observation platforms every 25 feet / 8 meters until you reach the terrace that exceeds the canopy of the forest. The tower, made of steel painted green, is of original design by a Panamanian architect.

Trails of the forest: There is a circuit of 1.1 kilometers of trails in the forest. These trails are of mild to moderate difficulty, made of fine gravel, 1.20 meters wide on average and with resting areas in 2 places: on the shore of Lake Calamito, where a small wooden platform with benches allows the observation of aquatic life on the shore, and another wooden platform halfway along the longer path with benches.

Birdwatching and Monthly Events The Panama Rainforest Discovery Center is located on the famous Pipeline Road, one of the most recognized places in the world for bird watching. In fact, a record number was established here in a bird count organized in 1985 by the Audubon Society, identifying some 385 species of birds in 24 hours. Start your tour in our visitor center observing up to 14 species of hummingbirds that we have registered in our drinking fountains.

Continue on our trails observing understory birds such as jumping, anteaters and trogons, climb our 40 meter tower to see birds of the canopy as the famous blue cotinga, toucans, and visit the lake viewpoint to see waterfowl such as jacanas, divers, herons and eagles caracoleras. Apart from birds you can see other animals such as monkeys, crocodiles, coatis and butterflies. The Panama Rainforest Discovery Center offers a variety of monthly special events. These events help us raise money and raise awareness about the importance of birds and their habitats.

Trekking The Panama Rainforest Discovery Center has 1.2 kilometers of trails through the forest, conditioned for easy mobility with stone and wooden platforms. Our trails take you to the observation tower, to the Calamito Lake and to small wooden lookouts with benches to rest. Also, if you want to extend your walk, you can travel 2 kilometers from the entrance of Pipeline Road to our visitor center (2.2 km), or you can walk up to 4 additional kilometers of the public use road that Pipeline Road offers you.

Fried Fish with Patacones Every Sunday from 11:30 a.m until 3:30 p.m come and enjoy a delicious fried fish with patacones. Value $ 12.00

Research The scientific projects that have been carried out in the Panama Rainforest Discovery Center with funds from the Avifauna Foundation are:

Raptor count: the observation tower is one of the points of the Rapaces from Oceano to Oceano that are taken annually in Panama by the Audubon Society. Our guides and volunteers are from October 1 to November 20 daily from 7 a.m. at 5 p.m. registering hawks, buzzards and other raptors.
Monitoring of migratory birds (MOSI): in the Panama Rainforest Discovery Center, MOSI (Winter Survival Monitoring) monitoring is done with fog nets between November and March. This station belongs to a network of stations throughout Mesoamerica that studies the transit of birds that migrate from the United States to the south.
Meteorological stations and measurement of carbon capture with the Technological University of Panama
Meteorological stations located in different points of the forest and heights measure data such as temperature, humidity and amount of rain. In addition, the amount of carbon that the soil and the leaves of the trees capture and the oxygen they produce are regularly measured. This research is led by the Department of Hydrometeorology of the Technological University, its professors and students. Monitoring of birds with the University of Panama: the Vertebrate Museum of the School of Biology monitors weekly the birds resident in the forests of the Panama Rainforest Discovery Center and its surroundings.
Study on the state of conservation of the green macaw in Panama: there are records from the 70s of the existence of green macaws on Pipeline Road. Our scientists are studying the feasibility of a possible reintroduction, as well as studying the green macaws at Cerro Hoya and other places in Panama such as Darién and Bocas del Toro. Address: Pipeline Road, Soberania National Park, Gamboa, Ancón, Panama The Panama Rainforest Discovery Center is located 1.6 km from the entrance of Pipeline Road or Camino del Pipeline. You must reach the town of Gamboa at the end of the Gaillard road, and pass it following the signs of the Panama Rainforest Discovery Center.