Gorgona Island: curiosities of a Colombian natural paradise that functioned as a prison

Of volcanic origin, surrounded by mountains and a whale refuge, Gorgona Island is a natural jewel that emerged from the remains of a prison that instilled terror in Colombia.

The country’s largest island in the Pacific, measuring 44 square kilometers, It was famous for the prison it housed for two decades.

But today it is a natural park made up of two islands -Gorgona and Gorgonilla- of black gravel, colorful reefs, thick jungle and exuberant fauna with temperatures around (30 ° C).

Here are some facts and curiosities about the place:

The conquest

The Spanish landed in 1526 and named it San Felipe. Francisco Pizarro, the conqueror of the Inca empire, gave it the name of Gorgona, the dangerous Medusa from Greek mythology.

The island was first a refuge for pirates before Simón Bolívar gave it to an Englishman who participated in the independence wars in the 19th century. The Colombian State expropriated it from private parties to build a high security penitentiary.

Gorgona is part of a migratory corridor for marine fauna and birds that make up the Galapagos (Ecuador), Malpelo (Colombia), Coiba (Panama) and Cocos (Costa Rica).

Sinister prison

The most dangerous criminals in the country were held in Gorgona and subjected to torture. In 1984 it was closed under pressure from human rights defenders and environmentalists who wanted to protect this piece of unspoiled nature.

Gorgona is on the “green list” of the International Union for Conservation of Nature for its sustainability model.

A few dozen people live on the island throughout the year: park officials, employees of the only hotel, a diving instructor and military.

The island faces several threats: among them “the coastal erosion of some beaches; the questions about the warming of the waters; and rising sea levels, in which case the island would obviously be very vulnerable ”, says biologist Christian Díaz.

Although not visible at first glance, “contamination by microplastics is real,” he adds. Alcohol and single-use plastics are banned, but beaches suffer from the trash washed up in the sea.

Biodiversity

Gorgona became a national park the same year it disappeared from prison. Its protected area covers almost 62,000 hectares. 97% are marine areas of special care, explains one of the park employees.

There are 500 varieties of terrestrial plants -among them many orchids-; 380 fish, 19 sharks, 41 reptiles (18 snakes), 167 birds (brown boobies, pelicans and frigates), about 15 mammals (including sloths and capuchin monkeys). There are also 14 types of bats and the blue anole, an endemic and unique lizard in the world.

Humpback whales frolic a few meters from the shore in an area of ​​12 km where, in theory, fishing and boating are prohibited. Sea turtles, tuna, barracuda, hammerhead sharks, dolphins, jacks, rays, groupers and moray eels swim freely.

“Gorgona has two ecosystems”, summarizes the director of the park, Santiago Felipe Duarte: “the humid tropical forest, of which there is still much to study, and its exceptional marine ecosystem with the best preserved coral reefs in the eastern Colombian Pacific”.

The snakes that inspired its name scurry through the undergrowth. The spearhead viper, coral snake, and sea snake (there is no antidote for their venom) are the most dangerous.

Although the prison was almost engulfed by vegetation, “it continues to attract visitors”, although its relevance is much less than the “exceptional biodiversity” that it brings together, Duarte emphasizes.

Visited by only about 3,000 tourists a year, the park is ideal for whale watching, diving among the diversity of fish and appreciating the coral reefs. “The whales learn to sing here. Listening to them underwater is lovely, ”says the director.

Drug trafficking

The public force maintains a small contingent in Gorgona. In 2014 the island was the target of a spectacular incursion by the extinct FARC guerrilla, which caused the park to close for two years.

Gorgona is located in a drug trafficking corridor to the north. “Sometimes at night you can hear the engines of the smugglers on the high seas,” confesses an employee.

But “compared to other parks in the country, the island is a little haven of tranquility”Says the director.

At the top of the mountain, a radar against drug trafficking is being built. “We just hope that Gorgona continues to be a special place where people come to find themselves, to get to know each other. A place for spiritual renewal ”, notes the director. (I)