El Cope: National Park, Hiking Trails and Waterfalls

The Parque Nacional General de División Omar Torrijos Herrera, located north of El Cope, defines the destination’s natural appeal. The park covers 25,275 hectares of primary forest and is part of Panama’s National System of Protected Areas. Cerro Peña Blanca and Cerro Marta lie within its boundaries. This makes it easy to distinguish the town from the park when planning your trip: the national park is north of El Cope, and its named peaks are part of this protected area. If you are looking for a holiday rental in El Cope, the park can be a focus of your trip, for example if you plan to hike in the park or enjoy other nature activities in the area.

Hiking Trails and Peaks

The park’s trail network includes Los Helechos, Sendero Marta, Las Ranas and Cuerpo de Paz. One trail leads to the summit of Cerro Marta, which is 1,022 metres high. This gives you several specific points of reference: the trail network has four named routes, and Cerro Marta offers a clearly identified summit destination with an elevation. If hiking is part of your holiday plans, you can use these names as a starting point when choosing the routes you would like to take. They help you plan around specific trails rather than a general idea of the national park.

Hiking, Birdwatching and Waterfalls

The El Cope and Barrigón area also offers several specific activities: visitors can hike, enjoy ecotourism and go birdwatching. On “La ruta de las cascadas,” they can hike to waterfalls such as El Tulí, El Tigrero and Las Yayas. This lets you plan your day around what interests you most: walking trails, birdwatching or waterfalls. If you are travelling with family, you can decide together which of these activities matters most for your next outing.

Cascada El Tigrero and Guided Hikes

One waterfall with a particularly precise location is Cascada El Tigrero, also known as Chorro El Tigrero. It is in the community of Santa Marta, in the El Cope area and within Parque Nacional Omar Torrijos in Coclé Province. Access is via a hiking trail with rocky sections leading to the waterfalls. Take these trail conditions into account when planning, and check the latest conditions before visiting.

In September 2022, the Comité Comunitario de Desarrollo Sostenible Santa Marta offered guided hikes to waterfalls and nearby mountain peaks, including Cerro Escobal, according to a report. If you are planning to join a guided hike, contact the Comité before your visit to ask about the latest arrangements.

Getting There and Choosing a Holiday Rental

From Panama City, a road leads from the Interamericana at the entrance to La Candelaria towards El Cope. The described route to the national park then continues north on an unpaved road to the community of Barrigón. The road towards El Cope and the onward journey to the national park are therefore separate points of reference for planning your trip.

When choosing a holiday rental in El Cope, it is worth deciding on the focus of your trip first: are you most interested in the hiking trails in the national park to the north, or are you mainly planning waterfall outings and perhaps a guided tour? Then compare the location of a specific property with the places you actually want to visit.

Discover more destinations: Rio Hato, Antón, Anton Valley, Coclé, Penonomé, Chiguirí Arriba, Membrillo, El Roble

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