Bahia Solano is the first stop on the Colombian Pacific for most couples who fly in from Medellin. The town itself is small, but El Almejal reserve fifteen minutes to the north has the beach and the forest that make this coast worth the journey. I have returned to El Almejal more than any other single location on the Pacific coast, and every time the Mecana River crossing at low tide delivers something I cannot replicate anywhere else.
El Almejal and the Mecana Crossing
The Mecana River runs through the reserve before crossing the beach and entering the Pacific. At low tide the crossing is knee-deep at most, and I position the couple mid-crossing with the open water ahead and the forest behind. The tidal timing changes daily, so I check the tables a week in advance and plan session timing accordingly. El Almejal is a private reserve, which means no tour groups walk through during the session. Every time I have shot here the beach has been ours for the full morning.
Whale Season at Bahia Solano
Between late June and October, humpback whales migrate along the Colombian Pacific to breed and calve. Bahia Solano sits on one of the densest migration corridors in the eastern Pacific, and local panga operators know where to find the pods. I have photographed couples on the beach in Bahia Solano while humpbacks surfaced two hundred metres offshore. Including a whale-watching morning in a Bahia Solano elopement itinerary is something I recommend to every couple who visits during the season. Nothing I have shot anywhere else compares to it.
Destination Wedding Photographer
Vancouver · Medellín · Worldwide
