Across the Panamanian Highlands to the Caribbean Coast

Panamanian Highlands

View of the Caribbean from the mountains

Yesterday we drove from Boquete to the Caribbean Coast, across the beautiful, mountainous Panamanian Highlands, winding around the upper reaches of steep valleys and along tangled ridges.  The rain forest changes noticeably when you cross the Continental Divide from Pacific to Caribbean drainages, with wetter, denser foliage.  The weather changed from sun and scattered clouds to fog, rain and wind once we started down the Caribbean side of the mountains.

We drove to a small cove on the coast, down a steep, rutted 4 wheel drive road to a small dock run by an ex-patriot couple from Florida.  They live surrounded by incredibly varied and colorful flowers and birds, set at the base of a forested mountain, and right on the clear, turquoise Caribbean.  Gorgeous, but just a little isolated.  So, they're trying to sell their lovely haven in order to move closer to their children and grandchildren.

Our destination was Tranquilo Bay, a peaceful and beautiful eco-lodge, set on 200 acres just
above the sea, on a mangrove island about 30 minutes by boat off the coast of Panama.  The nearest town is Bocas del Toro, also about 30 minutes away by boat, and a haven for divers, sun-seekers and backpackers.

The owners of Tranquilo Bay built the resort literally from the ground up, starting with clearing the thick vegetation, building a boat dock and concrete ramp across the mangrove swamp, putting in a rain water collection system, electricity, communication tower, a lodge and 6 spacious cabanas.  They  did all the initial work themselves before hiring local villagers to work alongside them.  The construction took 5 years and the result is as peaceful and lovely a retreat as one could imagine, overlooking the Caribbean, set amidst flowering plants and deep forest.

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