When I started writing this blog more than four years ago, I was writing for my children, they never read it. Then I started writing for myself, my life, my experiences in the this great adventure called life. Over time more and more people started reading this blog. People in Boquete already know about what is here, but appreciate some news and occasionally a different perspective. Recently I can see a lot of new people visiting this resource, people who are considering a relocation to Panama and more potential tourists looking for information.
I stopped writing about restaurants, I stopped writing about resorts, I stopped travel logs of travels around Panama. In doing that I omitted what many readers want, some ideas for visiting, places to stay, places to eat. The silent majority of readers, according to Google are not in Panama but are in North America. Starting with this post on Rio Encantado in Caldera I am going to start sharing information about hotels, resorts, restaurants and regional travels again.
I live in Boquete which means I don’t usually spend a night in a resort in the area. Still I stumbled across an ad for Rio Encantado and decided to contact Frank, the owner, and ask if I could visit and write about his rather low key nature preserve with a few cabins. I wrote that sentence with careful consideration, because Frank has one hundred hectares straddling the Caldera River with only four cabins and one guest house. Although the cabins are well appointed and complete, the real feature is the wilderness.
Rio Encantado is not for the visitor who wants to be in the middle of an urban or even suburban setting, it is comfortable wilderness. This is the place for a quit retreat, a swim in the river, a walk in the tropical forest. The setting was being cleared for pasture when Frank purchased it, he reversed the process, reforesting, reinvigorating the native environment. Rio Encantado is a real nature preserve in the diminishing wilderness of Chiriqui.
Do not consider Rio Encantado for a day, consider a week, the rates are a reasonable $60 a day. You will have your own kitchen, your privacy and the ability to commune with nature. If you wish Frank does have staff that can prepare elegant meals. If you prefer, you can do it all yourself.
I did not spend a night at the resort, I did walk along the river and experience the beauty. It is very different from Jaramillo, and only thirty minutes away. Rio Encantado has a great party facility near the river and I might in the future consider renting it for an event, the location is that unique. It is that much of a trip back in time to a place only touched by man, not totally terraformed. Beautiful, comfortable but immersed in nature not concrete.
If you are interested in learning how to scuba dive, Rio Encantado offers lessons in the pool. A better place to start than the river 
For more information on the facility and availability check trip advisor
