All photos this page: ©2007 Scott Doggett, Special to WhozHereNow.com

Occupying 57 acres of verdant rainforest stretching north from the edge of Bahía Honda to one of the highest points on sprawling Isla Bastimentos, La Loma Jungle Lodge and Butterfly Farm is a labor of love realized by an amiable young couple, Henry and Margaret, who passed on the comforts and security of an ordinary life in their native lands to create something special in a remote slice of Panamanian wilderness.

After five years of backbreaking work in dense red mangrove and rainforest abutting national parkland, they realized their dream of creating a butteryfly farm and an eco-friendly jungle lodge. Margaret, who hails from Britain, and Henry, a native of Peru, opened La Loma in 2006 and soon after began receiving repeat guests, which says a lot about the place Henry and Margaret now call home.

La Loma is accessible only by boat, a 15-minute ride or so from Bocas Town. From the dock one passes through mangrove forest that is home to caimans before entering the rainforest, groves of cacao, banana and coconut, as well as a lovely garden containing dozens of fascinating plants Henry loves to describe. His passion for La Loma is contagious, but its natural features need no sales pitch.

Amid jungle that attracts the most beautiful birds and curious creatures is a set of cascades over boulders so enormous that smooth pits in them caused by thousands of years of erosion have created pools the size of spas.

There’s a treehouse from which to bird watch, and lush, nectar-rich gardens that attract hundreds of butterflies. Indeed, La Loma breeds butterflies for live displays at butterfly pavilions and natural history museums in Europe and the USA, and Henry and Margaret clearly enjoy educating guests about the fascinating life cycle of the insects (visit butterfly@thejunglelodge.com for details).

It is this personal treatment that makes La Loma so special. During your stay and while dining with them, you feel as if you’ve just made some new and interesting friends, and perhaps you have.

The couple offers only three bungalows to guests to keep the visits intimate. Each is a unique retreat with open sides and thatch roof and an inviting bed nestled beneath a mosquito net. There’s no TV or air-conditioner to distract from the sounds and views of the rainforest.

Designed for two, each bungalow has a private bathroom with hot-water shower and furniture crafted from local materials. As the couple says on their website, you need to be fairly fit to stay at La Loma, as two of the bungalows are reached by a moderately steep five-minute climb.

Stays at La Loma include breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner, most prepared from fruit and vegetables grown organically on the premises and fish caught nearby. Transportation from Bocastown, some diversions, and a juice of the day are included in the nightly fee of $80 per person double occupancy, plus 10% tax. There’s a two-night minimum.

Jungle tours with local Ngobe Indian guides, snorkeling and diving, guided hikes deep inside the adjacent national park, trips to deserted beaches, and many other excursions, can be arranged.
Location

Southern shore, facing Isla Solarte (a.k.a. Cayo Nancy)

Isla Bastimentos

Bocas del Toro

Panama