UPDATE Ocober, 2008:
Lost & Found Lodge
Eco- Resort
have a new website-- lostandfoundlodge dot com
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mARCH 17, 2007
As we left Bastimentos, Adrienne asked "Where are you going next?" our answer was that we were not sure....maybe Volcan, Boquete, Cerro Punto, who knows or try to find this hostel we have heard about called Lost and Found. So off we went. The water taxi rides were actually quite pleasant; it seems that we have been blessed with the safe and courteous drivers--both on land and water. Have heard some wild tales about water taxis that deliberately got people wet, etc.
Caught the bus at Almirante and off we went. We had been riding for about an hour, past the Fortuna Dam and we knew Lost and Found was somewhere in the vicinity. All of a sudden we saw the sign on the side of the road "lost and found". Robert jumps up and hollers for the driver to stop. Not only did the driver think we might be mad but so did most of the passengers because we were out in the middle of nowhere!!!!! Let us and our bags off. There was a house at the place where we stopped and Robert called out and two men appeared and Robert talked to them about where the Lost and Found was. They indicated it was up the hill. We could see what looked like a nice road up the mountain. They had the makings of a restuarant but they were not open. Robert took off up the mountain but before he did they brought us each a fresh lemonade.............very nice.
I stayed with the bags and Robert set off up the mountain. While he was off on his exploration, the gentleman brought us out two bananas. After about an hour Robert came down and said he had found Lost and Found. There was a worker who said Andrew (one of the owners) was to be back from David at 4:00 p.m. So we settled down to wait for Andrew to arrive and head on up. Robert on his exploratory run saw a place that the Smithsonian is renting out that is very nice and hangs out over the hill.
4:00 came and went and still no Andrew. At about 5:00 we decided to head on up because we were going to need help getting our packs up the hill. As usual we were carrying more than what could be comfortably carried on our backs. So off up the hill we went. The road only goes for about 100 yds then it becomes a footpath. Tito one of the workers at the bottom of the hill carried my pack; Robert carried his up to the footpath and then carried our other stuff.
After we got to the top, Gabriel the worker went down and got Robert's bag and told us that Andrew would not be there until about 5:30. What about Lost and Found? Robert had been doing research on the Internet and first read about it there. When we got to Boquete there was an advertisement for Lost and Found and then we met Patrick the other owner of the place. It still has not offically opened but they are open to people coming up there (if of course you can find the place). We had also visited with a guy that had managed to find it but not very easily. So we were quite thankful to find it with as little trouble as we had.
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As we approached, there were several signs....and then..............there it was. It is spread out over an area with coffee growing in one area, wild foliage, trees, stone paths and so on. There is a shower block, a toilet block and then the main building. The main building has two large open areas and then two smaller areas that are kind of lookout areas. The place is surrounded up close by trees except for the viewing area out toward the Volcano Baru. That first night we watched an incredible sunset, cloud formations etc. The kitchen is out in the open and so you have this wonderful view all around as you cook! We waited until about 6:30 still no Andrew so we fixed our dinner and of course about that time here comes a flashlight bouncing down the trail. It was Andrew and Stephany, his Panamanian wife. They were happy to see us; Gabriel had told them someone was waiting and they didn't know who and hoped it was not vagabonds!!! We, too, were glad to see them because we had been looking around to see where we could possibly sleep if no one showed up!
Rather than a day to day description of our ten wonderful days we spent here, I will hit some of the highlights and give some of the details of this place that is highly recommended!
Andrew gave us a choice of camping in a tent or staying in the dorm. The wind was blowing and so we opted for the dorm room. Welcome Alice in Wonderland! The bunks are stacked three tall and the top bunk is surely 9 foot off the floor! The nice thing is that they are all double bed size bunks, so we were quite comfortable. There is the kitchen area and they have closed in a room because of the wind and rain that come during the rainy season and also (but not quite as strong) in the dry season. In there they have at present a foosball machine, dvd player with about 200 movies, microwave, all for your entertainment.
The showers and toilets, four each, are set away from the main buildings. They have tried to be as environmental in their creation of this as possible. The setting is beautiful. In the area where they have coffee growing, Patrick is creating a labrinth/maze of native flowers among the coffee. Sounds like a great idea to me. Andrew said he tried to work his way through it and wasn't easy. Because the trees are so close to the main buildings; bird watching is a dream. We would get up every morning and sit and drink coffee and watch birds. Although we did not see birds non-stop, everyday had something new or special to see.
Gabriel is a Panamanian who works construction and maintenace for Lost and Found, and one day while visiting with him in our broken Spanish he professed a love for birds and animals and nature. He and Andrew, one of the owners, began alerting us when birds were moving close by, and this turned out to be a great treat. Gabriel alerted us to the hawk migration one day, with literally hundreds of raptors migrating to El Norte! Andrew pointed out Trogons right by the main building to us one day, really beautiful birds.
We suggested to Andrew that birders would like his place and that he should consider offering tours with Gavriel as the guide. Andrew tooks us on a couple of day trips to areas that he might take people on such tours, and we were rewarded. The first day trip to Kilometer 67, the area past the Fortuna Dam into Bocas Del Toro province about an hour or so from the Lost and Found, we paid for Gabriel to come along, and he located white-faced capucin monkeys, toucans, and others that we would not have seen on our own.
The next trip was to the village of Fortuna downstream of the dam but up on the mountains, what a sight! Then on to Bosque Protector de Palo Seco, with an amazing drive along the cordillera ridge with even more amazing plant life and some birds...
The Lost and Found property is adjacent to the Fortuna Forest Preserve, and we took one of their steep adventure trails up but did not go down to the river because we did not want to miss lunch. They also have a trail to a mirador, and one can also explore the Lost Canyon of the Rio Seco, a wet weather creek bed up to a box canyon on the property.
We suggested to Andrew that he and Patrick, the other Canadian owner, should develop a Canopy Tour Trail with platforms around this amazing Lost World looking canyon behind the shower block....
Clues to finding the Lost and Found
Treat it as treasure hunt, and visual treasure is what you shall surely find. Pirates of the caribean would have loved the cool weather at this oasis in the sky, and so, probably, will you if you can find it.
At this writing, they are pre-grand opening and accepting guests who want to stay in the dorm or camp. and who want to cook their own food. You can purchase meals at the resturant in the village but the hike would be quite a long one. You can buy nice veggies and fruits at the little veggie stand, and some can goods, coffee, bread etc at the little tienda.
Others who want Lost and Found to provide meals or a private room should probably call first.
By bus, which at this writing is probably the best since you won't have to worry about parking, take any bus from David to Chainguinola or vice versa. After about an hour on the road you will pass a sign for La Suiza at km 40. Finca La Suiza came highly recommended to us but was above our budget. You will see a sign for the Reserva Forestal de Fortuna or some such, and you will come to a traffic checkpoint. Past that are a restuarant, fruit and vegetable stand, and small convenience store on the left. This area is called Valle de la Mina or Minas. Next on the right will be a house and a little food stand. Take the drive up just before this. It has concrete ribbons up a winding road that turns accross a concrete bridge at top. Don't turn, take the steep drive on up the hill to the end. It will turn into a foot path with little clues such as yellow painted rocks and arrows. Nearer the top will be actual Lost and Found signs. This is a 30 to 45 minute walk if you take your time and huff and puff
A shorter, steeper route is by the Lost and Found sign, which was lying down when we were there. On the road was painted 42k+276 in yellow. We suggested to Andrew that he market to Geocaching folks. Eventually he will probably have the gps coordinates on his website. But we found it without benefit of gps, and you probably can too.
Lost and Found makes a great stopover on the trip between Bocas and David. Try to find it and stay there....you'll be glad you did! And god knows that the climate is much more pleasant and less humid than Bocas, cooler than David, and less crowded that Boquete or Bocas. This is for people who want to get away from it all who enjoy hiking and nature. But on those days when the weather is not conducive because it is too cold, windy, or rainy, Lost and Found has a sweet day room that includes lots of dvd movies, music, books, and even a foozball table!
The views at night take in the amazing stars and the glittering lights of Caldera and David in the distance. And on clear days, you will see the mighty Volcan Baru in all its glory! While we were there, the sunsets were world class and the baharenque was fascinating to watch as it boiled up and over into our view and cuddled the cloud forest.
Take a vacation from your vacation and hang out for a day or two, or -- ten, as was the case with us!
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