Caldera Hot Springs: A Natural *Spa* in Caldera, Panama

Carrie and I went to Caldera yesterday.
Caldera is a little town (like maybe 500 people) about 30 minutes (by car) away from Boquete.
We actually had talked about going to the Caldera hot springs before coming to Boquete, and both of us thought it really sounded like a fun thing to do.
But taking a taxi there would be expensive. There was also an option to go to the Caldera hot springs through a language school we were looking at, but that trip would have cost $35/person, which seemed a little pricey to go sit in some naturally hot water.
But every Tuesday, here in Boquete, there’s a meeting where the local gringos get together and learn about what’s going on, what’s available, and it’s kind of a swap meet as well (with books, crafts, and food for sale).
Caveat: On the way out the door yesterday I noticed that the carpenter ants were carrying pieces of something pink. (So far, they’ve been carrying only green – pieces of leaves.)
The night before, we had beautiful hibiscus flowers outside our door.
This morning, there is one sole survivor.

In less than 12 hours, the colony of ants made minced meat out of about 10 huge hibiscus flowers.


Anyway, back to the gringos meeting in Boquete…

At the meeting, we ran into Chris, who has been teaching a stained glass class at the place where the Casita is.
Chris actually lives in Caldera, and asked us if we had been to the hot springs yet.
We said we wanted to go, but hadn’t yet figured it out as far as getting to and from Caldera.
Chris then put together a plan to take us back to Caldera, where he let us borrow his car to go to the hot springs, grab lunch, and see the beautiful 20 hectare (50 acre) property he designed at Rancho de Caldera.
(I would have pictures of Rancho de Caldera for you (truly beautiful), but the pouring rain kept us from even exiting the vehicle that Chris graciously let us borrow for the afternoon.)
The hot springs were really neat, and VERY natural.
It cost us $2/person, and there were a 4-5 natural pools you could wade into… none of them more than about 2