One full day in Boquete: mountain views, cloud forest trails and three waterfalls waiting to be found.
Three Buses and No Room for Error
I was sad to leave Santa Catalina. Despite losing my phone to the ocean on my first evening, I had loved the quiet beaches, incredible marine life and undeveloped feel of the town. However, my three nights were over, and another part of Panama was waiting.
Next stop: Boquete.
Getting there would require three buses: Santa Catalina to Soná, Soná to David and finally David to Boquete. On paper, it sounded straightforward. In reality, every connection depended on the previous bus arriving on time—and I no longer had a phone to check schedules, follow my location or search for another option if something went wrong.
I still had my iPod Touch and laptop, but neither was particularly useful while standing beside a road without Wi-Fi. I had researched the route before leaving the hostel, saved what I needed and hoped the buses would line up.
At least I wasn’t trying to reach Boquete by a specific time. My only real deadline was arriving before it became too late to check into my hostel. Still, missing one connection could easily leave me stranded somewhere between Santa Catalina and the mountains.
The first part of the journey took me from Santa Catalina to Soná. From there, I transferred to another bus heading toward David, the main transportation hub for reaching Boquete.
When I arrived in David, I discovered I wasn’t the only backpacker attempting the same journey. I met another traveller who was also trying to reach Boquete, and it was reassuring to know that someone else was waiting for the same bus. Neither of us knew exactly how smoothly the final connection would work, but at least we could be confused together.
Fortunately, all that worrying was unnecessary.
The buses arrived, the connections worked and I reached Boquete without a single hiccup. After spending the journey imagining everything that could go wrong, the actual trip was surprisingly uneventful.
Once I arrived, I still had to walk roughly 20 minutes from where the bus dropped me to La Casa de Doña Cata Hostel. With my backpack on, I relied on the directions I had saved and made my way through town.
I had considered staying at Bambuda Castle, which looked far more unusual than an ordinary hostel. However, it was outside the centre, and with only two nights in Boquete, staying somewhere more convenient made sense. I wanted to spend my limited time exploring—not figuring out transportation every time I needed to go somewhere.
When I finally reached La Casa de Doña Cata, I checked in and dropped off my backpack. It was a quiet, comfortable place, although I wouldn’t spend much time there. I had only one full day in Boquete, and I already knew exactly how I wanted to use it.
First, though, I needed to find dinner, deal with my laundry and adjust to something I hadn’t experienced anywhere else in Panama: cold air.
The roadside entrance to the Lost Waterfalls Trail—the main reason I visited Boquete.
Two Nights in Panama’s Chilly Mountain Town
After settling into the hostel, I loaded my smaller backpack with as many dirty clothes as I could fit inside and headed back out into Boquete.
When you are travelling for months with only a backpack, finding somewhere to do laundry becomes part of the adventure. I only had two nights in town, so I needed a laundry service that could clean everything within 24 hours. Otherwise, I would either have to leave without my clothes or delay my journey to Lost and Found.
Neither option was particularly appealing.
If my memory is correct, I eventually found somewhere that could have everything washed and ready the following day. It didn’t cost very much, and I could collect it after returning from the waterfalls.
With my laundry problem solved, I continued exploring Boquete’s centre. I didn’t have a list of attractions to visit that evening or enough time for anything ambitious. I simply wanted to walk around, get a feel for the town, replace my phone if possible and find something to eat.
Boquete felt small, quiet and quaint, especially after the traffic and skyscrapers of Panama City. Beautiful green mountains surrounded the town, making it feel tucked away from the rest of the country. It was clearly a tourist destination, but it didn’t feel overwhelmingly busy or developed.
The biggest surprise was the temperature.
Until then, Panama had been hot. I had been wearing shorts, bathing suits and anything else that helped me survive the tropical heat. Boquete was completely different. Its location in Panama’s western highlands meant cooler mountain air, and I suddenly needed yoga pants and a thin sweater during the day.
Once the sun went down, even that wasn’t always enough. If I wasn’t moving around, I wanted a warmer sweater.
Apparently, Panama had been hiding sweater weather in the mountains.
While walking around town, I found a shop selling phones. For a moment, I considered replacing the one I had lost in Santa Catalina. Travelling without one was inconvenient, especially when I depended on buses, maps and last-minute information to move between unfamiliar places.
However, the phones were more expensive than I wanted to pay, and the shop wasn’t an official Apple retailer. I had no way of knowing whether the phone was genuine, properly unlocked or reliable. The last thing I needed was to spend a large amount of money on something that might create another problem.
I decided to wait until I returned to Panama City. I already knew that Lost and Found Jungle Hostel and Bocas del Toro probably wouldn’t have an Apple Store waiting for me, so I accepted that I would remain without a phone for a while longer.
At least I wasn’t entirely disconnected. My iPod Touch could take a few photos and connect to Wi-Fi, while my laptop allowed me to research routes, contact my family and continue making plans at the hostel. It wasn’t as convenient as carrying a phone, but it was enough to keep me moving.
After abandoning my brief attempt at phone shopping, I found somewhere to eat and returned to the hostel. I didn’t stay out particularly late. The temperature continued dropping, and I had a much bigger adventure planned for the following morning.
Boquete is known for its coffee farms, mountain scenery and outdoor activities, but I only had time for one major experience: The Lost Waterfalls Trail, a hike through the cloud forest leading to three different waterfalls.
My goal was simple: find all three.
The fact that I planned to walk from my hostel to the trail entrance, hike alone for several hours, walk back and collect my freshly cleaned laundry was apparently a problem for future me.
Boquete’s green mountain setting felt completely different from the tropical coast I had left behind.
Walking into the Cloud Forest
The following morning, I dressed for Boquete’s cooler weather, packed what I needed for the day and left the hostel on foot.
Most visitors reach the Lost Waterfalls trailhead by taxi or local bus. I decided to walk.
The weather was comfortable, and I was ready for an adventure. Walking would also give me more time to see the mountain scenery surrounding the town. I relied on the route I had researched using my laptop and hoped the directions would remain straightforward.
As I moved farther from the centre of Boquete, the town gradually gave way to quieter roads, green mountains and thick vegetation. It felt completely different from the beaches I had left behind in Santa Catalina. Instead of palm trees, sand and humid coastal heat, I was heading toward a cool cloud forest hidden among the mountains.
Eventually, I reached the entrance to The Lost Waterfalls Trail, also known as Las Tres Cascadas. The route leads through the forest to three waterfalls, each reached by a short branch from the main trail.
Before the actual hike could begin, I had to cross a suspension bridge over the river. That immediately made the experience feel like a proper adventure. This wasn’t a carefully polished walkway with wooden platforms leading neatly through the forest. Beyond the bridge, the route became a genuine dirt trail surrounded by dense vegetation.
That was exactly what I wanted.
The path was natural and uneven, but I remember finding the hike relatively easy. There were places where I had to pay attention to my footing, but it never felt beyond my ability. I had been travelling through Central America for months by then and had completed far more difficult hikes along the way.
I also had much of the trail entirely to myself.
Occasionally, hiking alone makes me more aware of every strange sound in the trees. On this trail, however, the solitude felt peaceful. I wasn’t trying to match anyone else’s pace or being hurried toward the next waterfall. I could stop whenever I wanted, look at the plants around me and take the occasional photo with my iPod Touch.
I didn’t take nearly as many pictures as I normally would have. Losing almost all the photos stored on my phone had taken some of the excitement out of documenting everything. Still, I captured enough to prove that the waterfalls existed and that I had successfully found them.
The cloud forest was lush, green and quiet, with the sound of water becoming louder as I moved deeper along the trail. Even before reaching the waterfalls, the walk itself was worth the effort.
Then I reached the first waterfall of the day.
One waterfall found. Two more to go.
Crossing this suspension bridge marked the beginning of my Lost Waterfalls adventure.
Finding All Three Lost Waterfalls
The first waterfall was the most accessible of the three I visited. I could leave the main trail and get close enough to feel as though I had truly reached it—not simply viewed it from somewhere in the distance.
I took my time there, enjoying the sound of the water and the fact that I had the area mostly to myself. There was no reason to rush. I had dedicated the day to the hike, and I planned to see all three waterfalls no matter how long it took.
I didn’t go swimming. The mountain air was already cool enough while I was wearing yoga pants and a sweater, so voluntarily getting into cold water wasn’t particularly appealing. I was happy to remain dry and admire the waterfall from land.
After exploring the first one, I returned to the main trail and continued through the forest in search of the second.
This waterfall offered a completely different experience. The trail brought me higher up, and a barrier prevented visitors from getting too close. Instead of walking toward the bottom of the falls, I had to view them from the designated area.
The barrier made sense. Waterfalls are beautiful, but wet rocks, steep drops and solo hikers aren’t always the best combination. I wasn’t about to climb past something designed to keep me safe.
Two waterfalls found.
The final waterfall was smaller, but I could once again get reasonably close to it. It may not have been the largest or most dramatic of the three, but reaching it completed the challenge I had set for myself that morning.
I had successfully found all three Lost Waterfalls.
The trail itself wasn’t especially difficult from what I remember, but I spent around four or five hours on the entire outing. Part of that time came from walking between the hostel and trailhead, while the rest came from moving at my usual pace. I stop often, look at everything and take far longer than the estimated hiking time whenever I have somewhere beautiful to explore.
That is the advantage of hiking alone: nobody is waiting for me to finish taking pictures, wondering why I’ve stopped again or insisting that we need to move faster.
Eventually, I retraced my route through the cloud forest, followed the dirt trail back toward the entrance and crossed the suspension bridge again.
By the time I returned to Boquete, I was tired, hungry and pleased that I had accomplished the main goal of my short visit. I collected my freshly cleaned clothes, then turned my attention to the final place on my list.
After chasing waterfalls for hours, I had earned a flight of locally brewed beer.
Mission accomplished: three waterfalls found—and not another hiker in sight.
A Well-Earned Flight of Beer
I made my way to Boquete Brewing Company. Hiking had been the main reason I visited Boquete, but sampling locally brewed beer was firmly in second place.
The brewery had a relaxed atmosphere and was somewhere between busy and quiet when I arrived. There were enough people around to give the place some energy, but it wasn’t overcrowded. I found a place outside and ordered a tasting flight so I could try several drinks rather than committing to only one.
My flight included a blonde beer, a seltzer, SMASH and a sour that I believe was called Hysteria. Together, they gave me a good sample of what the brewery offered.
I enjoyed all four and never managed to choose a favourite.
That is one of the reasons I like ordering beer flights. I can try several options without spending the entire evening drinking full glasses, and there is usually at least one unexpected beer I wouldn’t have selected on its own. In this case, however, none of them clearly won.
After spending hours walking and hiking, I also needed food. The brewery itself didn’t serve meals, but there was a food truck outside. If my memory is correct, I ordered a burger—not necessarily what I had been hoping to eat, but it was what the truck was serving, and I was hungry enough not to be difficult.
A burger and four small beers after chasing waterfalls all day sounded perfectly reasonable.
I sat outside, ate and slowly worked my way through the flight. It was a quiet way to finish my only full day in Boquete. I hadn’t joined a tour, met a group of travellers or packed several attractions into the day. I had walked into the mountains alone, found three waterfalls and rewarded myself with local beer.
That was enough for me.
As the sun disappeared, the temperature dropped with it. Sitting outside was comfortable while there was still daylight, but once darkness arrived, Boquete’s mountain air became noticeably colder. Eventually, the cold convinced me it was time to return to the hostel.
I had completed everything I had come to Boquete to do, but there wasn’t much time to rest. The following morning, I would leave town and begin making my way toward one of the most unusual accommodations on my Panama route.
Somewhere between Boquete and Bocas del Toro, hidden in the cloud forest beside the highway, was Lost and Found Jungle Hostel.
Of course, reaching a hostel hidden in the jungle was unlikely to be completely straightforward.
Two nights in Boquete: a mountain-town, three waterfalls, a flight of local beer and then back on the road.
