How's the ecotourism in and around El Valle de Anton, Panama?

The ecotourism around El Valle de Anton is getting better. It now has a new road that will connect to Penonome, which saves about 45 minutes of having to go back down the hill and around. That new road really cuts the time in half. If you are heading west and you have to go north to El Valle and back south to continue going west, it is an extra hour and a half to Penonome but you can now go up over the hill, down on the other side of that old volcano, and end up in Penonome. The road...

The ecotourism around El Valle de Anton is getting better. It now has a new road that will connect to Penonome, which saves about 45 minutes of having to go back down the hill and around. That new road really cuts the time in half. If you are heading west and you have to go north to El Valle and back south to continue going west, it is an extra hour and a half to Penonome but you can now go up over the hill, down on the other side of that old volcano, and end up in Penonome. The road opened just a couple of months ago. I think that road will also help add more visitors or tourists to El Valle because you do not have to go up and back down the same road. You can now drive up that new road from the feet of India Dormida to the viewpoints on the other side.

 

India Dormida is my favorite hike in Panama! India Dormida (photo above) or the sleeping Indian is a named coined from one of those fairytales about the mountains. Any mountain that looks like something has a tale about it and this mountain looks like an Indian laying on her back sleeping. The tale is about an Indian woman who wanted to marry a Spaniard but the Indian chief disagreed so the laid down to sleep until the chief changes his mind. The tale happened a million years ago and up to now, she is still sleeping.

 

You can go to the viewpoints (places to stop and take in the views) in order to understand El Valle being The Valley. El Valle is the second largest inhabited volcanic crater in the Western Hemisphere and to see that, you need to get out and look into it in order to get the idea that it is a volcanic crater. The first viewpoint that was created is good. You will see an amazing view of the mountains from there but it does not really give you a good view of El Valle being a crater. The second viewpoint, which is the India Dormida viewpoint, allows you to see the circle of mountains that make up The Valley. They made it nicer to get a good view down into El Valle.

 

As far as ecotourism goes, there is pretty good bird watching and hiking in El Valle. The road to the zoo where you can see the golden frog is now paved so it makes access easier. You can also go to El Valle to see the square trees and the different species of snakes.

 

They have also opened some coffee shops. The coffee shops in El Valle use local products and they have an outdoor setting, sometimes even along the stream. These are places where you can go to have a coffee and relax outdoors. The orchid place is well done, too. It is actually part of a hostel but they have an area where they have the orchids and it is very beautiful. The people in that hostel are very nice and they will talk about the different types of orchids in El Valle.

 

A new hostel is opening in another part of El Valle soon. It is the first hostel in its area and the target is to accommodate backpackers who go to El Valle. So, I think the ecotourism in El Valle is improving a lot. It is Amazing!