BOQUETE, PANAMA—Sometimes the cold weather can be just too much. When Gina Cronin, a Cleveland, Ohio area native had enough of the long northern Ohio winters, she headed south—far south—to the Boquete area of western Panama. After helping to run a successful business and then selling it, she and her business partner at the time decided they not only wanted to move but also start a resort. It took time to find the right property, but now, approximately seven years after the move from the United States, Cronin owns and operates the nine-villa Rancho de Caldera on 50 acres in Caldera.
There are many things that are unique about Rancho de Caldera but perhaps what sets the resort apart from others like it is the fact that it is off the grid, powered by electricity generated by 76 solar panels and two hydroelectric generators. Cronin says going off the grid was not in the original plan but plans changed quickly when the local utility told her they would charge her $89,000 to run electric wires to the property.
“We did not think about an eco-lodge at first,” Cronin says. “But after learning about the charge to run electricity, we decided to do it the way it ought to be done.”
Owner Planning Solar Expansion
The 76 solar panels, each 200 watts, and the two hydro generators that generate 40 kilowatts of electricity per day, together generate about 76 kilowatts of electricity per day. A waterfall keeps the hydro system running most of the year. The waterfall dries up during the January to April dry season. There are two wind power systems on the property—one that generates a very small amount of electricity and another larger one that pumps water from a well. Cronin says she is currently thinking about doubling the size of the solar system and already has plans to purchase DC-powered refrigerators for each villa that will run off their own solar systems.
Guests staying at Green Globe certified Rancho de Caldera need not give up luxury. There is air-conditioning, satellite TV, iPod docking stations, a salt water swimming pool that is cleaned with the help of an ionizer, and a gourmet restaurant—Madre Tierra—that features items grown in one of the resort’s four greenhouses.
Cronin says the soil at the resort is still being conditioned for optimal growing but herbs, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, watermelon, strawberries, bananas, mangos, lemons, limes, avocados and other items are all grown. The greenhouses surround a chicken coop. After a greenhouse is fully harvested, the chickens are given free reign to feed in it, all while helping to fertilize it.
Visitors Primarily from United States
Currently, about 80 percent of visitors come from the United States, about 10 to 15 percent from Panama, and the remainder from other countries. About 50 percent of the resort’s business is between Christmas and Easter. Cronin says many former U.S. residents live in the Boquete area. Those who do visit the resort can take advantage of hiking, coffee tours, rafting, local hot springs, horseback riding and other activities. “Business has been very good this year,” Cronin says.
Some of the resort’s other green features include: LED lighting, rooftop garden above the restaurant, towel and linen reuse program, Energy Star appliances, low-flow toilets, recycling, composting, food donation program, green cleaning products, hiring and training of local residents, use of indigenous plants as natural insecticides in the fruit orchard, and the use of bamboo in greenhouse construction.
Reflecting on her experience in Panama so far, Cronin says, “It has been a fabulous experience. One of the unexpected surprises is the friendships I have made. The people experiences have been wonderful. I would do it all over again.”
Go to Rancho de Caldera.
Glenn Hasek can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.
