The year 2013 has finally come to pass and now it’s time to welcome a new year and start afresh.
New year means new battles, adventures and milestones. But before I speak of everything new, I’d like to talk about my Waterfalling Adventure Tour (WAT) 2.0 that happened back in September 2013. I know this post is way past its due… But better late than never right? 🙂
The WAT 2.0 was a 3-day tour here in Iligan together with other bloggers from all over the Philippines.
On Day 1, we started our tour at Barangay Dalipuga and our drop-off point was at Kalubihon Elementary School. From there, we asked locals to walk us through the series of pristine waterfalls running through the wooded hills.
Trekking difficulty varies from one falls to the other. Others are particularly tricky to go to especially if you’re not used to climbing up and down hills and slippery rocks. So to navigate with ease, wearing of proper footwear and attire is strongly advised.
This was the first waterfall we’ve seen as we trekked through Barangay Dalipuga. It looks cropped out from a fairytale background. I can imagine sprites and fireflies hovering above the water during nighttime.
Shortly after that, we then moved on to see another waterfall. I envy how the locals were able to go down with such ease. Whereas I, on the other hand, completely struggled to not slip off from the slippery slope.
Despite being gripped with the fear of plunging off to my death, I displayed sheer unadulterated bravado as I crawled my way down just to see what it was like down there. And I regretted nothing. The clear, cool waters were too inviting to resist. I took a dip and clearly had fun.*
I love how my hair color blended perfectly with the water. I felt like a nymph. Hee!
As we hopped from one location to the next, a number of streams and pools were spotted along the way.
Photo-op! 🙂
Pampam Falls
This waterfall fans down on a skull-shaped rock and plunges straight down to a basin of water. Kids love to climb high up the rock and perform death-defying diving stunts.
Behind us is an intimate cave with a small opening that leads to another secluded waterfall which is obscured from plain sight.
Because the mouth of the cave is very low, we had to crouch and duck to enter.
But before reaching the waterfall, we got ourselves wet and swam across a small pool of crystal blue water until we reached a limestone wall – which I’m guesstimating is only about 16 to 20 feet away from the entrance of the cave.
The water is actually quite deep albeit it may not look like so since we were all standing on a piece of rock. From there, we then climbed our way up on the path where a steady stream of water flowed down from above.
And on the way up, the sound of gushing water only got louder and louder until it became the only thing we can hear as we moved closer to the waterfall.
Kalubihon Falls**
This waterfall is about 30-feet high and is beautifully tucked in a chasm covered in lush vegetation. We all took turns standing at the foot of the falls for a quick hydro massage.
This was easily my favorite part of the tour.
Dalipuga Falls
The last waterfall we visited was the smallest of the bunch. It was a rather anti-climactic stop. I would have preferred to see this before the rest.
Its catch basin is very shallow – only about 3 to 5 feet in depth. This makes it a perfect aquatic playground for kids.
Me together with all of the IBS WAT 2.0 participants for Day 1:***
Doi Domasian, Jeffrey Wong, Yobz Tolentino, Lovette Jam Jacosalem, Kate Jumawan, Ferdz Decena, Tzaddi Esguerra, Fredda Ruth Rosete, Clement Dampal, Glen Santillan, Shugah Kang, John Badawi and Marky Go.
Day 1 was super fun! To be continued… 🙂
I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Iligan Bloggers Society (IBS) for organizing this event.
As well as to the following WAT 2.0 partners for making this possible:
Iligan City Government, IHARRA, Iligan Chamber and sponsors – Jollibee Iligan, Unilab, Jacko’s Kan-anan, Silvestro’s Bistro, Calda Pizza, Red Planet Grillers, Rent.ph, Tatay’s Grill, Greenwich Iligan, Jasmine Pensionne Home, Kopi Luwak, Keepsakes Iligan, GTC, Aruma, Tedts Diner, Iligan Paradise Resort, Linamon’s Best Buko Pie, Piaya de Iligan, NPC Nature’s Park, Third Team Media, JCreations, New Horizon Travel and Tours, Perfect Wedding, Jesbey’s Diner, Delecta, Bob NY USA, Councilor Freddie Siao and Councilor Michelle Sweet
Photo Credits:
Ferdz Decena*
Jeffrey Wong**
Jeffrey Wong***