Finally after so many past attempts and unnecessary long delays, the place we frequented during many past summers has now become a public recreation site called Pueblo El Salvador Ecotourism park.
The old Naculo Falls' dirt track branching off to national hi-way in Tibatib has now been paved. Likewise, the connecting path that leads to the famous Magdapio Falls (Pagsanjan Falls, as it is known to many) located downriver is now barricaded with metal handrails and the steep descent is now installed with metal stairs giving people easy access to the falls with a minimal pay and an equally minimal effort. So the trip to the famous falls is now practically and literally a walk in the park.
But I guess not so many people have known about the existence of this trail and what lies in there long before our municipal government thought of developing the place as it is now.
Since during the time of our forefathers, this old trail leading to the falls and the valley's floor has already been frequented by few adventurous people, partly, for animal hunting purposes and mainly for the beauty it offers.
As you walk through it you will find that it is all pristine forest all around. The place is abound with big grown trees, tangled vines dangling on them where some monkeys perform acrobatics, noisy birds feasting on lansay trees, and monitor lizards (bayawak) that people intermittently come across with.
Halfway through, you will get fascinated by a lone giant tree standing on the middle of the trail blocking passers-by. It is so big that you have to carefully inch your way when passing through it as either side is deep ravine that, in case of a misstep, could swallow you to eternity. Here is also the perfect place where you can view the other waterfall located just above the main one.
A few meters ahead, on the right side, there’s the deep gorge where the waters of Lumot river flow. With its deepness, the gorge’s floor surroundings chillingly offered visitors amazing bird’s eye-view of the river with its blue waters flowing gently along large boulders.
At this same point, in the left gorge, partly hidden due to heavy growth of trees, there’s the main waterfall generating a thundering noise and, with its mists, creating a spectacular rainbow-filled scenery.
It was in the summer of 1989, when we first entertained the idea of going there. The thought of not having seen Magdapio Falls in person at the time was enough for us to take the challenge and see it for the first time.
Back then, the trip to Magdapio via the Tibatib trail was more exciting and challenging than it is today. Minus the paved surface and handrails, Art Arroyo, Poklay Antiporda, Darwin Tinea, Warren Umali and I hiked the narrow path into the gorge by clutching on vines and old ropes to the amazement (and annoyance, due to small falling rocks) of the crowd watching from the river ground.
Our descent was not particularly easy as we had to look after Poklay who was the youngest and the most nervous among us. High up on the steepest part of the trail in a point where you cannot yet see the crowd at the bottom but only hear their voices, we almost surrendered. The steep descent just immediately below us was the most difficult stage and the most frightening. But perhaps because of our strong will to succeed and to think we were almost there, we persevered. Thanks to the guts, boldness, fighting spirit of us all, and the ingenuity of Art & me (being a son of a farmer), we, clutching on a vine and forming a single-pile pyramid, managed to make Poklay pass through this stage, and eventually all the way down the river ground without suffering any injuries. The gathering crowd at the river met us with their admiring stare.
Our little but exciting and challenging adventure did not end there. On our way home, we opted to swim downstream the more than three kilometers stretch of the river. All five of us, each with a bamboo pole, took our version of ‘shooting the rapids’ starting from the boats’ waiting area near the foot of the falls all the way to Kawa-Kawa, near the border of Cavinti and Pagsanjan. Along the way, we occasionally met lots of tourists of different nationalities in bancas taking photos of us with their cameras.
Rowing the bamboo pole was easier along the rapids itself where the water moved very fast you just have to ride on the current in a free-flowing process. But that was not the case when rowing on still waters and there were many of them on that stretch of the river. There, the movement was slow. You have to propel the bamboo pole by the strong kick of your legs and by the swing of your hands. That trip downstream took us almost two hours to cover that stretch of the river interrupted by as many as eight rapids in between eight still waters.
Tatay Fred recently emailed me some photographs showing the family on picnic at the newly opened park. Those photos brought back memories of our adventure, thus the reason for coming up with this blog entry.
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