Chasing waterfalls is no longer new to us. Most of the adventures now include mountain climbing, river trekking/rafting/tubing, snorkeling and diving, beach bumming and chasing waterfalls. All of these talks about nature. You don’t need to go far, Tinago Falls is just within the City boundaries of Iligan City.
Iligan City is known to be the City of Waterfalls. The city alone boast more than 20 waterfalls of which the Maria Cristina Falls tops the most famous of all; also as a known power source for Mindanao.
Now becoming popular is the Tinago Falls location is in Barangay Ditucalan, Iligan City. It offers pristine waters which is good for swimming all year round.
I first swim at Tinago Falls in 1990 during the fiesta of Barangay Ditucalan. Our neighbor in Kapatagan is from Ditucalan and they invite us there. I can vividly remember how we get to the falls that time. There are no pavements going down. What we are doing, we just hold on the grasses and branches for us to safely get to the swimming area. Life jacket is not mandatory then. For me as I am not a swimmer, I simply manage to swim on the shallow side where huge rocks are in place. You certainly will not say no to the water as it is so refreshing and inviting.
Nine years since my graduation, I have not seen Tinago Falls. There is an on going privatization to the place and constructions are i place. They pave the 300 steps down the waterfalls. They put concretes on some parts of the swimming area and constructs some buildings for function halls and accommodations. They also has a mini zoo that time. Cottages are everywhere may it be at the entrance, at the stairs and even at the basin itself. That time, privatization is in place. Unfortunately, the venture did not succeed. The resort’s operation last only few years and now, the buildings left to decay.
Since 1999, I haven’t have a glimpse of what Tinago Falls look like in person. I have only seen pictures of it and I can really say that its beauty remains the same as to what I’ve last seen. It is still mesmerizing and inviting.
After 16 years, I manage to come back to Tinago Falls. Actually, I have several plans of revisiting the falls after I graduate from college. Unfortunately, it remains as plan and nothing comes to reality.
This time, I invite a friend of mine, Romeo at my hometown’s fiesta celebration. We book a ticket from Manila for our Northern Mindanao trip. My Aunt Vivian from Cebu is also with us as I invite her too. We all go on the same trip to Iloilo days prior our town fiesta. I draft our Mindanao itinerary and include Tinago Falls as a stopover.
On December 4, 2015, we leave Kapatagan for Cagayan de Oro. As the junction to Tinago Falls is in Buru-un, Iligan City, we stop there and hail a habal-habal to take us to the jump-off. It is already afternoon when we arrive Buru-un yet it is still manageable to get to the waterfalls even at late afternoon. We are taken to the jump-off where we register and secure a guide in going there. We ask for a guide because the place is no longer familiar to me. There are several residential houses around now and I’ve seen the remains of the buildings that are built before. The guides will also help in carrying our things to and from the waterfalls.
We start to walk along the walkway going to the concrete stairs only few meters from the registration area. The buildings are all destroyed; the good thing is the stairs are still intact and usable. Going down is a lot easy. I feel the excitement as we hear the sound of the waterfalls.
There are several visitors in the area when we get there. We choose not to rent a cottage since we only plan to have a quick swim. After taking several photos, we immediately change into swimming gears and swim to the cold waters of the falls. Another friend of mine, Johnny arrive shortly after us with his family and they join us too. There ias a raft that will take you to the waterfalls itself and we only pay Php 10 for that. We all are together in one batch on the raft.
On the raft, we have one local who helps us pull the rope. We all participated in pulling our raft for us to get to the falls itself quickly. It is so fun when we feel the dripping waters on our body. We are safe because we are also on our life jackets. The experience of getting near the waterfalls is amazing. Before, I am only watching at one side, now I am really feeling the waters. We really enjoy it!
After our raft adventure, we have a quick swim and walk back up the registration area. We opt to change clothes there as they have decent changing area for a fee. It is a very tiring climb up. I go with the other guide first while Romeo and my aunt are with the other guide slowly climbing up the stairs too. It is tiring but also worth it.
We give the guides Php 150 each for taking us back and forth to the falls. Thanks to them for carrying our quite heavy bags. And the most important is, thanks to our guides for taking care of our belongings while we are on the raft. They also take pictures for us.
The adventure to Tinago Falls is so worth it. You cannot ask me if I will still come back to the falls, I will always go back to see this stunning creation. When in Iligan, Tinago Falls is a must-visit. Your visit in Iligan City will not be complete without Tinago Falls.
Come and see for yourself the pride of Iligan City, Tinago Falls.
Been here: December 4, 2015
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