Superb Catmon Experience: Rock Climbing,River Trekking,Swimming at Kantingo Falls
A life without adventure is likely to be unsatisfying, but a life in which adventure is allowed to take whatever form it will is sure to be short. Once again, we've ventured another stroll of our life. But this time is a touch with nature. Quite different yet we have a fulfilling day.
It all started when one of my colleagues decided to plan a trip for May. Besides, we're all adventure-seekers and we're all nature lovers. Actually, our group was supposedly composed of 15, but some did back-outs. Only 7 continued, well, not bad at all. Even if you are with the same fellas you used to be with, but the longing for friendships will surely bring out the best in each trips and ain't boring at all.
My friends and I have been to springs and waterfalls already, but we craved more, so we took a diffrent place for us to enjoy again before summer ends. So, I was the one then who found Catmon a convenient place. During my search for places to visit in Catmon. I found out that there's a hot spring there, the Esoy Hot Spring. I searched about this hot spring and found out good reviews and feedback from local and foreign tourists alike who have visited this place. I got more information about this place through their facebook account, which was actually good because I then found out that they have a “No booking, No entry” policy. According to the information from their FB account, they follow this policy because the place is just really enough for only a handful of people, and so that they can accommodate their guests properly. I searched for pictures of their place and I was just amazed at what I saw. Can't wait, so I then contacted the owner's staff and the date was set, May 10, 2014. It was the most anticipated day for us.
Our group met each other at school and we departed at 7:30 am, as we rode a tricycle going to Tamiya terminal in Lapu-Lapu. From terminal, we rode a jeep in going to Mandaue Highway for about 15 mins. As we arrived in Mandaue, we stopped by near a pochero store just a few meters away from UCLM. There we waited some buses from the North Bus Terminal that haved crossed near the store So, from Mandaue, we rode a bus in going to Catmon for almost 3 hours. Actually, none of us don't know the place well. But during my search, I just knew of the landmark of where to stop as we got there. It's called Catmon Municipal Hall. We asked the driver and then fortunately, we arrived there safe and sound. Then, we hopped on a habal2x to take us to Esoy Hot Spring that is located in Brgy. Duyan.
It was a 5-km ride from the highway and during the ride, I can’t help but notice how beautiful the hillside areas were. This part of Catmon is abundant with lots of trees and of course, fresh air. When we reached the gates of Esoy Hot Spring, we were greeted by a smiling girl (who was actually a student from our school where we worked). Becasue she knew us already, she welcomed and introduced to us the owner of the resort who is Esoy. To our surprise, Esoy is an uncle of that girl.We were more surprised when we said that we are teachers, we were luckily given some discounts for our payments of entrance fees and cottage. Aside from that, the owner was an accomodating person, we don't have a problem during our stay. He entertained us well all throughout the day. So thankful, our trip was truly blessed by God.
gateway to a paradise
We started to explore the place by having our trek guide, Charise (that girl who greeted us). She told us to go down the steps to reach the cottage. There were about a hundred steps to take in going down to the hot spring.
The pathway. It is safe because of the railings.
As we went down, we saw a seemed-like a wall of forest at the other side.
We then reached the cottage with wooden-made tables. I guess, from the entrance, we had trekked in going down for about 5-10 mins. I'ts just right for us to feed our hungry stomach when we arrived on our dining area. The good thing about our trip was that we preferred to buy more mouth-watering foods rather than we lacked at all. So then, we ate a lot to energize our body before going to our different activities. The dudes in the group are as excited as the ladies. Wheew!
better ambiance
After our lunch, we prepared ourselves for these activities: hanging bridge crossing, rock climbing, river trekking, fish feeding, diving and swimming to waterfalls, and dipping into the hot spring. But before that, we need to use life vest first for our safety. The life vest costs 50 pesos, but in our case, its included in our package payments. I was then very excited to try the very first activity we had, the hanging bridge crossing.
The lovely ladies and dudes in their colorful life vest attire.:))
presenting,,,the candidates...este my tripmates!
candidate # 1 : stunning mommy ng cordova!
candidate # 2 : "sweet mom ng marigondon"
candidate # 3 : korean fan ng marigondon
candidate # 4 & 5: the romantic couple: bea & john lloyd ng masiwa
candidate # 6 & 7 : the shining hair couple: kristine & direk ramsay ng marigondon
hahaha...just for fun!!!
the hanging bridge
Before we do any of the other activities, we first passed the one-man-only-after-another hanging bridge. That was the first challenge and that was the only way to other recreations. The funny thing about it was that they only fixed it when we decided to trek the river. It was hanging loosely before that.
Me, crossing the bridge. Wanted to shout but my nerves was quite wracked and it ruled me. But amazingly, I was one finish-crosser, though. HEHEHE
We conditioned our knees for the rocky trail, the next activity we had. Yes, it was really difficult to climb those boulders, very slippery, rocky, muddy but I've bravely conquered it. It was a walk-climb-walk-climb scene and enjoyed much of the trail. Never expected that some of my colleagues would take the experience especially Mam Buena who is older than us. But she's really game all the time and she never back-outed. I'd also want to mention here that while walking on our way to the next trail, my friends and I were delighted when we've heard the chirping of birds and the roars of the young river. Felt like we're on a solemn place.
with my sis, stella (i envied her yellow vest :-))
So aside from being brave in climbing all those big, big rocks, I also had to suffer the itsy bitsy teeny tiny sharp rocks along the way. WhAT a harsh! :-)
It's amazing how fast we got on top of the rocks. Gladly, my sis made it even if she's a newbie. Actually, she's the fast turner to climb on the rocks who even beat us, oh, what a thumbs up,dear!
There was no snack break on our activities. After that journey on the rocks, we further reached the young and wild river. There, we got inspired, a feeling that if we could only build a paradise like this to our respective mansions in Lapu-Lapu (hahaha,so ambitious to say, charlungs!)So catchy, the waters seemed like there's a mystical world behind those currents. So the river trekking went on.We just don't notice the time we had spent. We don't worry ourselves much because we had our professional trek guide (nyay).
lhin, mam buena and i...seriously, we don't like selfies here bec. we might be left away from others..ahaha!
River Trekkers: Honestly, I had to hold hands with Kenn here, because there were stronger currents that we had to swim or walk at the sides. No matter how fat he is, still strong enough for the current. Such a strong boyfriend, haha! :)
We traveled along those rocky, wet, and slippery ways to the falls. It's called Kantingo Falls.
The entrance way to the falls. Our first dip in the waist-deep river with its strong current.
One of the deepest trail, we've passed through.
We trekked the river for some 200 meters away, until then we'd reached the falls. Actually, it's their main attraction, where we got our most anticipated moments.
One of my colleagues felt afraid to swim near to the falls because it has a very deep water. But our guide told us not to be afraid anywhere because we have our life vest. So,we were challenged to swim across the falls and feel the soothing massage caused by it. We did and we felt..
swim, pose, swim, pose...like there's no tomorrow!!
these two women beside me are gorgeous! :)
oh, I forgot to mention here..Tita Joy got cramp on her legs while swimming. But she's fine anyway. Thanks to our red cross volunteers who rescued her. awww..churvah! hehehe.
I tHanked this pretty lady for the encouragement always even before...
Ohooiii...boyoyoy! haha...Maybe I wouldn't be able to swim here if it wasn't your arms. typically char!..Ever since you're a pillow and a "salbabida" to me...hahaha!
the super energetic and a fighter, mam buena!
Seriously.... Funny!!!!!!!!
camera freakkkkk......:-)
so colorful life vest!
Also, diving there on top of the falls is more fun. Fish feeding could be so much fun but we were not able to do it for the lack of fish foods.
the sakuragi kick, jumper! wehehe...:-)
the walk-in waterfall navigator, jumper! tehehe...~,~
After we got back from our waterfall adventure, finally, we headed back to the entrance gate full of laughter.
Overall, we had a great time in Esoy Hot spring. Needless to say, we had real fun, and a few years from now, when we'd remember this trip, we'll have only good memories. :)
Thanks a bunch, trip mates for the unending company. Super fun-filled only in Catmon,! Will always be treasured. Another adventure was completed by the awesome wanderers. ;-)
I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of friends who have given me a heart full of joy. Let's face it, friends make life a lot more fun. **Charles R. Swindoll**
It all started when one of my colleagues decided to plan a trip for May. Besides, we're all adventure-seekers and we're all nature lovers. Actually, our group was supposedly composed of 15, but some did back-outs. Only 7 continued, well, not bad at all. Even if you are with the same fellas you used to be with, but the longing for friendships will surely bring out the best in each trips and ain't boring at all.
My friends and I have been to springs and waterfalls already, but we craved more, so we took a diffrent place for us to enjoy again before summer ends. So, I was the one then who found Catmon a convenient place. During my search for places to visit in Catmon. I found out that there's a hot spring there, the Esoy Hot Spring. I searched about this hot spring and found out good reviews and feedback from local and foreign tourists alike who have visited this place. I got more information about this place through their facebook account, which was actually good because I then found out that they have a “No booking, No entry” policy. According to the information from their FB account, they follow this policy because the place is just really enough for only a handful of people, and so that they can accommodate their guests properly. I searched for pictures of their place and I was just amazed at what I saw. Can't wait, so I then contacted the owner's staff and the date was set, May 10, 2014. It was the most anticipated day for us.
Our group met each other at school and we departed at 7:30 am, as we rode a tricycle going to Tamiya terminal in Lapu-Lapu. From terminal, we rode a jeep in going to Mandaue Highway for about 15 mins. As we arrived in Mandaue, we stopped by near a pochero store just a few meters away from UCLM. There we waited some buses from the North Bus Terminal that haved crossed near the store So, from Mandaue, we rode a bus in going to Catmon for almost 3 hours. Actually, none of us don't know the place well. But during my search, I just knew of the landmark of where to stop as we got there. It's called Catmon Municipal Hall. We asked the driver and then fortunately, we arrived there safe and sound. Then, we hopped on a habal2x to take us to Esoy Hot Spring that is located in Brgy. Duyan.
It was a 5-km ride from the highway and during the ride, I can’t help but notice how beautiful the hillside areas were. This part of Catmon is abundant with lots of trees and of course, fresh air. When we reached the gates of Esoy Hot Spring, we were greeted by a smiling girl (who was actually a student from our school where we worked). Becasue she knew us already, she welcomed and introduced to us the owner of the resort who is Esoy. To our surprise, Esoy is an uncle of that girl.We were more surprised when we said that we are teachers, we were luckily given some discounts for our payments of entrance fees and cottage. Aside from that, the owner was an accomodating person, we don't have a problem during our stay. He entertained us well all throughout the day. So thankful, our trip was truly blessed by God.
We started to explore the place by having our trek guide, Charise (that girl who greeted us). She told us to go down the steps to reach the cottage. There were about a hundred steps to take in going down to the hot spring.
As we went down, we saw a seemed-like a wall of forest at the other side.
Our unforgettable dining, the food attackers...yo!!!
After our lunch, we prepared ourselves for these activities: hanging bridge crossing, rock climbing, river trekking, fish feeding, diving and swimming to waterfalls, and dipping into the hot spring. But before that, we need to use life vest first for our safety. The life vest costs 50 pesos, but in our case, its included in our package payments. I was then very excited to try the very first activity we had, the hanging bridge crossing.
presenting,,,the candidates...este my tripmates!
hahaha...just for fun!!!
the hanging bridge
Before we do any of the other activities, we first passed the one-man-only-after-another hanging bridge. That was the first challenge and that was the only way to other recreations. The funny thing about it was that they only fixed it when we decided to trek the river. It was hanging loosely before that.
It's amazing how fast we got on top of the rocks. Gladly, my sis made it even if she's a newbie. Actually, she's the fast turner to climb on the rocks who even beat us, oh, what a thumbs up,dear!
tHe so called, rocky-road warriors!!!,,,ayun,oh!!!
One of the deepest trail, we've passed through.
We trekked the river for some 200 meters away, until then we'd reached the falls. Actually, it's their main attraction, where we got our most anticipated moments.
So, that's the waterfalls at the end of our trek. Not high but 145 ft. in depth.
One of my colleagues felt afraid to swim near to the falls because it has a very deep water. But our guide told us not to be afraid anywhere because we have our life vest. So,we were challenged to swim across the falls and feel the soothing massage caused by it. We did and we felt..
Also, diving there on top of the falls is more fun. Fish feeding could be so much fun but we were not able to do it for the lack of fish foods.
After we got back from our waterfall adventure, finally, we headed back to the entrance gate full of laughter.
I was thinking how I'm going to survive the stairs back. Haha.
Overall, we had a great time in Esoy Hot spring. Needless to say, we had real fun, and a few years from now, when we'd remember this trip, we'll have only good memories. :)
I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of friends who have given me a heart full of joy. Let's face it, friends make life a lot more fun. **Charles R. Swindoll**
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