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Mindanao Trip

Davao - Bislig - Hinatuan - Surigao del Norte - Siargao - Butuan

By Danica Eliana Ferino

July 18^th, 2016

This is not a comprehensive travel guide but is rather a reaction paper of sorts.

Let me start by saying that this is by far the most distance we’ve covered on one weekend trip for most of us. It’s also the most adventurous one, I might add.

When we booked our flights last year, I guess we didn’t really have much of an idea on how to go through with our tour. Our organizers opted to make our own itinerary with Rosa mostly taking the lead in planning with the help of the DIY Travel Philippines Facebook page - we didn’t avail any tour packages.

Our entry point is at Davao. Most travel guides would say that starting at Butuan is to be preferred. I would also concur with this. As soon as we landed on Davao, we hopped on our rented van and were on a 5-hour (or more?) ride going to Bislig, Surigao del Sur. The drive was not really enjoyable; imagine driving on a really bumpy road full of sharp curves on almost 120kph speed. Parang walang konsepto ng lubak si koya.

This is also really important. Our original plan was to commute from Bislig to Surigao del Sur after visiting Enchanted River but it was not really possible on our case. We ended up hiring the van to get us to Surigao City with us shelling out more money than expected. Note that there is no direct bus service from Bislig to Surigao del Sur and I’m not sure why. You’ll have to ride the bus from Bislig to Butuan, then ride another bus from Butuan to Surigao del Sur. Travelling time is 5 hours and 3 hours, respectively. as per our van driver, Kuya Joey. In any case, Butuan is simply more accessible to all tourist spots we planned to visit so it should have been more practical to start there. That’s why I cannot stress enough how better it is to start at Butuan rather than at Davao.

We left Davao at 23:00. We arrived at Bislig at 03:00. We spent the wee hours of the morning at the van to catch up some sleep. After having lomi for breakfast (Batangas feels, parang yung paalam ni Juliet sa tatay niya), we went to the three itineraries we have for the day: Tinuy-an Falls, Enchanted River and the International Doll House. It’s about a drive of an hour and half, more or less, for each place from the city proper. One advantage of having a rental van is that our driver has contacts for each tourist spot. He’s the one who advised us when is the best time to visit each place and at what time it will be opened for the public.

Van Rentals: Kuya Mark (09489750475) for Davao to Bislig; Kuya Joey (09073041207) Bislig tour - Surigao del Sur

Tinuy-an Falls

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Our first stop is at Tinuy-an Falls. Read the badass origin story for this place - I took a photo of it below.

For those who will come here with the sole purpose of just admiring the view, please don’t wear rubber shoes or any heavy clothing. The mist from the waterfalls would most likely wet your clothes. Also the floating makeshift wood bridge at the middle of the 1st and 2nd tier wobbles; be careful. Globe network signal is nil.

Now, for those interested in photography like me, waterfalls are a perfect subject to try out long exposure. Those silky soft waters are just gorgeous if you hit the right settings. If you don’t have your DSLR, don’t fret. There are various camera apps in Android or Apple. I used the Slow Shutter app for iOS with my phone mounted on a joby gorillapod to get the photos below and I think it’s pretty decent enough.

I just read in Wikipedia that Tinuy-an Falls actually has 4 tiers but only two tiers are accessible to visitors. Amazing.

Ocean View Park and International Doll House

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The International Doll House is located inside the Ocean View Park. You’d have to pay Php20 before you take the stairs with 200+ plight. Once you reach the top, you can find a restaurant and a playground. A unicorn is guarding the deck.

The park opens at 10 AM. If you arrive earlier, the owner of the restaurant, a chef of a former US president (forgot who it was), will tell you to wait until his crew had taken their breakfast. The food is relatively cheap and we were informed that it’s also really good.

The owner of the doll house is a Filipina who resides in Switzerland. Her brother currently takes care of the dolls and is also the one giving out talks on visiting guests. He’ll tell you which ones are the most curious or the most expensive. He’ll tell you stories about the dolls - how they were made, why they were made and when they were made. Oh, there’s even a 3D wall previously owned by Universal Studios that’s now fixed on the house. Too bad, a part of it is already getting faded - see the almost torn out part on the left chair?

Gold-plated matryoshka dolls: the most expensive dolls on the house

Hinatuan Enchanted River

They say that the depth of the river has not yet been determined. Others say that engkantos inhabit the waters and prohibit anyone from reaching the bottom. One story we heard while we were there is that a group of three researchers dived to discover the unexplored regions deep below but one of them didn’t make it out alive. There are many versions of this. There’s also a bunch of fishes that appear at 12 noon for the feeding while the music is playing but were not visible on other times. But other than these fantastic stories, just looking at the sapphire and jade waters will make you agree that it is indeed enchanting. The experience is just surreal.

Siargao Island

We rode the LQP boat to Siargao early on the second day of our trip. Earliest schedule is at 5:30 AM. Fare is around PhP250 (I’m not sure). It is recommended that you arrive earlier since the seats are limited and cramped. By the way, if you can, make your way to the back of the boat. Once they raise the tarpaulin and haul the anchor, you’ll get a great view of the sea. It’s also more spacious and airy than the benches inside the boat.

Once the boat gets going, you can roam around to enjoy the view. It’s a 3-hour ride to Dapa Port, Siargao.

Upon arriving at Siargao, we met our guide, Kuya Bebot (09064595679/ 09309749974; FB page: link). He got us a really cheap place at a dormitel directly across Cloud 9 beach - a two-storey house with 8 bunk beds on the 2nd floor and one room downstairs. The room costs Php 500 per night. I forgot how much is the cost per bed upstairs. Kuya Bebot says it’s one of the cheapest in Siargao and the location’s really good too. It’s just a few minutes’ walk to the beach. People clad in swimsuits and guys carrying surfboards while checking out for haba-habal before crossing the road are just the norm here. You can also avail surfing lessons at Php 500 per hour; just inquire at anyone on the Cloud 9 boardwalk. Siargao is known as the “Surfing Capital of the Philippines”.

Cloud 9 Beach

Some of us availed the surfing lessons. Some of us stayed at the air-conditioned room and watched Street Fighter and then strolled on the boardwalk. Chill chill lang.

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Magpupungko Rock Formation

On the afternoon, we rode habal-habals to reach the Magpupungko beach.

My photos don’t do much justice on the place. It’s simply amazing. Go here during low tide. You can swim in the tidal pool with its clear bluish-green water. But be careful, though. There are fish and some sea urchins here.

The only thing that’s bothering me is that there is no lifeguard on the place. Or maybe there is, but I haven’t seen any. I believe everyone I saw while we were there are just visitors like us. I just hope there would be no accidents especially since the rock formation in the middle of the pool is a favorite diving spot for action junkies.

The place is teeming with sea creatures. You can find mini tidal pools around the area and they are all like tiny aquariums.

Liku-On Souvenir Shop

Go here for the wide variety of souvenirs. They have really amusing pieces on display. Habal-habal drivers recommend this place.

Island Hopping

It felt like we were on the water forever during our third day. We went island hopping on Guyam Island, Daku Island and Naked Island of Bucas Grande. The water is crystal clear - pretty much like that in a bottled water.

For those wanting to swim with stingless jellyfish, Kuya Bebot advised that it would be better to just swim at the port where it’s free rather than pay PhP 100 for nothing. There are more jellyfish there than at the Jellyfish Sanctuary at the Sohoton Cove.

All three islands are beautiful. Too bad we only got one day to enjoy these.

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Sohoton Cove

Most people compare Bucas Grande with Palawan, but I haven’t been there so I can’t tell. I forgot how much the tour costs.

The tour took about an hour and you’ll get to see different caves. Everyone’s encouraged to swim on the first cave and explore the rock formations inside. Don’t worry though if you can’t swim. They offer life vests. On the last one, you’ll have to climb up through stalagmites. Then at the top, you’ll have to dive to return to the boat.

That’s the last part of our Day 3 adventure. After we pack up at around 14:30, we rode a van to Surigao City which took about an hour. Then we transferred to another van going to Butuan; the commute is about three hours. At Butuan, we stayed at Julian’s Inn for about Php 250 per night.

Balangay Shrine Museum, Butuan

Note that the National Museum in Butuan is closed on Sundays. The guard there kindly referred us to visit the Balangay Shrine Museum instead. And it’s good. We got to see a hanging bridge and a replica of Magellan.

It’s an unplanned adventure!

Butuan City

Overall shelled out money is about Php 5,500 or less, not inclusive of airfare. Souvenirs and food are already included.

We were all tired and itchy and sunburned and somewhat broke but still we don’t want it to end.

Expenses

Here are the breakdown of our expenses, as far as we can remember (as of 2016).

Van Rentals c/o Kuya Joey (09073041207) - total cost to be divided per pax:

Bislig Tour (Enchanted River and Tinuy-an Falls): PhP 4,000

Surigao Del Sur to Surigao City: PhP 9,000 [Note: There are no direct PUV travelling from Surigao Del Sur to Surigao City as per Kuya Joey. You’d need to take the bus to Butuan City and another to Surigao City.]

Siargao Expenses c/o Kuya Bebot:

Habal-habal: PhP 1,000 per habal per day

Siargao Dormitel: PhP 250 per person per night for the bunk beds. PhP 500 per night for the whole room downstairs (can accommodate up to three persons).