Hinatuan's Enchanted River
Truly, Surigao del Sur will not disappoint you with surprises. I have visited several rivers in Luzon and Visayas and I thought I have seen the best river until I got accidentally invited in Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur in 2011.
Hinatuan is a sleepy town in the
southern part of Surigao del Sur and about 50km away from Bislig City. The town is currently facing future environmental destructions due to heavy extraction of mineral resources
in the area. Hinatuan is blessed with
marine resources thus, the livelihood of the folks is fishing aside from quarrying/mining
.
After we were all exhausted doing our stunts of picture taking at Tinuy-an Falls our group leader decided to roll towards the Enchanted River. I had no idea where we were going. I just thought the river would be somewhat like Loboc or Bojo River where we could take our lunch.
Upon reaching the place, I thought there was some kind of trouble due to the commotion inside the picnic area. A lady told me that it’s already “feeding time” since 12 already hit the clock. Huh? Did not make sense at all. So I hurried to where the people are.
Fish appears every 12nn and 3pm |
The river became more ENCHANTING because of the SCHOOL OF BIG FISH that appeared from the depth of the river ,and being fed enthusiastically by awed first time visitors. The feeding was accompanied by a soft recorded music played by the resort operator.
According to the locals, fish swam out from the depth of the river every 12:00 noon and 3:00 in the afternoon which add up to its enchanting beauty.
I couldn't wait to jump to the crystal blue water but my stomach growls out of hunger so we head first to the adjacent mini-seafood market for lunch.
Fresh and abundant seafoods in Hinatuan |
By the way, you cannot buy plastic bags for your take out in the area as plastics are prohibited in the vicinity of Enchanted River. They are strict with the segregation of wastes and there is a Material Recovery Facility (MRF) installed inside the resort. Clap clap clap!
After we had a wonderful MARINARA lunch, we hit the cool crystal water of the river amidst the overcrowded visitors. Jump here, jump there. Picture here, picture there.
Getting there
Coming from Butuan City , take a bus at Butuan City Central Bus Terminal bound for Mangagoy. Hinatuan is a 4-5 -hour bus ride (Bachelor Bus) . At Hinatuan, you can hire Habal Habal going to Brgy. Talisay. Habal Habal rental varies depending on your haggling technique but usually it costs Php50.00 per head for 6 persons. So it is advisable to include Enchanted River trip with your
Tinuy-an Falls adventure to reduce travel expenses. For backpackers it is
recommended to hire a habal habal in Bislig City. Usually the driver would ask
for more or less Php1000 for the Tinuy-an and Enchanted River trip. This is the
perfect venue for you to practice your bargaining skills.
Coming from Bislig City, Hinatuan
is more or less two hours habal habal drive or 1.5 hours if you have a private
car coming from Tinuy-an Falls.
The place couldn’t be missed because of the large “pylon” sign placed on the right side of the road leading to Brgy. Talisay.
The road is still unpaved covered with crashed limestone gravels, so expect a bumpy ride. From there it took us about 20-30 minutes to Enchanted River.
For the complete guide for Tinuy-an Water Falls, Enchanted River, and Britania Group of Islands check it in this detailed instruction.
What's Next?
Britania Group of Islands
Fish Cage & Sandbars: Hotel in the Middle of the Sea
For the complete guide for Tinuy-an Water Falls, Enchanted River, and Britania Group of Islands check it in this detailed instruction.
What's Next?
Britania Group of Islands
this reservation cast a spell on me..
ReplyDeleteenchanted it is..
okay sa directions!
Thanks glad you like it :D
ReplyDeletewow pang travel blog na talaga to...
ReplyDeletebeen in this place twice and want more hehehe. congrats sa blog mo dencio.
ReplyDeletethank you very much mark for the support .. ill try to improve the content for the benefit of my readers... soon ill post the itineraries and budget for guide
DeleteMindanao has its beauty waiting to be discover! :)
ReplyDeletetrue and we have to protect and preserve what is left in Mindanao... this is the land of promise for the Filipino people .
DeleteDidn't know this, now I have another destination added on my bucket list! yey! =)
ReplyDeleteI hope you get there soon ... enjoy exploring :D
DeleteI wish to be able to visit Mindanao places too. Will check some of the packages online, soon.
ReplyDeleteI'm now enchanted by this place and the crystal clear water with those school of fishes would be such a wonderful sight.
ReplyDeleteI'd been here last week and it was a great adventure, I was invited by my friend because they were having a trip at that time so he invited me to join their trip. Enchanted River is truly enchanted. I have a video on the feeding session....
ReplyDeleteThank you for giving me another reason to include Surigao into my must-see places.. I was definitely swoon over by your river photo.. and yes, it was more than amazing!!
ReplyDeletewow ang ganda! A friend is inviting me to visit Surigao coz they have a resort there that he wants me to promote thru my blog, now I am more enthusiastic to go! I wanna see this place! ;)
ReplyDeleteAs always, this river is enchanting. To all photos I have seen, the magical blue water never fails to allure :)
ReplyDeleteLove to taste some of their seafood specialties. Looks likes a great place to stay!
ReplyDeletewow, suits the name... i'm adding it to the list of places i want to go to... thanks. Yahweh bless.
ReplyDeleteenchanted it really is.. beautiful... breathtaking.. hope I could visit this place in the near future
ReplyDeletewow! great photos. would love to visit this place soon! grabe! :)
ReplyDeleteI went to Tinuy-an Falls and it is really beautiful, but still never visited Enchanted river. :(
ReplyDeleteproud to be SURIGAONUN
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeletetest
ReplyDeletethis is so amazing, you are leaving me breathless and so excited, wish i can go there soon.
ReplyDeleteStunning! Seriously, this place looks really amazing. Parang nasa Wonderland lang talaga.
ReplyDelete2014 will be the year dedicated for my Mindanao travels.... :-)
ReplyDeleteStunning photos. A place wirth visiting talaga.
ReplyDeleteI already booked to visit this place on December. Yahoo!
ReplyDeletesee u soon!
ReplyDeleteay sino po ? ako o yung Enchanted River?----natawa ako sa sagot ko .... ciempre yung river :)
ReplyDeleteThat river looks fantastic with all those little fishies! It won't be a surprise if a mermaid popped out of there somewhere. Okay, maybe a little bit of a surprise. Haha!
ReplyDelete