Saturday, January 9, 2010

Scud's Travels: Casaroro Falls, Valencia

Valencia is a small town located next to Dumaguete City - the city a former Manila Times columnist described as "that beautiful city between the mountains and the sea". It is in this town where one can climb an active volcano - Mt. Talinis - or trek to the 100-ft Casaroro Falls.























Late last year, I made it my personal vow to get to Casaroro Falls but I was apprehensive at first knowing that someone I know drowned at the place almost a decade ago. But since I have made “conquer your fear” as my personal motto, I pushed through with my plans.























Armed with 3 companions and 2 motorcycles we embarked on the 30-minute ride deep to the mountains of Valencia where Casaroro Falls can be found. The ride was a breeze – literally. And I again remembered how I used to relish riding a motorcycle sans a protective head cover.






























Arriving at the entrance to the falls, we registered our names and paid the P10 entrance fee. And then the trek to the falls commenced. It was a 10-minute walk – including a 300+ concrete/steel steep, a cemented pathway, and a wooden bridge. I was awed by the place. It was teeming with fauna – trees, ferns, bamboos – on both sides. It was a sight a bit like the one seen from a banca on the way to the Pagsanjan Falls in Laguna.





























The place was pretty desolate. There were no animals or insects in sight. No sound of birds chirping. No people laughing. At 11am, there was only the 6 of us who came to see the falls – me, my 3 companions, and 2 others. The only sound I could hear was the crash of water from far away as it fell from 100 feet above and the steady rush of the water streaming down the river.





























Allowing my companions to go ahead, I took my time taking photographs. I was totally absorbed with what I was seeing that I didn’t notice that the sound of the falls had grown louder, that my companions had stopped walking, and was now staring at the falls which was obscured from where I was standing.





























I broke into a brisk walk and a few second later was at their side. I stared at the falls meters from where we were. I gawked at it. It was a breathtaking sight.


23 comments:

R. said...

NICE! The part with the bridge reminds me of this place I went to when I was in CDO.
••
For a while, I thought you went to Spain.Ü

gillboard said...

ang green... refreshing naman ng mga litrato...

The Scud said...

russ, ayos ba sa title? hehe. btw, masaya ba sa cdo?

The Scud said...

gillboard, green na green nga doon. lahat fauna. :D

Sofia said...

Nice Blog

Anonymous said...

ganda! so much green! parang ganiyan lang dito samin eh!

Visual Velocity said...

Nagpagawa ng retirement house yung mga magulang ko sa Valencia. Dalawang beses pa lang ako nakaka-punta dun. Nung pumunta sila ng Casaroro Falls, hindi ako naka-sama, hehe. Pero gusto ko yung Valencia, simple lang, stress-free. :)

Photo Cache said...

the green is so refreshing, so calming. it looks like paradise. i love that pic with the little hut.

The Scud said...

prinsesa musang, saan ang province mo?

The Scud said...

andy, stress free nga dun. ang tahimik. fresh air pa.

The Scud said...

photo cache, sarap nga tumambay dun. ang tahimik.

ahmer said...

i'm back...

hays' na miss ko tuloy mag travel'

WCS Minor Circuit said...

Beautiful pictures. This too is also on my "to travel to" list.

Do you use any special camera to take these pictures?

len said...

We really have to thank God for this!

Sobrang miss ko na ang feeling na sobrang close sa nature.

The Scud said...

ahmer, gumala ka na. you're only young once. :D

The Scud said...

wcs minor ciruit, i use a canon s5is. its a cross between a point&shoot and dslr.

The Scud said...

len, we should. sana ma-preserve pa yan in the yrs to come.

Raft3r said...

wow
sobrang green
ang ganda

Jerick said...

i love valencia. it is pretty cool. it is simple. you can walk around town. almost kinda felt like it was a village, really!

atticus said...

wagi talaga ang dumaguete gyud. :)

i saw a waterfall on the map while i was there. so i asked the locals how to get there, rode a jeep, was dropped off in front of a public market where i saw red bananas, hired a motorcyle, and saw this majestic waterfall. i just love that place.

The Scud said...

raft3r, punta ka dun.

The Scud said...

jerick, tama. para nga lang isang malaking village ang valencia.

The Scud said...

atticus, red bananas! tagal ko na din nakakita nyan dun.