Spine-chilling Trek in Matin-aw River, San Remigio

Hello! Hi! Mabuhay! How are you Hivers! I hope everyone's doing fine ✨ Have you gone to a place where you heard scary stories about it? Have you risked your life trekking in a risky and arduous trip? Because I have. 👣

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After knowing that there is a river down beneath the mountain, the blood came rushing into my heart. I seek amazing adventures and this is what I have been looking for. So, I asked the folks that live nearby the exact location, the exact way, and the good timing to go there. However, the folks just laughed. The sound of their laughs insinuated a warning. I got even more curious.

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Hmmmmm? What is wrong with this place?

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Facts and Myths of Matin-aw River

Fact: Matin-aw River is located down beneath in the mountainous barangay of Bagtik, San Remigio, Cebu. This river interconnected three barangays. During the rainy season, the river has a water tank that supplies water to nearby places. And during the summer, the tank is empty.

Myth: The people that live nearby often heard the sound of ships that docked in a port. There lived fairies and unknown creatures that sing during the night. There was even someone that went there and did not come back.

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Isn't it interesting? The adventurous spirit in me is driving me to push through this spine-chilling trek.

TO MATIN-AW WE GO

We set off late in the afternoon. From our house, we traveled for 30 minutes going to this mountainous barangay via motorbike. I, my sister @callmesmile, and her husband only brought water, some snacks, and ourselves. We arrived at the drop-off point. No one dared to go to this place so it was only the three of us. From there, we trekked for another 30 minutes to one hour going down. The path was narrow, rocky, slippery, and full of wild plants. One wrong step could make you roll over to the big rocks in the river. The danger? 9/10, I say.

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We finally reached the river. Indeed, the place will give you goosebumps. We were welcomed by the gigantic tree. I've never seen this kind of tree in my life. As I looked around, I saw no enormous trees but only this one.

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The smooth gray rocks were lying on the river beds. You had to crawl and climb for you to be able to be on top of it.

Of course, my TRAVEL SIGNATURE POSE will always be one of my favorites in my photo gallery.

As we traversed and enjoyed the view, we saw this mini waterfall that flowed between rocks. The water is cold and smelt natural.

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This is not the typical waterfall photos where you will stand with the waterfalls behind you as your background. But as you can see, the current flow of the water is abit strong. Might as well save a memory from this.

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When you looked up, you will see tall trees that surrounded the river. The only sound you can hear from the deafening silence is the humming of the birds and the dancing leaves from the breeze of the wind.

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Wait, lemme have some refreshments. I need water! OMG, what insect is that? Take a closer look at my water bottle. Oh! it's a centipede, I think. That is harmless, maybe.

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We followed the trail to where this river would bring us. There was some shallow part and then there was a deep part. Surely, if you wanted to take a dive, you would really have fun. When you stepped on the rocks, you have to be extra careful because they are wet and slippery.

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Then, we took minutes to relax and just enjoyed the fresh air. We also bit some snacks and took some photos.

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Then, we looked for the water pipes that supply the water to the town. And yes, it's really true that there is a tank beneath the mountain, in the river. How is this possible? I mean, who would sacrifice such a thing knowing that the place is quite dangerous and far? Well, Only the old folks that live nearby can answer this question.

Here are snaps the magical beauty of Matin-aw River ✨

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After trekking for an hour, we decided to go back to the gigantic tree to go home. It was getting dark. We would not know what will happen next if we stayed a bit longer. There may be wild animals or a big flood, I don't know. It's time to go home.

Ascending back to the Reality

Going up to go back to the drop-off point was another challenge. You had to climb for not only 30 minutes, but more or less two hours. The slope was slippery because of the dried leaves so you had to hold the roots of the trees that you passed. This was the challenge that I wanted.

We took thousands of deep breaths and hundreds of pauses because we ran out of air.
And finally, we are home.

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According to Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Do not go where the path may lead; Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail". You would not the feeling of being lost on track unless you try. To travel is to feed the hunger of our souls, to travel is to free ourselves. Take a break from work, go to unknown places and most especially, live your life to the fullest.

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Thank you for reading this far. I hope you had fun. have a good one! 💕