Must trust strangers | Pantukan, Davao de Oro

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Maybe next time

There were three waterfalls I wanted to visit in Maragusan, namely: Marangig Falls, Tagbibinta Falls and Pyalitan Falls. Tagbibinta Falls left me and my tourist guide hungry as we missed having our lunch on time. It was almost two (2) in the afternoon when we arrived at Maragusan Proper. The downside of traveling far away from the city or town proper is that food might only be available in the town centers; there were no restaurants or carinderias along the way. We ate in one for the decent carinderias in the heart of Maragusan. I also met the son of the owner of Calamba Farm. Don't get too excited! I'll show you around this farm soon!

My wet clothes dried out from the prolonged time of water inactivity, but the cold didn't bother me. Wasting no time, we drove to our next destination, Pyalitan Falls. I could sense that my guide was excited to take me to Pyalitan Falls; he drove as fast as he could on the almost empty road of Maragusan.

The town proper rests on the flat terrain part of Maragusan or what one might rightfully call a valley. Pyalitan Falls is located in the mountainous section of Maragusan; it was only right that a few minutes into the travel we were already ascending the hills and at some point, I saw the beautiful town proper from above.

A few more minutes on the main road took me breathless. Maragusan was serene with all those mountains surrounding us, and banana plantations everywhere I looked; there were more banana trees here than houses and peopl 😂 We took a right turn somewhere and started taking a steeper road that would take us closer to Pyalitan Falls.

A few more minutes of navigating an unfamiliar and empty road led us to this part of Maragusan which was unlike anything I've seen in my life. Honestly, I don't have the slightest idea if this is still part of Maragusan or the next town already.

Noticing that the road looked unusual, my guide parked his vehicle first and walked a few meters to check if the road was still passable. While he was checking I wandered off. I then realized that the type of soil in this part of my country has a unique characteristic. It's sandy in composition; it's like a beach without the ocean. Checking the surrounding, I rolled out that with one heavy rain the entire mountain where we stood could easily crumble down.

My heart sank the instant my guide came back with a piece of news that I didn't expect to hear. "The road is impassable, Ma'am!" he said. "If we want to reach Pyalitan, we need to walk from here all the way to the next few hills right in front of us", he added. I would love to see Pyalitan but all things considered especially the total time it'd take to get there and back, I don't think that was the day we were meant to see Pyalitan. With a heavy back, we retraced our journey.

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Let's skip to the good part

I thought that was it; my day will end with a heartbreak. But my guide was quick to suggest another waterfalls; in fact, he insisted we visit this one despite time ticking away like crazy. Hearing how massive this next waterfall is, my excitement was over the top once again.

We went back to the national highway and took the road going south of Davao de Oro. I later learned that the waterfall isn't part of Maragusan already but another town called Pantukan. The valley faded in the background and minutes on the road all I could see were mountain ranges hidden in the thick afternoon mist.

At this point, rain was just around the corner and I could feel the air getting colder by the minute. The fog was thicker than anything I've seen before not to mention this place looked like it has been deserted a long time ago.

We passed by the main entrance of Salvosa Falls and had to pay a minimal amount to the attending gatekeeper. We drove about 200 meters more and reach the open lot parking area.

This is the point where we needed to trek and get wet again before reaching the main event. We got lucky that the trek was short and relatively easy.

There was no one around; the cottages for rent were empty with no signs of life or whatsoever. It kinda felt creepy when we entered the premise to be honest especially when the fog started to grow thicker.

In order to reach the waterfalls, we need to walk across this makeshift bamboo bridge that hung above the raging water coming from the waterfalls. There were no stable railings to hold on to but we managed to cross safely.

We climbed up a makeshift bamboo ladder too. I was really anxious on our way to the waterfalls as it was too slippery not just wet but mossy. When we finally reached Salvosa Waterfall, the fear subsided and instantly replaced with glee. My disappointment from not reaching Pyalitan Falls earlier that day was replaced with the unbelievable astonishment of the sight of this waterfalls.

Salvosa Falls is massive and ice-cold. It looked unmaintained at all. There were signs of natural disasters hitting the place everywhere you glance but whoever is managing the site did nothing to at least clean up the mess. I tried dipping but I couldn't take more than five minutes in the water. ❄🥶

Rain fell down and that was our cue to go back to Maragusan. Salvosa Falls was already scary with its enormous and unstoppable flow and I'm afraid that with the heavy rain ahead, a sudden flash flood might occur in the area. So we hurried back to ensure our safety!

Before dropping me off at my homestay for that night, my driver took me where I could see the river below us; when we reached there the river looked minute, a clear indication that we are in a very elevated portion of Pantukan. The rain fell and I reach my homestay safely and with a grateful heart. If not for my guide who went out of his way (literally, lol!) to give me the best one day waterfall hopping in Maragusan and Pantukan, I would've cried deep within and hated how circumstances stopped me from reaching the destinations I intended to go in this Province, But thank God for strangers! 🥰

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