Butuan-Surigao Del Sur-Surigao Del Norte-Butuan : Day 2 - Tinuy-an Falls and Enchanted River

January 9, 2014 - Day 2

Woke up at 4AM inside our room in La Entrada resort. Last night went by quickly as we all slept early because of fatigue.

We arranged a pick up from the tricycle driver who brought us to the resort yesterday. He picked us up at 5:30 and arrived at the highway 10 min before 6 am.

Lucky for us, a bus bound for Butuan passed by. After paying 40 pesos and 30 minutes of travel, we arrived at Barobo terminal.

Here in the terminal, we had a quick breakfast - coffee, bread, noodles, eggs bought from food stalls.

We checked in our bags at The Point Inn located just across the terminal. This is so our only hand carry are the clothes we will use during the tour and leave important stuff in the Inn. For 300 pesos, we rented a room for 2 with electric fan and shared bathroom. Perfect!



We left Barobo terminal at 7:15AM bound for Mangagoy via van. Fare is 90 pesos and travel took 2 hours.

Upon alighting at Mangagoy, our contact person/tourguide we found from a blog - Kuya Loloy - was already waiting. But there were some nosy people asking us if we are going to tour and offering prices even already we told them we have pre-arrangement from someone else. 

There was this one who offered his van for 2000 for all 6 of us for Tinuy-an falls and Enchanted river tour. This could have been a perfect offer since it was drizzling and cheaper compared to 1 thousand pesos per habal-habal good for two guests (3 thousand in total). 

We were so inclined to take the van as it would be more convenient, we won't get wet and safer. But Kuya Loloy said there is this bridge under construction only motorbikes can pass. This triggered us to almost decide to hire the van. But I think this was just Kuya Loloy's desperate attempt to convince us because we never passed any bridge under construction. We even saw other guests coming out of vans and cars!! 

But in the end, we did the fairest thing to do, get Kuya Loloy's service. It's a rough road going there. My friends who were riding in Kuya Loloy's motorcycle said he drives fast, even in rough roads where its so bumpy. I noticed that too, they were always way ahead of us.

Now for those who likes comfort, I highly suggest renting a van. But for those who likes rugged adventure, take the habal-habal. 

Tinuy-an Falls
Entrance: 50 pesos

From Mangagoy town proper, we travelled for 45 minutes.

We were amazed by the vastness of the falls. Unfortuntely, because of the rain we weren't able to do anything else other than take pictures. And the photos weren't nice either. This is how the falls look like during rainy season. 

looks like a lahar eh?!!

Our driver said its best to visit the falls during November when the weather is perfect and water is abundant. December and January are their rainy season.

Enchanted River.

This place is closed since Dec 28, 2014 due to landslide just right beside the cottages. It is said to be closed for a month. No swimming is allowed but they let us see the river and take photos without a charge unlike in Tinuy-an falls.  The river is beautiful and picturesque. Just like what my friend said, it is photogenic. The water is crystal clear!

We witnessed fish feeding session. And the fish are huge!

We were soaked with rain and I was already shivering in cold. Our driver recommended a trip to Sibalom Island. He said we could rent a boat for 100 pesos. We declined as we were closely watching our time. We are supposed to be back in Barobo and leave at 5 pm and it was already 2PM.

Our drivers brought us to the nearest terminal, Hinantuan terminal. Good thing there is public comfort room clean enough to change clothes. We ate lunch at Jam's restaurant also in the town proper. Pedicab and tricycle minimum fare is only 5 pesos.

We left Hinatuan 5 pm and reached Barobo terminal a little passed 5:30 pm. Our plan was to fetch our bags, check out from The Point Inn and travel again up north to Tandag, where it says a 3-4 hours of travel. We are supposed to spend the night in Tandag then travel again the next day for around 2-3 hours to Claver, the drop off to Bucas Grande.

But Ops Man from Bucas Grande texted and informed us that island hopping for the next day is cancelled due to bad weather for the past 3 days. He predicted weather will be okay on Sunday or Monday.

Ok, date check... friday. We immediately discussed what to do next. We scratched our original plan and spent the night in Barobo. We went to a local bar that night and did some karaoke. Imagine, 2 songs for 5 pesos! That was fun!!!

The Point Inn.

Because we spent the night in Barobo, my friends availed other rooms. They got an airconditioned room with tv, Private toilet and bath good for two for 600 pesos and another airconditioned room with tv but shared toilet and bath for 500 pesos. No breakfast included. Hubby and I settled in the 300 pesos fan room that's good for two, shared bathroom. Their shared toilet and bath are too small though but that's okay. What's important is it is clean. The bed and linen are comfortable enough. They have free wifi, which is nice. This Inn is just across Barobo terminal.

That morning, we were surprised to see our friends preparing breakfast in the Inn's kitchen. Good thing the owner let us. Hot and cold water is available for free.

Our stay in this Inn was pleasant. While waiting for a bus bound for Tandag, we stayed in their veranda where we could have a perfect view of the terminal. And when we spotted one, we immediately went down and sped our way towards the bus.