Niagara. Angel. Iguazu. Victoria. Maria Cristina. The list goes on.
Perhaps one of the beauties nature offers to mankind that people in the metro do not see ever so frequently is a waterfall. Many city inhabitants are deprived of its beauty simply because there is none in the metro. Or if there is one, it surely is man-made. Imagine what these people miss – a breath-taking view of playful water that freely and briskly falls from an edge into a wide basin whose water runs profusely toward its many conjunctions or exits – wait, just describing a waterfall alone gives us an imagery you would want to see for yourself – surely a paradise!
But don’t despair, mga kabalikat, we have Laguna, which is just so close to Manila. Laguna harbors the world-famous Magdapio Falls, or what is internationally known as the Pagsanjan Falls. Contrary to its name, Pagsanjan Falls is not located in the town of Pagsanjan but in Cavinti, about three miles from Pagsanjan, so local people prefer the name Magdapio Falls, based on a legend of a man named Magdapio, whose brother died from drought. According to local folklore, he asked water from their tribe gods, who eventually provided him so through the waterfalls.
Regardless of what people call it, Magdapio Falls never fails to attract tourists, fellow Filipinos and foreigners alike, totaling five hundred to seven hundred visitors daily. The Magdapio Falls offers a gorgeous – yes, I daresay gorgeous – view of nature.
The jump-off point is in Pagsanjan, that is why it is mistakenly called the Pagsanjan Falls. Before reaching the breath-taking view of the 90-meter falls, tourists have to go through sixteen rapids. Let me say that again in case you missed it: SIXTEEN rapids! For more than an hour, boatmen and passengers experience the adrenaline rush of traversing the mighty water of Magdapio River towards the falls – the former struggles to maneuver the canoe, and the latter strives to maintain balance amid the gusty rapids. Unfortunately for the thrill seekers, during rainy months, the water level rises, so there are less than sixteen rapids. The adrenaline rush is still at its peak although the voyage to the Magdapio Falls is cut short during this season because of some imminent dangers. For safety measures, should it rain when you go there, I suggest you take a pass at the seemingly thrill-filled rapid adventure that might bring you harm instead.
Aside from the Magdapio Falls, several other falls greet the tourist along the Magdapio River, including the Talahib Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Kaluykuy Falls and nineteen others. These may not be as magnificent as the Magdapio Falls but, definitely, they are a sight to behold!
If tourists do not want to experience going through the exhilarating rapids, they have the option to take the land-based route to the Magdapio Falls. The municipal government of Cavinti developed the Cavinti Eco-Park, also known as the Pueblo El Salvador Eco-Park and Picnic Grounds. It was opened to the public in November 2007. If the water-based route is full of excitement, the land-based is, nevertheless, as exciting as shooting the rapids! The Eco-Park traverses the tourists towards the Magdapio Falls presenting as many types of scenery that are definitely very pleasing to the eyes as you pass through the Magdapio River route.
Unlike the shooting the rapids adventure, where tourists only brace themselves for the mighty water, opting to travel the Eco-Park way enables the tourists to experience several fun-filled, excitement-loaded experience. From the jump-off point in Barangay Tibatib in Cavinti town, a 15-minute trek leads to the first panorama – the Nakulo Falls. Soon, the Talahib Falls brags also about its beauty. Within the Eco-Park are the 368-meter Tibatib Nature Trail and View Area, where several waterfalls can be seen, the Bayakan Falls, and the view of Magdapio River and the tourists that shoot its rapids.
Another view inside the Eco-Park is the statue of El Salvador del Mundo, the patron saint of Cavinti. Proximate to the statue is another trek, an area where the tourists are wrapped with harness to descend through the metal ladder; tourists can also rappel so they can experience the feeling of freely descending, of course with harness, through the 672-step ladder. At the end of the rappelling experience awaits the majestic view of the Magdapio Falls! But the Falls will not have its majestic view sans the beauty of nature surrounding it – flowering plants, trees, vines, colorful birds, frolicsome monkeys and other plants and animals, among others.
Should you wish to spend the night there, you can choose from a wide variety of hotels and hostels that would surely suit your taste and budget. And if you choose to do so, I would recommend that you wake up before the sun rises. Watching the morning sun’s rays as they hit the waterfall, even from just your room’s windows would definitely make for all the money that you spent.
Tourists also have the option to go near the Falls through the rafts. Not only will rafting allow tourists to feel the strong water of the Magdapio Falls, it will also deliver them to the mouth of the “Devil’s Cave,” whose main door is the Falls. The cave is named so because many believe that its opening resembles that of a devil’s face.
Truly, tourists witness the paradise in Magdapio Falls. What makes it more beautiful and crowd-drawing is the beauty of nature that tourists behold on their way to the Falls. The several mini-falls greeting the tourists, the adrenaline rush experience with the mighty rapids, the sight of the playful monkeys and other animals, the blooming flowers of plants – every sound of Mother Nature seems music to the ears of every tourist. Sure, the Falls is so scenic, so delightful to the eyes. But what makes it distinct, what makes it a paradise is the splendor of nature, the fusion of all pleasing sceneries that God has seemingly situated from the start of the trek until the very location of the Magdapio Falls.
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