Malagaslas and Ambon Ambon Waterfalls

There are two waterfalls in Laurel, Batangas which my friend and I  decided to visit- Malagaslas & Ambon Ambon eventhough it was rainy season.   We met at Buendia station of Starexpress at around 730am which was quite late already and boarded the bus heading to Tanauan City . It took us less than 2 hours to reach Tanauan. Upon reaching Tanauan proper,  we hailed a tricycle that would take us to the jeepney terminal bound for Laurel. We were blessed with sunny day.

Jeepney terminal to Laurel

harvested veggied as our co passengers

From the terminal to Laurel, the travel time was less than 90 minutes. We alighted at Laurel market at around 11am and we searched for an eatery to have a snack before proceeding to Bo. Salipit which was the jump off point of the trek to the waterfalls. We found an eatery inside the market compound and ordered Batangas Lomi. The jumbo serving was good for two persons and it cost only P80.

After finishing our snack, we hailed a tricycle that would take us to our jump off point. The first portion of the road was paved but after that it was bumpy road and probably muddy when it is raining. At the jump off point, our tricycle driver offered to be our guide for whatever fee we think was good enough. Since we read several blogs and the guide fee mentioned was P300 , we agreed on that fee. Our guide, Kuya Eddie, led the way.  We crossed a hanging steel bridge. It was fun crossing the bridge with stream underneath it and  trees on the sides.

steel hanging bridge

We paid P5 environmental fee and registered at a small store. Kuya Eddie was sometimes ahead of us and sometimes behind us covering our back. We crossed two shallow streams before reaching Malagaslas Falls.

We decided to go first to Ambon Ambon Falls and then returned to Malagaslas to swim. The trek was quite easy. The trail lead to another shallow stream  which one has to walk through as there was no other way. There were boulders  on the sides and  in the middle of the stream.

Huge boulder in the middle of the trail. 

 

 
At the end this stream, you will hear gushing of waters and finally, you will see the waterfalls.

Ambon Ambon waterfalls is awesome. I read that it is about 60 meters high. There was no pool to catch the falling waters. According to Kuya Eddie, the pool must have been buried by the sands due to development by big land developers above.

There were three bamboo cottages but nobody was tending them so it's for free. We rested in one of the cottages and just marveled at the sight of the waterfalls.

We then returned to Malagaslas falls where we bathed and enjoyed the cold flowing waters.

We were lucky to have seen an orange butterfly landed on a makeshift stove.

We bought sweet banana on a stick at Php10 each.

We rinsed and left the place at 2pm to be able to catch the last jeepney trip to Talisay at 3pm.

We thanked Kuya Eddie for assisting us and we took his phone number for referral. We reached Tanauan market at around 430pm where we boarded a Buendia bound JAM liner.

Overall, we had so much fun in chasing waterfalls at Laurel, Batangas. It was a very memorable adventure.

How to get to Malagaslas and Ambon Ambon Waterfalls
-take a bus going to Tanauan City. fare is P95 from Buendia terminal
-alight at Tanauan proper and hail a tricycle going to jeepney terminal plying Laurel; tricycle fare is P40 and fare to Laurel is P45 each
-From Laurel Market, ride a tricycle to take you to the jump off; all drivers know the jump off point. fare is P65
-hire a guide at P300, though it's optional ; it's better to have a local who knows the trail and can ward off dogs and even snake

Expenses if just one person
-Fare from Buendia to Tanaun and back P95 x 2 = P180
-Tricycle to Laurel Jeepney terminal = P20
-Jeepney to Laurel market and back  P45 x 9 = 90
-tricycle from Laurel market to jump off point and back  P65 x 2 = 130
 -guide P300 ( can be shared if more than 1 person)
-environmental fee = P5
-lomi P40
-Banana Q = 10
Total  P775.00

Bolinao's Enchanted Cave

Bolinao's Enchanted cave is the third cave I have visited so far. I have gone to Hoyop Hoyopan cave in Albay and Hinagdanan cave in Bohol.

Enchanted cave is located just after the arch marker of Barangay Patar. The road is a bit rough and dusty. Without private car, one can catch a tricycle going to the cave. Farther down the road is Cindy's cave. We decided to visit enchanted cave as we heard that since both are similar, you can opt  to visit any.

Parking cost Php30 and entrance fee per head is Php100 which comes with a tour guide. You need to add Php50 if you want to swim inside the cave. We find it expensive. But since we are local tourists wanting to see what's enchanting about this place, we yielded.  It was so hot and humid and at 9am, a lot of locals are already in the area .

Fossilized giant clams greeted us on our way up the concrete stairs leading to the cave.

You will pass a lot of coral stones. I wondered how the fossilized corals appeared in this high area. Could it be that this place is part of the sea bed million years ago?

After passing these dead coral stones, we reached the entrance to the cave. Just like in Bohol, the stairway is concrete. You have to watch your head due to low ceiling.

Inside the cave, it was cramped and humid. There's a big box fan to cool the place. Since it was a weekend,  around 25 people were already inside the cave, some were swimming  in the clear water.

Our tour guide mentioned that they always check the pool for snakes before they allow people to swim. Apparently, snakes like to stay in cool fresh waters. Since the water comes from a natural spring, one can drink it according to our tour guide. The side of the pool is 4ft deep while the middle portion is 7feet. One can rent floaters at the entrance should you want to swim in the middle of the pool.Because the water is super clear, you can see the corals underneath.

We took several pictures of the stalactites and some family group pictures.

We did not stay for long. Unlike Hinagdanan ,  this cave was not spacious and you are bound to pass out because of the heat and humidity. We should have gone here on a weekday when visitors are few.

Though nothing spectacular or enchanting about this cave, one has to visit this  attraction as a way to experience nature's wonder.

Scenic Laguna- Dalitiwan Resort

Inspired by a blog written by a mom who loves to travel on a budget, we searched for Dalitiwan Spring Resort. After several wrong turns we finally found the resort.

We got a room for Php2400 which we found to be unreasonable considering the lack of basic amenities. The room most likely has not been used for months . The water that came out of the faucet and toilet flush was so dirty and blackish. The caretaker informed us that water would become clearer later. We left the faucet on for more than 15 minutes until it became clear. We flushed the toilet several times until the water was no longer muddy brown. The caretaker put on fresh bed linens and pillow case. There's one stand fan, no aircon, no TV, no hot water, no table inside the room nor cabinet to hang our clothes. While there's a big table and some plastic chairs outside the room, they're all dusty.

The great consolation was the view and the nature it presented.

There's a big swimming pool but there's no restaurant. The water in the pool was iced cold. I understand that the water comes from Mt Banahaw. It is natural, unchlorinated but super cold. I admired some guests who were able to swim despite the cold water.

All visitors bring food or can cook food that's why there's no need for restaurant. But I believed that the resort should have a small store where small stuff can be bought.

There's a hanging bridge where one can cross to the other side of the brook. Water cascading was nice to behold.

 There's a waterfall; underneath you can bathe and feel the water pouring on you. Again, it's ice cold.

I took several shots of the flowing waters at slow shutter speed for a nice smooth effect.

We had pizza and cup noodles for dinner. Good thing we brought cup noodles, water, an electric kettle  and the usual stuff when going out of town.

Since there's nothing to do or watch or listen to , we decided to sleep early. It was cool at night. Luckily, some guests arrived and staying overnight.So  we were not alone. They occupy the room next to us. I prayed and hoped that they would not make loud noises. and they didn't.

As the dawn broke, I woke up and freshened up. It's not yet breakfast time so I gathered my camera and tripod went down the stream to shoot while there was no crowd yet.

 
After breakfast, since we would not swim and there's nothing else to do, we checked out at 9am and headed to the rest of our destination- Cavinti, Lagos del Sol, Lake Caliraya, Paete, Los Banos, Tagaytay and finally, home.

Notes:
I don,t recommend staying overnight; a day tour is sufficient. entrance fee is 150 per head for adult, bring all the food you can bring. but if you do , dont complain about the lack of basic amenities and just enjoy nature.