Camiguin: Another day, another falls

The rainy night gave way to another sunshiny morning. And the sunny morning flowed into a hot afternoon.O ur amiable boatman-guide, Jeffrey, found us lodging at the Islet Resort at San Roque town.I t is mere walking distance to the Benoni port which we find convenient as we planned to leave for Balingoan early the next day.

Islet Resort was spartan but the air conditioning was cold. The temptation to slack off was almost too much to resist. But it would be a pity to put the glorious afternoon to waste.

We've been to Katibawasan Falls on our first day so the lure of another falls, Tuasan, seem too good to pass up. Oh, how some of the locals dissuaded us as the trip entails rather long hiking over rough terrain. Through our habal driver-guide, Jun, we gassed up and made the over one hour trip to the town of Mainit. Honestly, the 45-minute walk under the blazing sun is not tiring at all. It's navigating through boulders with wulf's gear that scared me as it was too soon after my mishap at Katibawasan.

But with three young local lasses as our guides, we went through rocky paths, a forest, crossed a river stream and hiked through boulder-filled trails to find this beautiful, unspoiled falls. The falls might not have the 200 foot, dramatic drop of Katibawasan but it is, to my opinion, the more beautiful one.Going back to the jump-off trail before it got dark, we chose to make the hour-long trip to Mambajao, Camiguin's capital, for a rather fancy dinner of pizza and pasta at Rooftop. It's a nice, newly-opened spot that remains open long after the other shops close at 6pm, a nice way to cap our trip.

Tourist info: To get to Mainit, one can hire a habal (public motorcycle) for around P400.T he trip takes approximately an hour. The very rough road going to the jump-off means one has to make the 45min - 1 hour trip to the falls on foot. No special gear is needed but comfortable hiking footwear can help as well as plenty of drinking water.