Karlo Pacana
Triple Drop Falls in Samboan Cebu
HELLO STRANGERS!
We’re off to what the people in Samboan call the Hidden Falls, probably because it is tucked away in a secluded forest? Isn’t that obvious? Laughs! Here are three reasons why you should take a sneak peek at this natural wonder:
Passing by rows of coconut trees
1. ACCESSIBILITY
Well, ironically, among the three grand waterfalls in Samboan, this one is actually the most accessible that you don’t even need a guide to get there.
Safety access ways
Markings on the walls
The path to the falls is already very obvious plus it is only a 10-minute trek from the highway if you won’t take a selfie every minute. Seriously, selfies affect travel time a lot! Laughs. Since it was our first time to the place, we had no choice but to let Kuya Antolino lead the way.
2. IT’S CALLED A LOT OF NAMES
I don’t know if this is a valid reason or not but we found out that this point of interest has a lot of nicknames. One is ‘Binalayan’, which in the Cebuano dialect means ‘a place where houses were built’. Another name is ‘Bonbon’, which means ‘fine sand’. You might wonder how houses and sands got to do with naming the waterfall. According to Kuya Antolino, the waterfall was named as such since it was situated near the sea within Barangay Bonbon, which is a part of Sitio Binalayan.
Triple Drop Falls in all its splendor
The entrance towards the falls
Climbing up the flight of stairs to the destination
Roger that! This little part of town was formerly endowed with fine white sands like that of a ‘polvoron’, the powder-like delicacy. Unfortunately, because of sand grabbing as ingredient in construction throughout the decades, the beauty of its shores was ruined. What you’ll see now are shores filled with broken shells and corals probably brought about by another illegal activity, dynamite fishing. Thankfully, through the support of local tourism, sustainable travel is slowly being practiced in all parts of Cebu.
3. PICNIC AND DIVING AREAS
Back to the trek, we pass through rows of coconut trees, dubbed as the trees of life, since every part of it can be used. At one point in the journey, we saw a heap of coconut husks ready for copra trade. These were probably consumed by the guests who visited the falls. That’s one thing I love about the countryside, whenever you feel hungry and thirsty at the same time, you can just request a friendly local to fetch you some fresh coconuts at a very affordable price.
Picnic areas
These tourists sure love coconuts
Nearing the falls, we pass by a picnic area by the riverbank. There were also tires attached to ropes for swinging and diving. It was a very nice rural set-up since the eating sheds and tables were made from kawayan. Some chairs were also made from the center trunks of trees which I hope were not from illegal logging. Laughs. You can bring the gang here and enjoy a nice salu-salo by the river.
Man-made swing by the riverbank
Capturing the happy moment
Magazine-like pictorials
Hearing the sound of the falls made us excited. Climbing through a flight of stairs, we finally see Triple Drop falls in all its glory. Oh, I almost forgot to explain why it’s called Triple Drop. Ah, nevermind. I guess you know that already. It was after taking the obligatory selfies and magazine-like photo-shoots that we realized that there were three of us travelling together, therefore we had one drop each of Triple Drop Falls. What a useless fact! Laughs. And like little kids, we ran towards the falls’ basin, contented with just floating and swimming, as long as it was completely safe. What we didn’t expect was for Kuya Antolino to join in on the fun despite being in this place a thousand times. Maybe, he got bored or he needed to take a quick bath. He showed and assisted us to the two jump-off points and executed a stunt before touching the water. As the saying goes, follow the leader, and off we had an exhilarating experience!
The obligatory signature pose
How to get to Triple Drop Falls in Samboan Cebu:
Ride the Bato-Barili Ceres bus route from Cebu South Bus Terminal in Cebu City. The bus leaves every hour starting 2AM. I recommend taking the 6AM trip so that you can visit various points of interest in Samboan. Ask the bus conductor to drop you off at Barangay Bonbon after the bridge near Samboan proper. From there, you can walk to Triple Drop Falls and pay an entrance fee of 20 pesos each. Last trip back to Cebu City is 7PM from Samboan. I recommend taking the 5PM trip just to be sure.
Together, let’s FIND THE OTHERS at kingofsinulog.wordpress.com. Later strangers!
