"Aside from being bored in front of the computer that i need some stretching, I must admit, I did went there to see the fury of the waterfalls after a heavy downpour"-pagnapagna
Going to Tangadan Falls at these times where there are typhoons and heavy downpours, the Bucao-Duplas route is not recommended as the river swells and becomes wild. It would be wiser to take the Kilat-Amontoc route or the mountain route. At the Tangadan Falls, it is also not advised to swim or take a dip in its waters. Best to just relax and watch.
It was July 5, 2015 (Sunday) when La Union was under signal #1 due to the tropical storm Egay with the international name Linfa. Flooding were experienced in most parts of the province.
July 7, a Tuesday, I decided to go to Tangadan Falls.
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-my pagnapagna-
(July 7, 2015 a Tuesday)
It was still raining as i stepped down from the jeep at downtown San Gabriel, La Union, then i rode a tricycle that brought me to the sitio of Kilat.
With an umbrella to shelter me from the rain, I started walking uphill on that road going to barangay Amontoc. I removed my jacket to cool me down as heat was developing inside.
At barangay Amontoc just near sitio Siwsiwan, I was greeted by a rushing home-made carts with two kids riding. I smiled and laughed inside as i remembered my childhood days.
I continued walking through the light rain and saw again the waterfall by the roadside which is only much visible during these heavy downpours. It still amazes me the second time around.
Continued walking at the cemented road and encountered some small landslide along the way. The soil on those landslides that had covered the road were mushy soft and turned to mud as i stepped into them. I washed my muddy shoes on the roadside water run-offs. The very steep roads were also part of the difficulty.
It was around twelve noon when I finally arrived near the residential area and it was time to go down to the river below. On my way down, along the trail, I met a group of people coming up and one of them i recognized as one of the "care-takers" of the Tangadan falls area. I understand that they just came from working at the rice fields and they were going home for lunch.
"Adda tao ba idiay baba?" (Is there someone below?) I asked and he replied "Wen, ada maysa napan nga kadwa mi" (Yes, one of our companion went there).
Passed by the rice fields and continued going down at the concreted steps. There it was the raging river and further down was one of their companion checking his fishing poles.
His name is Valentin.
 |
| Mang Valentin's catch |
His name is Valentin.
I asked a favor from mang Valentin to take photographs of me as I did not have my tripod for the camera.
I learned from him that the water of the falls nearly got to the brim of the natural stone viewing area during the onset of tropical storm Egay last Sunday.
Afterwards i thanked him and went back to the concreted steps to go back. It was an all uphill walk.
At a roadside house with a store, i bought a soft drink and a biscuit.
I had a conversation with the owner of the house with a store. She was around 70 years old. In our conversation, we talked about the casualties of drowning in the waterfalls and how even through Holy Thursdays and Holy Fridays that people come to swim in the waterfalls. She said that back then, people observed those days with reverence to the sacredness of the day. Nobody goes swimming on those holy days, we only go swimming on the "Sabado de Gloria", she said. Time had changed, she added.
After a while I hit the road again until I reached the waiting shed where the motorcycles usually stops. There i saw again a group of children riding their home-made carts.
Afterwards I continued walking on the cemented road, passed by barangay Kilat and continued walking again until i reached the intersection going to barangay Bucao. There I got tricycle ride back to downtown San Gabriel.
Hungry, I went to eat "papaitan" at the supermarket's food court.
Well, that was the day's walk.
I rode a jeep bound for Home Sweet Home.
-end of pagnapagna-
CLICK HERE for another post on Tangadan Falls after a storm.
Note:
Please visit the San Gabriel Municipal Hall
Please visit the San Gabriel Municipal Hall
As of September 2016, every visitors are required to register and pay a certain fee at the San Gabriel PNP (Police) office.
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