Enchanted River

halmester's picture

Location

Hinatuan
Philippines
8° 27' 32.04" N, 126° 21' 17.658" E
PH
General info: 

A magically clear and blue river that springs from an underground cave system. The photos from the place seem photoshopped but once you get there, you understand it is a real thing.

The water is salty and springs from an underground cave system which is probably the reason for the extreme clarity. There is no dirt or silt in the cave to cloud the water. When looking at the river it seems that you can easily reach the bottom. This is however just an illusion created by the crystal clear waters, the river is actually deep, 25m at deepest.

At peak times the place can get a little crowded with visitors, as there are many who want to experience the waters that locals consider miraculous.

Getting there: 

Anywhere you come from, you should first reach Hinatuan:

From Butuan to Hinatuan
From Butuan Integrated Bus Terminal take bus to Bisling (Mangagoy) and ask the driver to drop you off at Hinatuan terminal. This part is around 5 hours.

From Davao
There is a bus from Davao to Bisling (Mangagoy) via Trento. See below from Bisling to Hinatuan.

From Bislig, Mangagoy to Hinatuan
There are buses/vans to Hinatuan. Hinatuan is less than an hour away from Bislig.

Once you reach Hinatuan, you can hire habal-habal motorcycle to drive you to the river. The price for roundtrip is around Php100 and they charge around Php100 for waiting you.

Costs: 

Entrance fee is Php30 per person.

Cruising along the river is also possible. Price is around P160 per hour with a maximum of 5 people.

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