As I flew back to Manila on my way home to Seattle, Washington, USA, the memory of Tinago Falls in Linamon, Lanao del Sur kept coming back in my mind. "What a beautiful and amazing place," I said to myself.
My cousin-in-law, "Kagawad" Tata Chang (husband of my cousin, Susan Pajo Yu) who are also the owners of Barrio Canton Restaurant in Magoong, Linamon, and DBP canteen in Iligan City, toured me around the hidden falls.
It took us almost 20 minutes of hiking before we reached the hidden falls of Tinago. Judging from the number of foreign tourists we saw at the site, it seemed the Tinago has ceased to be hidden from the public eye. The visitors came from as far as India, Japan, Australia and the US. They came in pairs as married couples, sweethearts, and honeymooners.
Tinago Falls is hidden in a deep ravine. The falls cascade beautifully into a lagoon the water of which is calm, deep and icy. It is said to be the sanctuary for weary souls who long to find itself in nature. The water as it falls 55 feet below often cast a rainbow.
As I stepped into the bamboo raft that would bring me closer to the Tinago Falls, I felt the cold shower from falls that create calming and invigorating effects on me.
Mayor Cheflit R. Macas of Linamon developed the Tinago Falls for which he was awarded the CY2002 Gawad Galing Poor awardee.
The tourist spot is well-secured with the presence of military troops. Every visitor is searched as they arrived at the checkpoint.
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