Exploring Dumaguete City: Twin Lakes and Casaroro Falls

DUMAGUETE TWIN LAKES: BALINSASAYAO AND DANAO LAKE
Lake Balinsasayao

This is one of the major tourist attractions in Dumaguete and is a protected natural park. I was amazed to know that there were many animal species found here as well as different kinds of trees.
Getting here from the city took a lot of time plus the road was a little bit rough and bumpy. Nevertheless, all the butt aches felt during travel time faded after seeing this magnificent view of the lake. 

 We took a boat to get to the other side of the lake to get a closer look of the two lakes. The boat was manually maneuvered which really made the boat experience more nature-like..

Lake Danao

The two lakes rises about 1000 ft. above sea level. It's a deep crater freshwater lake. The scenery was stunning and I've never been this close to a lake. Coming here was really worth it. This is nature at its best!

When we headed back to the city, we saw these huge boulders of rock. We couldn't get over it so we asked our van driver to make a short stop for us just to have a photo opp. The view was perfect!

THE CASARORO FALLS

I never thought getting here was too difficult. As they say, "No pain, no gain". Nature's wonders were indeed hidden. The Casaroro Falls on posters looked mesmerizing, and so it is! Before even coming here, our van driver gave us an overview on what it will be like in going to the falls, the long travel time and endless trekking but I wasn't expecting that it was going to be very tough. Only the most determined travelers/tourists could bear it.

The Casaroro Falls is located in the town of Valencia. This is one of the major tourist spot in the province. The falls was so hidden deep within the rocky mountains and is a 100 ft. high. Many hiker/climber enthusiasts would come here due to the nature of the place which was very challenging.

Before we even reached the main gate of Casaroro, we had to walk for 15 minutes from where our van parked. The road was still undergoing repairs and vehicles weren't allowed to pass through. It was super exhausting. I almost gave up. The road was rocky with humps, and little mud. The main entrance was just a small hut as expected. I wondered why I haven't heard the sound of the falls. The woman guarding the entrance told us that we still need to go down. We never expected the quantity of stairs that we were about to experience. I believe it was 300 plus steps and just imagine how tedious it would be upon going up. 

When we reached the bottom I still haven't heard the sound of the falls. We were accompanied by our mighty van driver to guide us along the challenging trail. I then realized that my outfit was out of place for the said activity. We climbed rocks, crossed the running water, trekked, and hopped in between rocks. Halfway I wanted to gave up but I heard the alluring sound of the falls which gave me power-packed strength. 

Seeing the marvelous Casaroro Falls was so gratifying. The pains and aches were all worth it. To me this adventure was like a test of strength and agility. Good thing our mighty driver was there to guide us coz without him we might lose hope, turn back, and regret for the rest of our existence that we didn't get to the finish line.

This was an experience I would never forget. Somebody I would want to go back here and hopefully the road going to Casaroro Falls would be finished. But I also thought it would lessen the thrill. Anyways, overall I had fun. We had fun. It was a super great time!

Ciao!