When someone asked me before what my favorite waterfall is near Manila, my lips were always sealed. I’ve known Hulugan for years even before it became famous through social media. My friends and I had kept this place a secret. After all, it was my playground countless times. 📍Hulugan Falls
🇵🇭LUISIANA ADVENTURE PRIMER🇵🇭
✈🛳🚌 How to get to Luisiana, Laguna:
⏺ Ride a bus from Metro Manila to Santa Cruz, Laguna (e.g. DLTB in LRT Taft-Buendia; travel time is 2 – 3 hours depending on traffic condition).
⏺ Transfer to a jeepney bound for Lucban, Quezon (this will pass by the town of Luisiana).
🏄🏝🚴 Sites to Explore/Activities:
⏺ Hulugan Falls, Talay Falls and Hidden Falls of Barangay San Salvador
📌Alight at “Bodega” (travel time: 45 minutes to 1 hour).
📌You can walk or ride a tricycle to get to the jump-off.
📌Register and secure guide/s.
📌The waterfall circuit takes about 1.5 – 3 hours of trekking depending on your pace.
📌Prepare yourself for a muddy trek especially during rainy season.
⏺ Aliw Falls of Barangay San Jose
📌If you are coming from San Salvador, ride a tricycle to get to Dafi Resort which serves as the jump-off.
📌Register and secure guide/s.
📌Expect a muddy trek (takes about 15 – 30 minutes depending on your pace) and leeches or “limatik” especially during rainy season.
When I was still organizing travel events, I was one of the first organizers from Metro Manila who introduced this place to my fellow hikers. 📍Hidden FallsMy other friends from the travel community and I had kept this place hidden for two years or so. We were the only ones from the metro who know about this. 📍Hulugan FallsThe quiet town of Luisiana back then seemed like a never-heard municipality of the province. But considering Laguna’s proximity to Manila, it was quite unbelievable that these waterfalls were just recently introduced to the public. 📍Hidden FallsI already knew about the waterfalls of Luisiana in 2013 but I only visited this town in 2015. Prior to my visit, I contacted one of the councilors and she told me to find the barangay’s secretary once I arrived at the jump-off. 📍Hulugan FallsI was then referred to a barangay official who would serve as my guide. He even had to bring a bolo knife to clean up the path. The trail was not yet manicured and it was seldom used since the locals are the only people who usually visit the waterfall. 📍Hulugan FallsAs you can see in the photo, there was no Hulugan Falls because it was dry season. I was disappointed but traveling is always unpredictable that’s why I was no longer surprised to see this.This huge rock wall where the cascade goes down still looked magnificent. My apologies though for the quality of the image.The same year, my friend from the hiking community organized an event at Buntot Palls Falls and I suggested to include Luisiana in our itinerary. This was the very first time that I showed Hulugan Falls to outsiders. The cascade was not yet that strong as evident in this photo but at least it was not dry compared to my first visit.Still in 2015, I invited my college friend to visit Hulugan Falls. I had been wanting to see this waterfall in its full glory but I am always unlucky. 📍Hulugan FallsJust like my previous trips here, there was no one around aside from us. News about this place had been circulating in social media but it was not yet as famous as it is nowadays.At least the cascade was stronger than my first trips but this curtain waterfall was still not as breathtaking as I was expecting it to be.After washing up, my friend and I then headed to Lucban to have a taste of pancit habhab (a noodle dish famous in this town).Aside from the waterfall circuit that Barangay San Salvador offers, tourists may also visit this waterfall of Barangay San Jose. 📍Aliw FallsI heard about Aliw Falls from one of the guides in Hulugan Falls so I made sure to check it out on my next visit.Before the year ended, my friends and I decided to go to Aliw Falls since photos of it started appearing in social media hence its possible inclusion in the tourism map.The head of the guides’ association in Barangay Salvador was my contact during that time so he accompanied us. It was an early morning trek to Aliw Falls.The cascade was strong but the murky water was not so inviting so I didn’t take a dip.We decided to go up the waterfall to capture this awesome shot.Boy was I so careful for our photo session at the top because the rocks were slippery.We didn’t visit Hulugan Falls this time because all of us had seen it already so we decided to get on a jeepney bound for Lucban. 📍Mustiola’sI came across some blogs about this Filipino restaurant in Lucban with this old-school vibe so we decided to eat here for lunch before going back to Manila.
⏰⏳ SAMPLE ITINERARY:
4:00 AM ETD for Santa Cruz
6:00 AM Breakfast
7:00 AM ETD for San Salvador
8:00 AM Commence trek
9:00 AM ETA Talay Falls and Hidden Falls
10:30 AM ETA Hulugan Falls
12:00 PM Trek back to jump-off
1:30 PM ETD for Dafi Resort
2:00 PM Commence trek
2:30 PM ETA Aliw Falls
4:00 PM Trek back to jump-off
4:30 PM Wash up
5:00 PM ETD for Santa Cruz
6:00 PM ETD for Manila
💰💶 ESTIMATED BUDGET (for a solo traveler): Php 1,500 – Php 1,800
***Expenses may vary depending on personal consumption of food and other necessities. If traveling alone, you will solely shoulder the guide fees and tricycle transfer rates.
By the first quarter of 2016, my friends and I decided to go back to Luisiana. We also included Bukal Falls of Majayjay and some unknown waterfalls in the town of Cavinti. 📍Hidden FallsThis was the first time I saw the other two waterfalls of Luisiana, which complete the waterfall circuit in this barangay. This is called Hidden Falls.Below Hidden Falls is this smaller waterfall known as Talay Falls. We were lucky that the place was deserted when we arrived.The waterfalls of Luisiana during this time was already gaining exposure in social media so the locals already built a less technical trail that serves as the exit if Hulugan Falls would be the last on the list to complete the circuit.Fast forward to a few more months when the rainy season finally arrived, I asked my college buddy to go with me to check out Dampalit Falls in Los Baños. We then headed to Luisiana right after. 📍Hulugan FallsThe first waterfall on our list was Hidden Falls. This is what it looked like during our visit due to heavy rains the previous days.Boy was I so excited to try out my new mirrorless camera to achieve the motion blur I’ve always wanted in capturing waterfalls. 📍Talay FallsTalay Falls was my least favorite among the three so we headed right away to Hulugan Falls where we stayed the longest.The strong grandiose drop of Hulugan Falls was definitely overwhelming at that time.There were portions just like this one that were filled with mini cascades as well. The lower level of Hulugan does not look like this photo during summer.It was a bit difficult to get long exposure shots due to the droplets of water from Hulugan Falls being brought by strong winds towards my camera. So we had to cover the camera with an umbrella and wipe it with cloth every five seconds or so. But it was fun and worth it nevertheless.Just before we climbed up the steep trail en route to the jump-off, we took this shot to capture the expanse of Hulugan Falls.Roughly two years after, my friend and I decided to go on a day trip to Luisiana. The first ones on our list were Hidden Falls and Talay Falls. 📍Hidden FallsIf you want the place all to yourself, it’s much better to visit during weekdays. On weekends, you might have to wait for your turn to capture photos as there are lots of tourists taking pictures as well.We left Hidden Falls and took pictures here right below the main cascade of Talay Falls. It was rainy season so this portion turned into a mini waterfall.This trip of ours transpired on a weekday so there were no other people at that time.Undoubtedly, we saved the best for last. We completed our circuit here at Hulugan Falls. The place was deserted when we reached the waterfall.I have seen loads of majestic waterfalls, especially ones found in Visayas and Mindanao but I gotta admit, this is one of the most grandiose waterfalls that Luzon has to be proud of.If there is one thing that makes the experience of chasing waterfalls in Luisiana unforgettable, it would be the slippery trail because of mud. Just see for yourself. It’s part of the adventure anyway. But I am telling you, once you see the waterfalls in person, you’ll realize that it’s all worth it.We ended our tour at Barangay San Salvador by lunch time then made our way to Dafi Resort at Barangay San Jose which serves as the jump-off point to this waterfall, Aliw Falls.We were lucky that the trail was not that wet or else we would be battling mountain leeches or “limatik”. That’s little me at the top of the waterfall.Just like the previous waterfalls we saw that day, there was no one else at Aliw Falls when we arrived. We were so lucky we were able to get the shots that we wanted.
***For other destinations in Laguna and CALABARZON, you may visit this link.
One Comment
Pingback: