Kim's Quest #41: Bolo Bolo Spring - the Secret of Cambugahay Falls in Siquijor

Hello Hiveians!

This is the 2nd part of my Siquijor blog and this will be a standalone post unlike the first part where I shared three places in one post. The reason is simply because I felt this should be in a highlight out of all the parts in this series.

In case you missed the transit on our way to Siquijor Island and the first part of this series, you can find the links below. Please check them out if you have time.

While I was drafting this post, I was actually hesitating because I will be telling a secret and that secret won't be a "secret" anymore. If ever I won't blog about this, I felt that would I be too selfish not share such valuable information. So before I went further, I tried to search about Bolo Bolo Spring and I didn't find any blog that featured it. What I found were two videos that briefly show the spring. I was in a dilemma if I should post this or not, but those videos helped me push through with this post.

I was initially worried about exploitation and over-commercialization of the spring, but I trust that the locals of Lazi, Siquijor will protect their natural resources so, my worries might be too much.

Before I'll tell you the secret, let me talk about Cambugahay Falls itself first. You can find this in any blog about Siquijor.

Cambugahay Falls is a multi-tiered cascading waterfalls and swimming hole that's located a few kilometers away from the town proper of Lazi, Siquijor. Many bloggers claimed that this is one of their most favorite waterfalls in the Philippines and a lot of tourists made this waterfall as their top destination when they visited Siquijor. No wonder a lot of images of Cambugahay Falls can be found online.

One of the reasons why Cambugahay Falls is so popular is its ease of access. The most popular mode of transportation to reach the falls is a scooter. I saw a lot of Caucasians with their rented scooter when we were there. It's just a few minutes walk from the road through the stairs. At the end of the stairs, the first tier of the falls and perhaps the biggest swimming hole will greet you.

The cold and clean water from the springs up in the highlands of the island tempts you to take a dip or try their installed swing to plunge at the swimming hole. The cascades are not so tall, but the area seemed like a natural waterpark. Just be comfortable to be with a lot of tourists that are also enjoying the falls.

When we were there, I didn't hesitate to try the swing and jump into the water in the second cascade. We didn't explore the third cascade because we have a different agenda for the day. I didn't even tried the bamboo raft, the rubber rings, and other water activities. One thing is for sure, when I have the opportunity to be back there, I'll make sure to take a lot of photos as there are a lot of instagrammable locations and angles.

Now that we're done with the falls itself, it's time for the source of Cambugahay Falls that's not known to the outside world except the locals who really know about their place.

If you search about Bolo Bolo Spring, you'll be directed to a faith healing practice of the people of Siquijor. I'll be discussing about that in the next post as we witnessed their Healing Festival during the Holy Week. Anyway, Bolo Bolo Spring is located about a kilometer away from Cambugahay Falls. We never stayed long in the falls because our goal for that day was the spring.

Daphnie, our friend who grew up in Lazi, told us that they didn't usually swim in Cambugahay Falls. Instead, they would go straight to the source. Yes, you read it right! Bolo Bolo Spring is the source that feeds crystal clear water to the river leading to Cambugahay Falls. I just find it so cool that the source is so near to the river system. It's usually high up in the mountains with a lot of tributaries, but it's different. It's actually almost the same feature with Kawasan Falls here in Cebu.

What made it more interesting is that Bolo Bolo Spring is not known to tourists. Maybe it's a little different recently because they have made the name official and based on the video that was uploaded last March, the spring is now well kept. Two years ago, only the locals would go to the spring.

Bolo Bolo is not even an official name before. Daphnie said that the locals just called it "bolo bolo" because of the bubbling spring water. The spring is also one of the sources of clean water in Lazi. I can just imagine the volume of the water gushing out from the ground if there was no tank and water pipes that take a portion of the water. Bolo Bolo is just apt for a name.

Aside from the refreshing dip in the spring, the trip made me realize how valuable it is to have a local knowledge about the area. Without Daphnie, we wouldn't have known about the spring and we would have stayed in Cambugahay Falls without knowing that we are so close to its source.

They say that if you want to be a real traveller, go where the locals prefer instead of going to where the tourists are. There's nothing wrong with going to touristy areas, but for the most authentic experience, the best is to have a local guide. They know their place more than anyone.

Kim Ybañez

_{Welcome to Kim's small corner in Hive. He is a chemical engineer by profession, but a blogger by passion. He is a wanderlust and an adventure seeker. Join his quests as he visits secluded destinations, climbs mountains, tries new and exotic dishes, and explores his country (The Philippines) and the rest of the world even if he's still a poor corporate slave with tons of bills to pay and two siblings to support in college.}

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