Growing up, I never fancied myself to be the active kind. I was not even into sports, except those times when it’s part of PhysEd and I have to do it or else I’ll flunk my class. It was only later in life, when I learned to appreciate nature and the great outdoors, that I took that proverbial leap and started to take on new things in ‘uncharted territories’, so to speak. One of them was zipping down a line or, as they call it, ziplining. And my first time was on the first ever zipline course in Mindanao.
I do not have a fear of heights, but I do feel nervous about riding rollercoasters (because I have visions of my innards getting tangled up inside me – not a pretty picture, I know. Sorry.) and, although I have no problem with speed in general, it’s not something I actively seek out.
But then I tried a zipline. And fell for it hook, line, and sinker.
This took place less than 5 years ago so, yes, this is a major #ThrowbackThursday post. At that time, Pugad Pugo Adventure in nearby La Union was already in operation, and it’s making headlines in our city for its zipline. Needless to say, I never tried it (still haven’t, to be honest) before going on this trip to Cagayan de Oro.
Our trip was in line with a work-related convention-seminar. We arrived at Cagayan de Oro City on the first day of the convention, which turned out to be devoted solely for registration of participants. Since we were able to be one of the first to register in the morning, we had the whole day to ourselves. We made no plans (this was before I learned about doing massive research on a place I am visiting) so what the four of us did was approach the counters occupied by travel agencies, advertising their tour packages, and took brochures.
We pored through some of them and looked for places close to the city, since we only had a day and we wanted to be able to see (and do) as much as we could. And our eyes fell on Gardens of Malasag Eco-Tourism Village, which we reached via a combination of jeepney and motorcycle rides from town. We spent around an hour walking around the Village, until one of the motorcycle drivers (who were waiting for us), told us about a place not far from there, that offers more activities.
It’s the Mapawa Nature Park.
We really didn’t know what we were in for, but we figured that we could try something new, and we were told they have zipline activities. All four of us looked at each other and said, “why not?”
When we arrived at the reception area where we were asked to register and pay a corresponding fee, I already took note of the many activities that the place has to offer. They even have folders with details on those activities and, my thoughts were, “this is an outdoors and sports enthusiast’s haven” and “if only this place was close to Baguio…..”.
Pressed for time, we just opted to try their multi-stage ziplines.
Now, let me be clear about this: none of us four ever tried this before. Two guys, two girls, and we were all zipline-virgins. And we were open about our fear of it. Granted, the staff were very reassuring, telling us that it is safe, and they are actually quite low, and not too fast, and not too long, either.
But it’s our first time, OKAY, so we are allowed to at least feel more than a little jittery.
Nerves aside, though, we were quite excited. I think this is where my thirst for “trying something new someplace new” started to awaken.
The zipline course of Mapawa Nature Park is said to be the “pioneer zipline in Mindanao”.
I cannot recall clearly how many, but there are several stages to this zipline course, with one stage being more challenging than the previous one. It’s not automated, so there are park attendants standing by on each stop, waiting to catch you when you zip in.
The first time was mainly a battle with my nerves. On hindsight, it did not look all that scary. I have done crazier stuff since then but, at that time, the idea of being suspended off the ground with only a cable and a lock (made of metal though it is) did not sound… safe.
But it was fun~~~ Exhilaration washed over me. And I found myself looking forward to the next stage. As you can see, we were zipping through a forested area. We were practically zipping from one tree to another.
It’s not purely a zipline course, though, because there is a part where we have to walk on a single rope while holding on to another. As you can see in the pic below, we were not properly dressed for an outdoors adventure. It shows how ‘green’ we were, and how we just literally came from the airport to the venue of the Convention, haha!
And this is an obligatory photo taken of my friend and colleague Pedz, whose camera took all the photos I am posting here. Thanks, bruh!
After maybe three short zipline traverses from tree to tree, we arrived at a longer portion of the course, this time with a more wide open area underneath, and quite longer, too. At this point, nerves and fear were completely gone, replaced by excitement and thrill. WE ARE SO LOVING THIS!
The final stage involves a zipline along the length of the stream of Mapawa Nature Park.
I think I got one of the best possible introductions to ziplines through this visit. The course was challenging to a certain extent, but not too daunting that you will not want to do it initially. The staff are also friendly and very chatty. Very. Chatty.
At the end of the last stage, all four of us were hugely satisfied. The staff mentioned about another zipline in another province, which we should definitely try. It is the zipline over at Dahilayan and is the longest zipline in Asia (at that time). We weren’t sure about our schedule for the rest of the trip, but our eyes started glinting and our brains whirring and working overtime. Again, WHY NOT?
If you look at the website of Mapawa Nature Park and check out the pic below, you will notice that there are a lot of activities on offer. After all, the entire property is around 2,500 hectares! I was especially intrigued by the waterfalls, but they said it would take more than half a day to one day. I don’t know when I’ll be able to visit CDO again, but…. maybe….?
I cannot remember exactly how much we paid, but I think it may have been around Php 250.00 per person, and that already covers the zipline’s full course. You can check out the going rates here.
I think it helped that I was also with amazing company. We were all beginners, we were all nervous, but we were all willing to give it a try. Some were more apprehensive than others but, in the end, we went for it. Thank you, Majo, Pedz and Sammy~
“I’ve always wanted to stop dreaming and start doing” was the tagline in the Mapawa Nature Park posters and banners that we saw. Quite fitting words, especially when I look back to the ‘me’ back then. *pats self on the back*
After this trip, I think we made plans to visit the closer-to-home Pugad Adventure to try it out… but we never got around to it. Or, maybe it just felt anti-climactic, not after what we experienced next in what I would like to refer to as my ‘zipline education’.
And that, my friends, is the next post. My “sophomore” zipline adventure at Dahilayan. See you then!!
Before I wrap up, here’re a few shots of a friend we met at the reception area of Mapawa Nature MisamisMisaPark. I wonder if he’s still there, trying to grab cameras.
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