Day 1: Dahilayan & Nasuli Spring

On our first day, our itinerary is to visit Dahilayan and Nasuli Spring. Dahilayan is about 3 hours from Cagayan de Oro.

But before reaching the park, we had a stopover at Del Monte in Manolo Fortich and took a photo on the big pineapple and the signage. (This is my first time to stop here and took a photo after a couple of trips here.)

Then, our roadtrip continued…

After travelling for less than an hour, we finally arrived in Dahilayan. Dahilayan is a Barangay in Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon.

Dahilayan has two parks, the Dahilayan Forest Park wherein you can experience their Luge, ATV & Buggy Ride, Tree Top Adventure, hanging bridge and a park for everyone. They also offer accommodation for an overnight stay and restaurant for guests to dine.

The second park is the Dahilayan Adventure Park that includes the famous Asia\’s First Longest Dual Zipline, Drop Zone, Rope Course, Python Roller Zipride and a lot more. There is also a package that includes a round-trip transfer from CDO and water rafting activity. Picnic Grove is located here where guests can rent a room for overnight stay.

You can check their sites for the rate of the rides and the accommodation. They also offer shuttle from CDO for a hassle-free trip via Magnum Express.

Then we planned to try their Buggy which costs Php 1,200 for 2 persons. As we reached the briefing station, we were asked to weigh. And so, we obliged. Unfortunately, they have a weight requirement of 110 kgs for the two persons. But, we were all overweight. Unfortunately! 🙁 #strike01

So we went to the bridge and took a picture until Toj decided to try Zorbit. He really wanted to try it. Then, he went to the cashier booth. A few minutes later, he was running back to us and told us that they need two guests in order to do it. The bad thing is that no one wanted to try it because the rest of us was afraid that we might feel sick after. Too bad! 🙁 #strike02

Finally, we all agreed to try the ATV ride since we can all do it except for Maize. We went back to the briefing station, they gave this paper which we need to show to the cashier for the payment and signed the waiver. After that, the staff oriented us on how to use it and the rules. Then, the two guides (one in the front and the other in the back) arrived for the trail which is 3.5KM. With the kind of environment Dahilayan have, it will surely be a wonderful experience.

After a few minutes, we finished the ride with disappointment. The trail is amazing with all those trees and overlooking view. But, the guides are not that approachable, friendly and helpful. The ATVs are not that well maintained. Toj kept on going to the side but the guides are not that helpful to bring him back to the trail. It came to the point that I shouted for the guide in the front to help him because he just kept on telling Toj to move backwards. But how can he do it if his ATV has powered off. They did not even let us stop to take some pictures. Actually, just once because we kept on nagging the guide in the front. It seems like they are both in a hurry. That\’s why we decided to write a comment at their reception. I hope they will take action on it.  What can I say! 🙁 #strike03

However, we did not let this not good experience ruined our trip. We all travelled far and we won\’t let anything destroyed the fun. So, we then headed to Dahilayan Adventure Park.

It\’s my third time visiting this place and I already tried their zipline. But 3 out of 7 are first timers and Toj wanted to try the rides.

When we arrived, Toj & Maize went to the cashier booth. When Toj was about to buy the ticket of the ride he wanted to try, the window was placed with the Lunch Break signage. And so, they both came to us with Toj voicing out his disappointments and the rest of us laughing. That what friends are for, ya know. They will be open again by 1PM which is an hour away and we are all hungry.

So, we decided to have lunch and proceed to our next stop. With Toj babbling while eating and the rest of us laughing again. Hahaha!

We had our lunch at Pinutos Restaurant. After that, we head to our next stop, Nasuli Spring in Valencia. We travelled for about 1 to 1.5 hours to get there. Since we have not taken a bath the whole day and it was already around 3:30PM, we decided to take a dip in the cold spring (Literally, cold! hehe..).

The entrance fee is Php 50 for adults. Their life jacket is for rent at Php 50 and so their salbabida or lifebuoy.

The place is serene and perfect for some relaxation especially after the disappointments we had and the sweaty feeling of not taking a bath. 😛

This lovely place welcomed us.

There are only few visitors when we got there. And we have the chance to enjoy the place.

By the looked of these photos, we really had a great and fun time in the spring. We were able to relax, bond and freshen up at the same time.

The resort is open until 5PM only. So, we decided to just changed to dry clothes and head to our next stop before going to Maizel\’s house.

Maize had to do some errands for the baptism of his nephew the next day. And we did some grocery shopping for their vitamins (meaning Emperador and Tequila) and the cake for Tatay.

Since, it will take us about 2 hours to reach MN Farms in Don Carlos, Bukidnon, we stopped in a carenderia for dinner. Their lechon manok and liempo tasted so good.

After dinner, we headed to the farm/hacienda of Maizel\’s family where we will be staying. It was around 8PM when we reached there and her family was still awake.

After settling down to our room, we then planned for the surprise for Tatay. Too bad I cannot post here the video of the whole surprise but I can say that it was successful. We brought the cake with magic candles (those candles that keep on lighting unless you will put them in the water) then broke eggs on his head (5 eggs if I am not wrong and that was painful and smelly). Hahaha! But Tatay is so assuming, really assuming that the cake we bought was for him. And it seems he was expecting for the surprise except for the eggs. 😛

Then, we ended the day with some drinking and eating session while watching IT. 😀

P.S. Prior to our trip, Maizel told me that the mobile signal in their area is not that good. However, they have a Wi-Fi that we can connect to. But, I told her not to give the password to us so that we won\’t be just spending our time on the phone.

And it really did happen. We were just able to use our phones to take photos. But, the good thing was that we were able to talk and bond with each other. Instead of just browsing the net or our social media and chatting or stuff like that. This is a good way to make everyone closer. 🙂

After the IT movie, we decided to head back to our room and sleep. Because we cannot wait for our activity the next day. 😉

TIPS!

1. You can go to Dahilayan through their Shuttle service but better check the schedule and the meeting place ahead. If not, you can commute but it will gonna be hard.
2. These tips are based on the strikes I put on a hashtag above. 🙂
   • If you want to try buggy, make sure that you and your partner will weigh 110 kilograms only. So if you have a total weight of 112kg, diet diet lang ng slight bes! hehehe
   • If you want to try Zorbit, convince someone from your group to try it. Otherwise, convince yourself not to try it. 🙂
   • If you want to try ATV ride, negotiate with the guides before the ride that you want to have stopovers to take some shots. And that make sure of your safety always. Take it slow but sure. You will pass an area that might let you fall on the cliff or to the road below. I almost fell. Good thing was that there\’s a railing. Otherwise, they will pick me up on the road below with maybe a broken leg. 😛 Thanks God we were all safe. <3
   • If you are going to Dahilayan Adventure Park, make sure that you were able to buy the tickets and take the rides before or after lunch break. Because all of them are really taking the lunch break.
   • It is best to plan ahead on what rides you will try. But unplanned things can be fun too. Just make sure that you have enough time to try everything that you want.
3. Use some sunscreen when you are out. Dahilayan is not so hot but still it can damage your skin being exposed from the heat of the sun.
4. Prepare a coat or sweater in case it will really be cold.
5. You can bring foods for lunch and snacks. I am not just sure if there is corkage or none.
6. It is better to rent a car or van to get there so that you can follow your own time. There are many for rent vehicles in CDO that offer a tour to Dahilayan.
7. If you are going to visit Nasuli Spring, ask ahead about how to get there. Or use Google Maps. The road going there is kinda confusing especially if it is your first time.
8. An afternoon visit is a good time since the water is so cold.
9. Relax and take a good dip.
10. The roads in Bukidnon are kinda dangerous because there is this zigzag road. So make sure to always be careful when driving and not that fast.

And do not forget to enjoy and live the moment! You cannot be there all the time. 😉