Compared to the previous backpacks of the fraternity,
Imelda Falls turned out to be the easiest. Tourism has caught up with this natural wonder
so that a lot of things has been done to make it easier for most people to reach the site:
roads, cemented walks, public bathrooms, etc. Going to Taytay falls is relatively easy,
just take a bus to Sta. Cruz, Laguna (BLTB in Cubao costs about 70 pesos). From there you
take a jeepney ride to Majayjay. The Alphans were lucky though, since a kind hearted soul
asking us for directions to Majayjay actually decided to take us along for
the trip for free. Once you get there, there is a market where you can do your last
minute grocery needs. From here you can take a jeep to the town of Taytay, or if you
can't find one you take a jeep to Lukban and then get off at the road going towards the
Majayjay (Imelda) falls. You can actually walk from this point if you're feeling athletic,
or you may opt to wait for the Taytay jeeps to bring you closer to the falls. Not feeling
too athletic at the time due to lack of sleep, we opted to take the latter
option. Each jeepney ride costs about 5 pesos and travel time for each is around 7-8 minutes. Other
campers actually choose to drive all the way to the parking area, a few minutes from the
barangay station. At the station,
you
pay your registration fee of 20 pesos (if you plan to stay overnight). It's about a
quick 15
minute trek from the station to falls itself, owing to the cemented walks and all. Because
this place is easily accessible, expect a harder time looking for a place to pitch
tent.
We got at the camp a
little before 5 pm. After "claiming" and setting up our spot, we decided to take a dip in
the pool at the falls. The water can be really cold, especially if you dip in it right
before sundown. After a few minutes in the pool, we set off to
cook our dinner using charcoal as burner. Rice and sinigang courtesy of Master Alphan chef
Toby was the special of the night. Dinner took a little longer cooking, because of the
slower burning charcoal as well as the difficulty in doing it in the darkness of night (we
weren't able to start cooking earlier as we had
planned),
but it was well worth the wait. After dinner, the
customary Alphan inuman with Tanduay was carried out during some heart pounding card
games. Lights off after that.
The next day, we woke up at around
8:30 am
and ate breakfast consisting of left-over sinigang from the previous night and grilled hotdogs. After
breakfast, we again set off for the falls, but decided to be a little more
adventurous by
going up near the mouth of the falls. Not satisfied with that, and not
getting the usual "fix" we get from more rigorous climbs, we thought
it would be better to actually look for the source of all this
water (which guaranteed that should you choose to drink the water, nothing would be
'floating' upstream from it).
The search took about 30-40 minutes. It's easy
enough to get to this source, just follow the
water pipes set up by the local people and it leads you to it. There were
several spots which looked like the water source, but we decided that the
one we found at the most upstream location could be safely termed the
'Source'. After
completing this task, we headed back to camp, packed up our bags and headed
back towards Majayjay.
It was actually easier this time since
there was a jeepney waiting for you at the Barangay hall, charging 15 pesos a person to
the town of Majayjay. From there we took the jeepney ride to Sta. Cruz for 11 pesos. We
ate dinner at a local carinderia and then headed off for the bus station. Unfortunately, 7
pm turned out to be too late for the bus company, as no buses plied the route to
Cubao at that time. We were 'lucky' enough to catch one going to Alabang, lucky being a
relative word as we got further delayed by an encounter with the highway police due to
busted taillights. All's well that ends well, we were able to go home, finally, at around
11 pm.
(2000)
(Addendum. Infomration current as of 2000. Prices and routes may have changed)