Minalungao
A Green River Running Between Sixteen Metre Limestone Walls, Two Hours From Manila And Mobbed Every Weekend · General Tinio, Nueva Ecija
THE SUMACBAO RIVER RUNS THROUGH A NARROW GORGE OF LIMESTONE WALLS SIXTEEN METRES HIGH, GREEN WATER BETWEEN GREY ROCK, AND IT IS ABOUT TWO HOURS FROM MANILA. THAT COMBINATION DEFINES EVERYTHING ABOUT THE PLACE. Bamboo rafts are poled up the gorge, there are caves in the walls, a long flight of steps climbs to a hilltop cross with the view back down, and the swimming is cold and clear. AND ON A SATURDAY IT IS MOBBED - Nueva Ecija's best-known day out, packed with families, sound systems and floating rafts hired by the hour, which is a completely different experience from the same gorge on a Tuesday morning. IT HAS BEEN A NATIONAL PARK SINCE 1967 AND IS RUN AS A RECREATION AREA, which is honest enough. COME EARLY, COME MIDWEEK, AND IT IS GENUINELY BEAUTIFUL. Bamboo rafts are hired by the hour and poled up between the walls, the water is colder and far deeper than its clarity suggests, and the life jackets on offer exist for a reason.
Minalungao National Park, General Tinio, Nueva Ecija, General Tinio, Nueva Ecija, Philippines
MINALUNGAO IS IN GENERAL TINIO, NUEVA ECIJA, roughly TWO TO THREE HOURS FROM MANILA by road via Cabanatuan or Gapan. THE PARK KEEPS DAYTIME HOURS WITH AN ENTRANCE FEE; BAMBOO RAFTS, COTTAGES AND TABLES ARE HIRED SEPARATELY and go quickly at weekends. THE HILLTOP CROSS is reached by A LONG FLIGHT OF STEPS - several hundred - and gives the view down the gorge. CAVES IN THE WALLS are entered with guides. SWIMMING IS ALLOWED and the water is cold; LIFE JACKETS ARE AVAILABLE AND SHOULD BE USED, because the river is deeper than it looks in places. IT IS EXTREMELY BUSY AT WEEKENDS AND HOLIDAYS AND QUIET ON A WEEKDAY. THE RIVER RISES FAST AFTER HEAVY RAIN and swimming stops. Bring food; the options are basic.