Southern Serendipity

MANILA, Philippines - Serendipity. It’s finding something by “fortunate happenstance,” referring to a Persian fairy tale, “The Three Princes of Serendip.” In a correspondence to a friend, the princes were “always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things which they were not in quest of.”

Cabadbaran, the quaint capital city of Agusan del Norte, is just like that.

Seasoned travelers who look for three elements for a consummate adventure – culture, adventure and nature – this eight-year-old city in northern Mindanao won’t disappoint.

Mayor Dale Corvera, who fathered the town’s conversion into a component city in 2007, noted that Cabadbaran is one of Caraga Region’s emerging tourist areas because of its diverse attractions.

He said that culture and heritage is one of the city’s selling points which make it distinct from its neighboring towns.

Founded in the late 1800s as a municipality, its history dates back to thousands of years when it was still part of the vast Majapahit Empire which spanned across Southeast Asia long before the Spaniards arrived. 

It boasts of a repository of artifacts excavated in its territory decades ago, attesting that it had a flourishing pre-colonial civilization. Currently stored at the makeshift museum in the old municipal building, these relics will soon find a permanent home at the City Museum which will be completed this year.

Jocel Dagani and Florante More of the Cabadbaran Historical Society assert that these ancient finds bolster their long-standing claim that the environs of Butuan City may indeed be the site of the first Catholic Mass in the archipelago in 1521, and not Limasawa in Cebu as generally accepted.

Today, Butuan City is known for its American-era ancestral houses which have survived the ravages of World War 2. Local authorities and heritage advocates are setting up walking tours of the American-era art deco houses which have been mute witnesses of the city’s checkered past. Since they are still inhabited, visits to the ancestral homes should be arranged with the city tourism office.

A must-see is the 111-year-old Don Andres Atega Mansion, regarded as a living museum because it is still inhabited by the owner’s descendants. This well-preserved house has adapted to the changing times by adding contemporary features and rooms without corrupting its stately architecture and interiors. At various points in time, it served as home to prominent personalities when hotels were not yet in place.

Travel back in time and stay at Casa Alburo, a cozy ancestral home-turned-hotel dating back to the Commonwealth era which will surely enrapture you with its Old World feel.

Another mirror of its rich culture is the Dagkot Festival, a religious feast which pays homage to the Nuestra Señora de Candelaria and the symbolic light that the baby Jesus represents upon His purification. Held every Feb. 2, this has inspired barangays to rediscover their pride of place with their own village-level festivities.

Meanwhile, Cabadbaran’s adventure and nature attractions are represented by its rich sea-to-summit ecosystem.

It takes pride in its serene beaches where time stands still. While it may not be as dazzling as the popular white sand getaways, it is not everyday that you can have an infinite stretch of fine sand all to yourself.

The sun mesmerizes as it sets in the horizon of Butuan Bay, and as it gently peers behind the mountains to greet the dawn of a new day.

With the coastal area is Calibunan Marine Protected Area, a showcase for a successful artificial fish sanctuary restoration which is now teeming with 76 species of aquatic life. A pagang coral reef, which was just about the size of the human hand when it was transplanted, has grown into more than three square meters in area. With a depth of 16 meters, it is ideal for snorkeling and free diving.

Flowing out to the sea are verdant rivers emanating from the mountain’s bosom, whose lush forest cover has helped maintain ecological balance. The meandering Cabadbaran River is being groomed as a tubing site with its rushing whitewater, a whole nine-yard span offering an adventure-packed course of more than an hour of adrenaline-pumping fun.

Mountaineering is the common adventure here due to its rugged topography. Towering at 2,012 meters is Mt. Hilong-Hilong, Caraga Region’s tallest peak, considered as among the most technically difficult mountains to ascend and is only suitable for intermediate and expert climbers. It has seven major waterfalls, an ancient rock art, a carpet of giant white anthuriums, as well as unexplored cave systems.

The mountain is also the nest of the endangered Philippine Eagle, habitat of the Philippine wildcat, flying squirrel, tarsier and a microscopic flower not found anywhere else in country. It is also home to some 120 birds species, 59 of which can only be found in the archipelago. It is also a sanctuary of indigenous frogs, reptiles, mammals and ecologically-threatened flora.

Closer to the city is the Pongkay-Mt. Agong-ong Prayer Mountain, a moderate climb whose reward is a breath-taking panorama of Butuan Bay, Mt. Hilong-Hilong and Cabadbaran River. A mountain-top altar invite climbers to take time to meditate.

Higanteng Bato is an amazing geological formation in the city’s hinterlands, the biggest boulder in northern Mindanao. Measuring 54.13 meters tall, 124 meters in circumference and 31 meters wide, this rock has a waterfall and a cool stream at its foot.

With its mix of culture, adventure and nature, Cabadbaran is indeed a serendipitous southern getaway.