Canyoning in Moalboal, Cebu

Moalboal in Cebu is foremost known for its excellent diving spots. But over the last couple of years, thanks to the guys of Planet Action Adventure, Moalboal got a reputation as the Adventure Sports Mecca in the Philippines . Always keen on new experiences, I joined recently one of the most exciting adventure trips offered by Planet Action Adventure: Canyoning at the Montaneza Falls . Little did I know what lay ahead of me.

We started at 9 o'clock in the morning. The huge Action Truck, handmade and adjusted by the Planet Action Team to jungle terrain, brought us in a 1 1/2 hour ride up to the deep forested mountains of Cebu . I heard before that Cebu is deforested, but that is simply not true. There is still plenty of jungle and clear waters up in the mountains; even locals visit seldom these hidden places. We went higher and higher, until we stopped some where in the wilderness. We unpacked the ropes and climbing material and off we went. After following a path for 10 minutes or so, we came to the first waterfall we intended to rappel down. All in all we planned to rappel four falls, plus a major jump from a lower fall. At the beach we had gotten an intro in basic rappelling techniques, but now we were faced with the first 10 meter fall. We donned our equipment and slid down the rope, steadily feeding the line, hearts pounding in our chest, the cheers of our friends in our ears, water rushing all over us. A great experience and we felt good.

Off we went to the next fall, which was great fun, too. A little bit further down awaited us another one, and guys, this one was a killer. We stood high up in a narrow valley, looking at massive amounts of water roaring down an overhang of about 30 Meters. Some of us looked back from where we came, wishing to find an excuse to climb back the falls we just came down. But Jochen and Mario, our adventure guides, told us that there is only one way out of this valley, put on a wicked smile and pointed down the abyss. And so we went, adrenalin pumping in our veins. Actually, it was easier than expected; it was just the tremendous height you were looking down at the beginning which was really scary. After this fall we trekked a little along the river, until we came to the next fall, this one not so high so that we just jumped it.

t the end of the valley, the Action Truck awaited us. Victor, our skilled driver, had already a big barbecue prepared. When we came back to the beach we all felt like heroes, and in the evening, when we sat at a nice restaurant by the beach overlooking the sea, the height of the falls we conquered increased with the number of beers we drank.