To be completely honest, I have no clear idea how we got here. All I remember is that Zandro (of Oz Racing) and his team invited me to join their Moto Adventure ride through the mountain barangays of Cebu City. First, we went up the TransCentral Highway via Lahug and Busay. Then, we crossed some rivers (literally) and bridges and passed through rough roads and community streets. Then, before i knew it, we were already eating road-side snacks in Toledo. Seriously, I didn’t know that Toledo was situated so close to Cebu City. If I remember correctly, it took us just around one hour to get to our destination.
You may be wondering why someone who enjoys traveling so much finds this surprising. Well, that is because although Toledo City has been included in numerous personal itineraries in the past, I can say that I really haven’t discovered Toledo City yet. The only things I know about Toledo, aside from it being a mining town/city, are those that people who pass through know. In short, I basically don’t really know anything about it.
So imagine my surprise when the gang took me to this amazing-looking tunnel deep in the heart of western Cebu.
Forgive my ignorance but I don’t even know where this tunnel is located exactly. I don’t even know what the official name of this tunnel is. All I know is that this was our next stop right after we left the beautiful Biga Pit.
The tunnel is long and creepy. And getting to the other end really does take guts and focus. But if you’re too afraid, here’s a little trick: remember that locals actually live on the other side and that they pass through this tunnel every single day. 🙂
After a short but bumpy trek, you will reach the end of the tunnel. There, you will see a long staircase that will lead you to the bottom of the hill.
After a very short foot path, you will reach a long metal walkway which goes over huge boulders and runs across a big but quiet river.
While standing on the steel walkway, it is hard to miss the amazing natural wonders surrounding the river. The place gave me goosebumps!
A network of steel pathways takes you to various parts of the facility. From what I gathered, this is part of Atlas mining’s or Carmen Copper’s massive stretches of land in Toledo City.
When the steel pathway ended, we tried to trace the steel tube that literally ran across the side of the cliff. It was quite dangerous and I’m not sure if this was even allowed. Hehe. But it was so much fun.
Up ahead, we saw what appeared to be a waterfall. How cool!
We decided to just head back to our bikes as the trail was getting higher and more slippery. We were a long way from home and it we didn’t want to risk our safety.
The climb down was fun. The climb up was something else.
A quick photo of the trail which leads to the river.
After leaving the tunnel, we saw a dam several hundred meters from where we stopped. And we realized that a road was actually built at the top of the ‘waterfall.’ From the road, you can actually see the metal tube where we were just minutes before.
It turned out that the waterfall was actually part of a dam facility built at the top of the drop.
And the dam was built at the mouth of a big lake (I believe it is a natural lake,) which can be seen across the tunnel.
Have you been to this dam in Toledo City? Don’t forget to tell us more about it in the comments section below. 🙂