Quirino Luzon

We flew from Manila to Cagayan, Isabela and from there took a passenger van to Quirino.

Quirino is where adventure begins, an invigorating, heart pounding and unforgettable experience awaits every tourist wherever they go, with its grand Panagdadapum Festival, which features colourful street dances depicting the origins of the provinces inhabitants, a trade and tourism fair, a cook first and a Mr and Ms Quirino beauty pageant.

Natures gifts can be found in The Aglipay Caves in Aglipay town, 8 of the 37 caves have been properly developed for dedicated cave explorers, each with varying degrees of difficulty.  The caves feature relatively well presented stalagmite formations that can be considered breathtaking works of art. Maybe next time we will have more time to try the cave exploring. Getting there from Santiago City in Isabela province, you can take a van or the traditional jeepney going to the town of Maddela in Quirino.

Water and cave adventures in Madella there is the Governers Rapids, a tributary of the Cagayan river, where massive limestone cliffs along its banks are home to the Agtas tribe, you can swim there in cool waters, go kayaking, fishing or just rent a boat that will take you around the river.
Another place for spelunkers is the Nagabukel Cave, located within the forest dome shaped hill at Barangay Luttuad in The town Diffun, also a popular with popular treks and picnics, especially popular during the Holy Week. Getting there from Santagios main terminal take a van or jeepney to Diffun. The cave is along side the national highway. While in Diffun you can also visit the Susong Dalaga “Maidens Breast” in Barangay Rizal also a popular tourist destination in Quirino. It is called “Maidnes Breast” because the mountains resemble a woman’s perked up breasts.

Next stop was the waterfalls in Nagtipuna town, and the Mactol falls in barangay San Pugo, which pours into a shimmering pool some 20 metres below with its lush green Serena area a beautiful place to unwind and enjoy the scenery. Not far are the Maddela waterfalls it is a seven stage waterfall, with clean refreshing pools that locals love swimming in also, a popular atraction.
Also in Nagtipuna we rode a tricycle to a rock formation called Bimmapor on the Cagayan River resembling the rear part of a sunken ship, it is supposedly the only sandstone rock formation in the country and ideal picnic area.

For something different we visited the fossilized flower making enterprise in Cabarroguis, “Fossilzed flowers” are basically made of dried alibangbang leaves, dyed and shaped into flowers. These products are being exported to many countries, giving many local women a profitable source of income.