WAWA DAM Side Trip: Photogenic But Too Dirty for Swimming #Rodriguez #Rizal

So I was with three (3) people I met for the first time.
Richard,

Justelle @thejuanderboy (Instagram) 

and Mikoy @NomadicMike (Fb). 

Read: Mt. PAMITINAN Fun Climb: Amazing View from Buwis Buhay Rock 

#Rodriguez #Rizal

I was expecting that we would camp next to the river or the dam but we opted to set up tents in an open lot beyond houses near the brgy hall for convenience sake. Had to pay small charge for pitching tents and separate fee for the shower which is a welcome thing. I dread hot, sticky nights. We had fun time during socials. We were drunk and wasted. It was a lot of fun and as I said, the rest was history. Haha!

We were supposed to climb Mt. Binacayan early the next day but failed to do so because we were so drunk the night before. Woke up at around 9 am, had breakfast, packed up and hiked up Wawa Dam to kill time before heading back to the city.

Following the river up to Wawa Dam reminded me of Tinipak River in Tanay Rizal -- giant rock boulders on the river brought about by years of erosion. This is peculiar of rivers in Rizal Province.

It's an old dam built in 1909 during American colonial era. The bridge that leads to the dam therefore is kinda scary especially because even motorbike riders bring their bikes to this point.

The slightly arched dam is situated in the 360-metre (1,180 ft) high Montalban Gorge or Wawa Gorge, a water gap in the Sierra Madre Mountains, east of Manila. It used to be the only source of water for Manila until Angat Dam was built and Wawa was abandoned. Due to insufficiency of water supply for Metro Manila, there was a strong clamor to reuse the dam.----SOURCE

Bamboo cottages for rent are easily noticeable below the dam where the water cascades into beautiful white formation. Many people go down there to enjoy the water flow. We didn't try it because it was a little scary since there are many sections where you can fall into rocky edges of the river. 

We went past the dam and into the reservoir above it more cottages here where we stayed in one to pass time and watch people enjoy swimming. The surrounding vegetation makes the place look peaceful. The banks of the reservoir is a bit muddy and trash litter the place. I also noticed that the eater is greenish, too greenish as a matter of fact it seems infested with algae. I didn't attempt to swim as others did because from the cottage we were at I could already notice the fishy smell of the water. I seriously think the water in the reservoir is not clean for swimming. But I saw kids taking a dip. Shocking !!!

We only stayed in the cottage enjoying the scenery. We left more than an hour. Still worthy of a side trip. Glad to have finally seen Wawa Dam personally even though it didn't live to my expectations.


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