I almost had to miss out on this adventure due to tummy issues the night before (an unfortunately too-common occurrence during our travels), but I’m so glad I was feeling better in the morning because canyoneering was one of my favorite things we’ve done on the trip so far.

What is canyoneering? It’s an activity where you descend a river through a canyon by rock scrambling, swimming—and cliff jumping. 

We started the day by leaving Cebu City around 4:30 am to get to the town of Badian by 7, where we met our tour guides and took a quick motorcycle ride to the top of the trek. After walking for just a few minutes, we were already at the first cliff jump.

And you have to do this 20-foot jump to continue, there is no other way to get down. (Some of the other big jumps were optional.) But in retrospect, it was good to get a big jump out of the way early, so I felt more prepared for what was to come!

So each of us took a step off the cliff and continued our way through the canyon: hurtling down natural waterslides, climbing over mossy rocks, wading through the cool and clear water, and snaking our way through tight spaces—and seeing a literal snake on the way.

Along the way, we also did several more cliff jumps, ranging from tame 10-foot jumps to a heartstopping 30-plus-foot jumps. After I had conquered that initial 20-foot jump, I thought that I could do anything … but looking down a cliff to water so so so far away had me thinking differently.

At this particular cliff in question, while I was questioning my next move, Vikram very readily jumped off it. His tactic was to do it quickly, before the fear gets to you. I just stared in near-disbelief as he threw himself off—and luckily, landed safely in the perfectly blue pool below.

I, on the other hand, took my sweet time to get down, and the fear definitely got to me. I almost started about five or six times, but each time my brain told my body “it does not make sense to throw yourself off this cliff.”

But eventually, somehow, I found myself running to the edge of the cliff and accelerating to the water below.

(That scream you hear is when I realize that I’m not at the water yet and still have a ways to go.)

I opted out of the final cliff, which was higher than the one above, but Vikram was still all game for it!

Travel Notes

• The entire canyoneering adventure lasts around 4-5 hours from top to bottom. It’s good to go early to avoid the crowds—our group was alone almost the entire time. The cost was 1000 pesos per person and includes gear and lunch at the end of the trek.
• Tour companies will pick you up in Badian, a town about a 2-3 hour drive from Cebu City. My cousin was able to drive us, but there are also buses that run to Badian and places to spend the night.
• Wear sturdy shoes suitable for rock scrambling. I’m also glad I wore leggings because my legs scraped against the rocks often. It’s quite cool and shady in the canyon anyway!