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| Les-eng rice terraces that turn vibrant green during the rainy season |
A local farmer in Tacadang once apologized to a guest for serving domesticated chicken because there was no available canned sardines at the local store. This was the story that got me wanting to visit the place. And now I regret that I had allowed myself to wait that long a time to finally set foot on this paradise.
Tacadang is at least seven hours away on foot from the last road access in Kibungan, Benguet. This is the primary reason why it has remained unspoiled by tourists who can only bear to trek Sagada and Batad in spite of the fact that the beauty of Tacadang surpasses that of those two places! When I saw the whole barangay of Tacadang at a very good viewpoint, I couldn't come up with a better description of the place than 'a plateau that God pressed with his his thumb and bled countless waterfalls that nourish the rice terraces that flank the walls of the cleft'.
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| the whole plateau that is Brgy Tacadang symmetrically cleaved in the middle; Les-eng on the left and Tacadang Proper on the right |
This is one of the very rare moments when I have to break my "Don't Ask; Don't Tell" travel dictum. I want to share this to a few individuals who are ready to face the physical challenge of the trek this coming August 21-23, 2015 and take on the responsibility of helping preserve this paradise.
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| The rice terraces of Les-eng become pastureland when rain is scant. Talaktak Falls on the background. This sight is something you won't see in Batad and Sagada. |
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| between the terraces of Tacadang Proper (left) and Les-eng (right) |
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| falls # 1 |
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| the breath-taking drop of the waterfall just 200 meters away from waterfall # 1 |
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| The waterfall I thought to be Betotong Falls which turned out to be just the lowest cascade of the inaccessible Betotong |
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| the Machu Picchu-like view of Beneng Falls with a faint view of Kamayan Falls on the right |
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| Kamayan Falls up close; stronger when it rains |
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| Kamayan Falls as seen from Falls # 1 |
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| the very tall Talaktak Falls and the inaccessible Betotong Falls |
