Lake Sebu: Seloton, the sunrise lake
Sun rises over Lake Seloton
Lake Sebu may wow us with it’s vastness and sullen beauty, but it is in the Lake Seloton, the second largest lake and the deepest of the three mountain lakes, is where you can see a lake bathed in golden light as the sun rises behind the surrounding landscape covered mist. So early morning, on our last day in South Cotabato, we literally had to pull ourselves out of bed just to make our way about 2km to Lake Seloton’s Sunrise Garden Lake Resort.
Lake huts and the morning blue
Despite waking up a bit earlier than the usual, our habal-habal driver, Jemar came a bit late. Maybe he was cuddled under the bed sheets and thought, why the hell would these people would want to wake up so early to a cool morning such as this. At first we thought he wouldn’t show up so we could push through our plan B - go back to sleep. But eventually, he did show up. It was already a bit bright by that time, but still, we were hopeful we could still get some nice captures.
Golden lake on a misty morning
Even with the already bright blue sky, the sun hasn’t casted its warm glow over the lake since it’s still hiding behind the mountains. It was a misty blue morning and the placid, Lake Seloton was like a giant mirror, reflecting images of its surrounding landscapes only to be disturbed by the quiet ripples of a passing fishing boat.
A Fisherman heads to the pens early morning (Pic converted to sepia)
But as soon as the sun peeks through the mountains and stretches its light upon the landscape, the melancholy blue lake transforms to a lake of gold, surrounded by a misty landscape which is a sight to behold. Shadows cast by the nearby fences and silhouettes of passing fishing boats reflecting on the golden lake is true photographers delight. And I must admit, this is one of my favorite shoot in the area.
Transitions and reflections of a bamboo fence
We took advantage of the timing and the picture-perfect setting clicking away to how much the capacity of our storage drives could handle. We almost forgot the coffee and choco we ordered as each moment, a change of scene may take place.
Nature in reflection
As soon as the mist clears and the sun was high enough, the whole lake and surroundings revealed its vibrant colors. As with any day after a rain, colors of nature are much richer. And to add to that, Sunrise Garden resort have well landscaped gardens, scenic huts and even their boats and floating cottages were quite an element. I think any shutterbug wouldn’t have any trouble finding a good angle to compose their shots here.
Lotus and lily pads on the reflecting lake
We were thankful that during our last day here, we were blessed with moments of good weather such as this. It was raining real hard last night that we didn’t think we’ll able to get any pictures here. The place is quite a side trip and should be in anyone’s itinerary when visiting Lake Sebu.
Hut on a lake
It seems T’boli’s are very rich in culture, according to their legend, Lake Seloton was once the deepest of the three lakes in Lake Sebu. Somido the giant once waded on the three lakes. He waded on Lake Lahit, the other lake, but the water reached up only to his knees, whereas here on Lake Seloton, the water reached up to his chest.
Tags: Lake Sebu, Lake Seloton, Lakes, South Cotabato, Sunrise
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Thursday, September 6th, 2007 at 7:09 pm 
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September 6th, 2007 at 8:14 pm
La ako masabi kundi WOW!
Transition and reflectios of a bamboo fence is one of the great shots I’ve seen.
September 7th, 2007 at 3:35 am
simply beautiful. very relaxing ang atmosphere, good vacation spot.
September 7th, 2007 at 11:17 am
aha! nauna na naman akong magpost ng comment! galing mo bro, naalala mo pa ang mga detalye
kakatuwa kasi we nearly didn’t go to seloton for the sunrise kasi late si jemar hahaha seeing your captures, i’m glad we did
September 7th, 2007 at 1:43 pm
Really beautiful photos of the lake! Totally loved them all!
[:
Off topic; you are right, the smoke were also caused by slow shutter when the next display came out without giving enough time for the smoke to blow away from the atmosphere. Totally unavoidable.
September 7th, 2007 at 5:40 pm
That is an enchanted place!
September 7th, 2007 at 6:04 pm
gusto ko talagang makasakay minsan sa habal-habal na yan. ang ganda ng mga pics. haneps sa angulo, texture, framing, kulay…
lahat maganda, pero pinaka-paborito ko yung 5th frame…hindi lang siya basta maganda, creative sha. galing mo!
September 7th, 2007 at 6:14 pm
I can see lotus there. wala kasi ako pera at time di na ko nakasama…at least sa picture mo lang
September 7th, 2007 at 9:54 pm
i love the series ,magnifiscent shots here
favorite ko yung 2nd to the last pix
September 8th, 2007 at 1:38 pm
Amazing sights and one amazing sunrise; reminds me of the backgrounds often uitlized in Akura Karisawara films. wide valleys with overeaching rays of sun all around…
I couldn’t believe that there is si much more to LAke Sebu than what I have seen. Medyo yung mga LGU people na nakasama nain noon eh parang maramot and didn’t took us around these beautiful landscapes and sceneries…
September 8th, 2007 at 4:16 pm
I agree with Sidney. The place is enchanted, Ferdz! It was good you were not mesmerized that much that without realizing it, you would decide staying the place for good.
:D 
I like your writing style, too!
September 8th, 2007 at 8:02 pm
Wow! I am now sold on Lake Sebu…when I visit Phils, gotta go see it for myself.
Everything seem so crisp and clear.
September 8th, 2007 at 10:22 pm
Your photos always fascinate me!
September 9th, 2007 at 12:45 am
wow!!! i think i’ll like this lake more than lake sebu. hehehe.
i love the first picture! i really do!
September 9th, 2007 at 3:21 am
haay parang sarap sarap tumambay jan at mangarap:)
September 9th, 2007 at 7:10 am
i want to go there already
September 9th, 2007 at 9:08 pm
Your beautifil photographs and interesting narratives really make me feel as if I were actually traveling to these exotic places.
September 10th, 2007 at 11:59 am
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September 10th, 2007 at 5:52 pm
mapapa wow! ka naman talaga dito sa mga kuha mo! wow!
September 11th, 2007 at 1:32 am
FANTASTIC! It’s very very beautiful. Almost like a dream…
September 11th, 2007 at 12:23 pm
oist! happy birthday kaibigan! sa siquijor na lang ang librehan! hahahaha God bless!
September 11th, 2007 at 7:39 pm
ang dami naman magagandang pic, the last three are really nice… pero alam mo naman na yung the third from the last ang fave ko…
September 12th, 2007 at 11:09 am
wow.. ang ganda ng first picture… it made my day… lovely lovelyt.
September 12th, 2007 at 12:21 pm
beautiful place, skies and people. perfect for photography.
September 12th, 2007 at 2:13 pm
ang galing. ang sarap talagang tingnan ng reflection ng araw sa tubig, at yung reflection ng bamboo fence? wow.
September 12th, 2007 at 3:37 pm
tssk tskkk di ko talaga maabutan ang sunrise ah… next time makakakuha din ako hehe…
ayos na naman dre… lalo na ung bamboo shot..
September 13th, 2007 at 1:07 am
i’m in love with those photographs, man!
September 13th, 2007 at 10:06 am
again, another great series of lake sebu. i also love the way you describe each photo–”you can see a lake bathed in golden light as the sun rises behind the surrounding landscape covered mist.”
“It was a misty blue morning and the placid, Lake Seloton was like a giant mirror, reflecting images of its surrounding landscapes only to be disturbed by the quiet ripples of a passing fishing boat. ”
September 13th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
wala paring kakupaskupas.. hehehehe GUdluck sa PWA!!!
September 14th, 2007 at 2:34 pm
Crisp and clear - Post card quality shots indeed
October 28th, 2007 at 12:13 am
Oh my God! I grew up in that place! I miss lake seloton. sino nagtang picture. wala nyo man ginsakop balay namon. Hehe ambot kung ara pa.
March 14th, 2008 at 10:25 am
grbi tlga…….nkkatouch ang nature…..ive ones go there,,pro dko nlibot.syang!s susunod!
July 1st, 2008 at 9:49 pm
ganda talaga ng lake sebu…..
July 1st, 2008 at 9:51 pm
sana maka uwi na ako jan sa lake sebu ganda tlaga nature………