South Cotabato: Enthralling Lake Sebu
Serenity abound at the pleasant waters of Lake Sebu
I’m really loving our country a lot since I started exploring more of Mindanao. There is no denying there are a lot of great places here to explore only dampened by its negative notion of being ‘unsafe.’ True there are areas trodden with strife, but they are concentrated, and a lot of areas are still safe to visit. And with my recent trip to the Southern Cotabato region, I’m more convinced that our natural wonders can offer a lot and even compete fairly with those of other countries as well. And one of those places in this region where I was enthralled by its natural beauty and is considered by Jens Peters as the country’s most beautiful lake, is Lake Sebu. And seeing it myself, I couldn’t agree anymore.
Even our canine friend helps on keeping watch over the fish pens
The journey started from Centennial Terminal 2 where I waited for my clown (joke) este companion to arrive. I had the pleasure of being in company with another talented photographer and word smith, Oggie on this one. Watch out for this guy as his works will soon be featured on the Digital Photographer Philippines glossy very soon as he goes on assignment this weekend in Coron-Calauit, Palawan.
Fishermen rise before dawn to tend to their tilapias at the fish pens
Anyways, despite the stormy weather here in Manila the day before caused by the Super Typhoon Egay, we had no second thoughts on pushing through since Mindanao as we know is blessed with better weather in our country. We flew via Air Philippines to Gen San since they had an earlier flight at 8:10am and found our way 2 hours later on the roads hopping from a Yellow Bus to Koronadal, another bus to Surallah, a short tryke ride to a jeepney terminal, and riding a jeepney to the Lake Sebu took around 3 hours from Gen San.
The floating restaurant and the wide stretch of the lake
The jeep going up to Lake Sebu was trudging heavily on the winding road, probably due to its heavy cargo and passengers. It was slow and the wait was close to agonizing already. As we go upwards, the cool wind can be felt. It reminds me of going up the mountains in Cordilleras. A bit weary and hungry by that time, I guess the other passengers noticed, that three nice ladies gave us a bag of Minatamis na Saging (sweetened banana). Nakakahiya at first. Hahaha. But we did take it eventually as I’m already drooling at the sight of it. Wow. People here are so nice. Soon, after a short habal-habal ride, we found ourselves at Punta Isla Resort and marveled at the sight of the Lake Sebu from the establishment. Breathtaking is all I can say. And we’re just beginning our adventure.
Tags: Lake Sebu, Lakes, South Cotabato
Posted on
Wednesday, August 22nd, 2007 at 1:26 pm 
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August 22nd, 2007 at 2:38 pm
aha! clown pala ha?! hahahaha, i forgive you my friend, hehehe. will await your next installment
August 22nd, 2007 at 3:04 pm
beautiful pictures. very serene.
August 22nd, 2007 at 3:21 pm
Those are huge fish farms. Never been to one so it’d be interesting to visit one, one of these days. Nice pic of the dog walking on the narrow pathway.
August 22nd, 2007 at 4:16 pm
parang nabitin ako sa kwento. hehehe. ang ganda ng place. parang probinsya tlga. at peaceful
August 22nd, 2007 at 4:40 pm
The top picture is postcard perfect.
There are too many things to see in the Philippines…
August 22nd, 2007 at 5:03 pm
i’m backpacking mindanao in october kaya naman i’m looking forward to reading your lake sebu/ mindanao adventures. thanks for sharing! =)
August 22nd, 2007 at 7:24 pm
Great photos as usual Ferds.
August 22nd, 2007 at 8:25 pm
wow! this is one of the places on my to visit list!!! grabe! gaganda ng mga napupuntahan nyo! pwede ba makijoin sa inyo sa next trip nyo?
August 22nd, 2007 at 8:52 pm
Very neat.
August 22nd, 2007 at 10:14 pm
there’s no place like home. ganda tlaga ng pinas…
August 23rd, 2007 at 2:08 am
you showcase the philippines’ natural beauty with your amazing photos. looks like a wonderful place.
August 23rd, 2007 at 3:40 am
I have never been to S. Cotabato. My best friend lives here. I really like the picture you took, and the things you said about the place. Now, I want to go there and visit too.
August 23rd, 2007 at 5:33 am
I love the third photo. and in my opinion it will be best in monochrome.
August 23rd, 2007 at 8:02 am
wow, thanks for posting this! ang ganda nga ng lake sebu, kahit sa pics ko lang nakikita parang napa-cool ng simoy ng hangin
August 23rd, 2007 at 10:24 am
very pretty picture
I wonder what happens to the tilapias when it rains and the water goes higher !
August 23rd, 2007 at 11:51 am
Very serene indeed. It would be a perfect spot to getaway from the city, me thinks!
Love the photos as well.
August 23rd, 2007 at 5:09 pm
Haven’t been able to blog lately because of work and Baguio but whenever I go on-line I see to it that I visit the blogs of my friends here. Take care and good luck!!! By the way, we’re friends right?
August 23rd, 2007 at 5:48 pm
Very pretty! kainggit mga adventures mo ferdz!thanks for sharing them to us! parang kasama na rin kami! btw,can’t wait to see of your Visayan tours.My parents are leytenios,Some members of the clan are from Cebu. I’m looking fwd to see you on tours in these areas as well!
I just noticed ,galeng galeng naman ng doggy na yan,alang takot tumawid sa kawayan:)
August 23rd, 2007 at 10:33 pm
di ka dumaan sa davao? Hehe.
anyway… there’;s no place like Pinas talaga.. i mean.. iba ang beauty ng pinas… kung icompare sa iba… 
August 24th, 2007 at 12:20 am
I like the first two photos. Is the white figure a dog? Great capture.
August 24th, 2007 at 1:14 am
i missed this magical place! been almost a decade thatI haven’t been here.
its not just the lake but also the various waterfalls (around 7 ata) ata and of course, the beetles that I’ve been collecting in this area of which several are still undescribed to science.
Anyway, while the place is idyllic, the souvenir shops there are tourist traps. If they say that the brass thing they are selling, especially nga-nga (betel nut) cases are antique, just don’t be fooled. Most of these are not old and were just made to look antique.
Early mornings are really cool and conducive to s_x. Hahaha…
August 24th, 2007 at 2:44 am
exactly…mindanao offers more than we see on newspaper when we read about the war there. it’s beauty is sooo underrated to begin with. buti na lang may ironwulf to spread the word! galing!
August 24th, 2007 at 2:59 am
i love the contrast of the guy wearing red. i mean the whole picture is sort of earthy, but his red shirt gave it that perfect contrast.
August 24th, 2007 at 6:33 am
I missed this place… been there twice.. i forgot the shell food that they harvest in the lake… kaguton tsaka yung tilapia hehehe… great photos ferdz
August 24th, 2007 at 9:00 am
…and the lake is abounded by fish cages. i usually hate it. i mean, no matter how supposedly “serene” the shots look like, they often contribute to the distraction. but hey ho, the way you handled them here is simply amazing. you choose angles like a real pro with an eye for seeing beauty. how’s that for a boost! asteeeg. galing mong mag-appropriate ng space to create the “vast” effect.
August 24th, 2007 at 3:42 pm
Wow! I’m really learning more about the beautiful places in the Philippines through your blog . Kaya lang, I’m not as adventurous as you are. Is there a more confortable way to go up the mountains besides the jeepney? Our tourism really should work on the infrastructure.
Anyway, you are right… Lake Sebu looks really enthralling.
August 24th, 2007 at 7:37 pm
hay kung pwede lang ako travel there with you
gusto ko rin yan e masarap daw tilapia dyan? puro daytrip lang magagawa ko na muna
August 24th, 2007 at 9:06 pm
wow! ang gara ng mga sceneries!
may tag pala ako sa iyo heheh…
August 27th, 2007 at 6:10 pm
Photos and write up: Wow!
August 29th, 2007 at 3:34 pm
this is the part i remember! hehe!
man i miss this place. sobrang lamig, and really relaxing. i love your pics!
3 hours pala from gensan un. hey i’m glad you’re enjoying mindanao!!
August 30th, 2007 at 10:33 pm
I agree with Sidney, postcard perfect, all the pictures actually. Now because of you , I’ll be exploring of Mindanao next year.
August 30th, 2007 at 10:34 pm
*more of Mindanao* I mean
September 2nd, 2007 at 12:54 pm
[...] is one thing seeing Lake Sebu from afar, but it’s another thing exploring the actual lake itself. For Php 350 at Punta Isla Lake [...]
September 21st, 2007 at 3:52 pm
..wow..its so amzing…nice shots…i really missed my hometown south cotabato…i was visited lake sebu south cotabato last march 1998…i was hoping that next year…i visit this nice place…the summer capital of south cotabato!!!!…VERY NICE SHOTS…I LOVE IT…
November 20th, 2007 at 5:19 pm
[...] about being a caretaker and some about her life. A really lively and friendly old woman. As if the minatamis na saging incident at Lake Sebu wasn’t enough. After touring the museum which was about to close that time, Aling Soseng came [...]
July 23rd, 2008 at 11:01 am
Hi, You have really good shots of lake sebu.
I want to ask permission if I could use the image on youtube. It’s Lake Sebu’s song of Grace Nono.
Thanks.