Kagan Dinagsaan Peak — Attraction in Banaybanay

Mt. Dinagsaan An estimated hour trek to the summit. Trail: mud, rocks, water stream Difficulty: mid-assault, beginner lv

A fun trek for a weekend strength and endurance training. Enjoy the mild obstacles and the uphill stretch.

The place is hot so bring along a cap/umbrella, arm sleeves. It is also humid as it's near the beach. There is one water source located in the second resting area.

How to get there: From Davao city, ride a bus enroute to Mati. Then drop at the Dinagsaan Elem. School. Further ahead you find a tarpaulin indicating the entrance which is beside a wooden house.

Fees and registration: One of the reliable local guides is Kuya Rolly who lives just across the school - the one with a store. He can organize your trip and it's cheaper. Aside from that his wife can prepare meals for you and is very accommodating.

Registration fee is P250 per head all in. Other expenses which are optional are native chicken tinola with rice for lunch is P220 good for 2 pax. A tricycle to bring you to the registration area for orientation and to fetch you back to the house after descending is P50 each.

Sidetrips: You can wash yourselves in either of these nearby resorts: Blue Ivy Farm Resort, Khool, and two other resorts. They situate beside each other and offers the same cool water 💧...

Jump off is located just beside the highway. There can be two to three groups at most, so it’s not too crowded. Good option for beginners however, make sure to exercise beforehand since it can still be tiring. One of the joiners was sick due to the van ride going to the jump off and was not physically prepared to hike. The trek can be muddy, especially if it was raining the night before the hike, then after the muddy part comes a rocky terrain, plus it is steep going to the top. There’s a water source just before you reach the top, water has no taste but of course be wary if you have a sensitive stomach. Once you reach the summit, you can see the view of the ocean and mountains, there’s also a hut where you can sit and relax. Just below the summit, you will reach the infamous rock where you can climb for photo ops, it’s scary but manageable, just tread slowly. Overall, the hike lasts less than two hours on the way up, and even lesser on the way down (still depends on your pace). Be sure to prepare extra sets of tshirts and towel for your sweat. You can also bring light snacks and at least 1 liter of water. There’s a store just before the jump off so you can purchase your snacks if you did not...

Not for beginners. You need to have stamina and knee strength otherwise you’ll regret! 😅 Going up is fine but getting down was really a challenge. I didn’t do knee exercises, it’s really difficult descending. Nothing special at the peak. Just a worn out signage. We climbed on weekends. It was really crowded. Avoid rainy season cos it’s very slippery. Worth it? Not really. I didn’t enjoy the view going up as well...