The story behind the Hinatuan Enchanted River stirred up speculations and captured the attention of many back in 2014.
The Hinatuan River, popularly known as Enchanted River is six hundred meters away from the coastline of Hinatuan Bay, flowing into the Philippines Sea. It is 30 minutes away from the town of Hinatuan. But one question remains unanswered, where does the water come from?
If you are among those who see the Blue Lagoon for the first time, you might think that it was edited or photoshopped. Its crystal-clear waters allow you to see even the riverbed and the deepest part of the river.
The GMA Network reported that one diver tried to dive into the river and reach the bottom of it but to no avail.
But aside from that fact, the most magical fact is that by 12 noon, all tourists and visitors were advised to get out of the water to give way for the ‘feeding time’. The caretaker would ring the bell, requesting everyone to get out of the water. Then the ‘Hymn of Hinatuan’ will be played and after a few minutes, a school of fish comes out of the water. They would gather around near the caretaker and the tourists who would love to feed them throw leftover rice, shrimp, bread, and other food scraps.
When the feeding time is over, the fishes start to vanish. In case you want to visit the Enchanted River, be informed that night swimming is prohibited and no one is allowed to go near the river after 5 in the afternoon.
According to the local story, spirit beings or the unseen used the river every evening. The legend talks about a father and his son who saw “two long-haired, alabaster-skinned women bathing under a plump moon” and disappeared in a swirl of fireflies.
According to Philippine Daily Inquirer, the poem ‘Rio Encantado’ is about the Enchanted River. On the poem, Oribe wrote:
“talks of a ‘crystalline stream flowing from hidden spring,’ ‘rocky brims ’mongst vines,’ ‘orchids and ferns,’ ‘canopy of rich green mirrored in water-tinted blue,’ and ‘gold lined with gems.’”
In March 2017, the TripZilla reported that the Hinatuan Enchanted River was closed. Tourists and locals weren’t allowed to swim and visit the place. Due to the influx of visitors, the Enchanted River has experienced abuse from its visitors. It was then reopened, however, tourists and visitors are not allowed to swim the blue lagoon ever. The government said that they wanted to preserve the beauty of the Enchanted River for the future generations.
One visitor wrote on his blog saying:
“Seeing something majestic almost always leaves people speechless, even breathless! That is exactly how you feel the instant you lay your sights on Enchanted River. The experience is utterly difficult to translate into words when none of it ever suffices to describe its beauty and splendor.”
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