Marinduque Mountains

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Marinduque's beaches and smaller islands that you could conquer for a day have been photographed endlessly. But not many have really taken the paths less trodden such as the interiors perhaps because of the tropical heat. The interior roads are also not regularly served by public vehicles, often not more than two trips if you are coming from the capital town.

But now the current administration has implemented a plan to connect to the east and Torrijos to the west through a road and bridge now under construction. This road is part of the central Marinduque development plan conceptualized four decades ago, under the administration of former governor Aristeo Lecaroz of Sta. Cruz. To those who came into power, the power of lip service, was utilized to the extent possible and so it remained an idea that slept, effectively making Marinduque, a fourth class province, more lethargic. After all, in a feudalistic society the people must remain poor subjects, controlled by the few rich. If one empowered them, then a change in the status quo would be imminent.

Development is slow in coming, but with the election of a new provincial government three years ago, the landscape is changing slowly, the possibilities for development now opening up. Now the development of interior Marinduque where the climate is cooler than anywhere else on the island. Now there's talk about community-based eco-tourism development, building of retirement homes and specialized schools there. The area hosts waterfalls, mini-forests and the island's remaining bastion of tropical biodiversity, now at a critical stage.

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Photos

torrijos mountains
Mountains to the west of Marinduque. Occasional wildcats, monkeys and deer are seen but nothing compared to how it was five decades ago when hunting for game was common.

Hinulugan Falls
Not frequented as even most natives are hardly aware of it.

Hinulugan River
Strewn with bouders. Malindig volcano nearby has slept for centuries, no record of eruption in modern history.

Boac mountains
Hiding area for local revolutionaries who fought during the Philippine-American war in 1900-1901.

Marcopper mountain
Scars left behind by Marcopper mining that closed down in 1996, after an environmental disaster. Copper mining here still interest the big investors, but locals who hardly benefitted from the mining operations before cry out "not anymore". A mining moratorium is presently in effect.

The new road
The road that cuts through interior Boac and Torrijos.

Hinapulan Bridge
New bridge constructed this year as part of the "strong road infrastructure program" of the Arroyo administration. The funds did not go through the usual local political channels.

Wide road.
Locals inspect the road, perhaps encouraging enough for the small people to engage in bigger dreams for themselves.

Comments

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