86
A JOURNEY DOWN THE AGUSAN
Go with the f low
Once a busy thoroughfare that transported people and goods, the
Agusan River now lies largely forgotten as it faces the ravages of time and
development. Jose Ma. Lorenzo Tan joined a team of explorers in one of
Mindanao’s longest and most storied rivers
I
had been to the Agusan
provinces several times before,
primarily to take pictures of
the majestic marshlands, but
in April this year, I packed
my bags for something else entirely.
To call it a river cruise is a stretch,
although there promised to be lots of
hanging around the deck and looking
at the sights. But perhaps “exploratory
mission” provides a better description.
We were a mixed crew: Art, Lety, Robby
andMajune, fellow discoverers from
the Department of Tourism; Anton,
river master and outfitter; Marian, a
cultural studies specialist; and Ivan,
field expert, extreme birdwatcher and
photographer.
Our mission: to sail down the river
from the town of Bunawan in Agusan
del Sur to Butuan City, to discover what
was available and perhaps glimpse
a time when rivers were roads. We’d
heard stories that the Agusan was now
suffering from old age, with growing
sedimentation plugging its arteries.
Despite a booming population and
unfettered land conversion, we
wanted to know if this trip could
still be done. We also wanted to
document what the river was like
today, learn from people along the
route, witness what was changing
and what remained of their little-
known past, to gain new insight into
the way things could be. Apparently,
no one had undertaken this trip for
many years; no one really knew the
river anymore.
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PART 1
PHOTOS BY
IVAN SARENAS
