Cagayan River, often called the Cagayan de Oro River, is one of the
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
s draining the northern central part of the
island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
of
Mindanao
Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...
in the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
. The river has its
headwaters
The headwaters of a river or stream is the farthest place in that river or stream from its estuary or downstream confluence with another river, as measured along the course of the river. It is also known as a river's source.
Definition
The ...
in the
Kalatungan Mountain Range
Kalatungan Mountain Range is a mountain range in the central portion of the province of Bukidnon, the Philippines. It is one of the few areas in the province covered with old growth or mossy forests. It covers an area of approximately 213.0134&nb ...
and
Kitanglad Mountain Range
Kitanglad Mountain Range is a mountain range that dominates the northern central portion of the province of Bukidnon. It occupies portions of eight of the municipalities and cities in the province such as Talakag, Baungon, Libona, Manolo Fortic ...
found in the central part of the province of
Bukidnon
Bukidnon(), officially the Province of Bukidnon ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bukidnon; fil, Lalawigan ng Bukidnon; hil, Kapuroan sang Bukidnon; Binukid and Higaonon: ''Probinsya ta Bukidnon''), is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the ...
. It traverses the
municipalities
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
of
Talakag
Talakag, officially the Municipality of Talakag ( Bukid and Higaonon: Banuwa ta Talakag; ceb, Lungsod sa Talakag; tl, Bayan ng Talakag), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Bukidnon, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has ...
,
Baungon and
Libona, connecting tributaries along the way. It finally empties into the
Macajalar Bay
Macajalar Bay is a deep water bay of the Bohol Sea, located north of the province of Misamis Oriental on Mindanao Island, in the southern part of the Philippines. Cagayan de Oro City, being the regional center of Northern Mindanao (Region X), is l ...
at
Cagayan de Oro
Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Cagayan Valley region, covering ...
in the
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...
of
Misamis Oriental
Misamis Oriental ( ceb, Sidlakang Misamis; tl, Silangang Misamis), officially the Province of Misamis Oriental, is a province located in the region of Northern Mindanao in the Philippines. Its capital, largest city and provincial center is th ...
.
The river serves as the
natural boundary
In complex analysis, a branch of mathematics, analytic continuation is a technique to extend the domain of definition of a given analytic function. Analytic continuation often succeeds in defining further values of a function, for example in a n ...
between the province of Bukidnon and
Iligan
Iligan, officially the City of Iligan ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Iligan; fil, Lungsod ng Iligan; Maranao: ''Inged a Iligan''), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the region of Northern Mindanao, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has ...
and between Bukidnon and Cagayan de Oro, based on the administrative order issued by the defunct
Department of Mindanao and Sulu
The Department of Mindanao and Sulu was an agency of the United States colonial administration in the Philippine Islands task to administer all Muslim-dominated areas in the territory. It was established on July 23, 1914, pursuant to Act No. 2 ...
during the
American occupation of the Philippines. In Cagayan de Oro, it is the dividing line between its two
Congressional districts
Congressional districts, also known as electoral districts and legislative districts, electorates, or wards in other nations, are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional bod ...
.
The Cagayan River is a very popular site for
whitewater rafting
Rafting and whitewater rafting are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk is often a ...
in the Philippines and has been promoted by the
Department of Tourism as the main tourist attraction of Cagayan de Oro.
Etymology
The original name of the river is ''Kalambaguasasahan River'', because of the presence of ''Lambago'' trees (''
Hibiscus tiliaceus
''Hibiscus tiliaceus'', commonly known as the sea hibiscus or coast cottonwood, is a species of flowering tree in the mallow family, Malvaceae, with a pantropical distribution along coastlines. It has also been introduced to Florida and New Zea ...
'', a member of the ''
Malvaceae
Malvaceae, or the mallows, is a family of flowering plants estimated to contain 244 genera with 4225 known species. Well-known members of economic importance include okra, cotton, cacao and durian. There are also some genera containing familiar ...
'' tree family that only thrives in low altitude areas like seashores, riverbanks and other areas reached by tidal streams) along the river banks. During the arrival of the
Spaniards
Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance peoples, Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of National and regional identity in Spain, national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex Hist ...
in
Cagayan de Oro
Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Cagayan Valley region, covering ...
, the name was changed to Cagayan River.
The name of the river ''Cagayan'' comes from the
Malayo-Polynesian
The Malayo-Polynesian languages are a subgroup of the Austronesian languages, with approximately 385.5 million speakers. The Malayo-Polynesian languages are spoken by the Austronesian peoples outside of Taiwan, in the island nations of Southeast ...
word ''"Ag"'', which means water. ''"Kagay"'' means river and ''"Kagayan"'' is place with a river.
Geography
Course
The river's headwaters is found in the
Kalatungan Mountain Range
Kalatungan Mountain Range is a mountain range in the central portion of the province of Bukidnon, the Philippines. It is one of the few areas in the province covered with old growth or mossy forests. It covers an area of approximately 213.0134&nb ...
, in the central portion of the province of
Bukidnon
Bukidnon(), officially the Province of Bukidnon ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bukidnon; fil, Lalawigan ng Bukidnon; hil, Kapuroan sang Bukidnon; Binukid and Higaonon: ''Probinsya ta Bukidnon''), is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the ...
. It flows northward towards Cagayan de Oro for about
["Principal River Basins of the Philippines", Published by the National Water Resources Board, October 1976 (p. 12)] before emptying into the
Macajalar Bay
Macajalar Bay is a deep water bay of the Bohol Sea, located north of the province of Misamis Oriental on Mindanao Island, in the southern part of the Philippines. Cagayan de Oro City, being the regional center of Northern Mindanao (Region X), is l ...
.
Drainage Area
The river drains an area of approximately .
About 80% of the drainage basin is located in the Province of
Bukidnon
Bukidnon(), officially the Province of Bukidnon ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bukidnon; fil, Lalawigan ng Bukidnon; hil, Kapuroan sang Bukidnon; Binukid and Higaonon: ''Probinsya ta Bukidnon''), is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the ...
and the rest is in
Iligan
Iligan, officially the City of Iligan ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Iligan; fil, Lungsod ng Iligan; Maranao: ''Inged a Iligan''), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the region of Northern Mindanao, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has ...
and Cagayan de Oro.
Tributaries
The main tributaries of the Cagayan de Oro River are the following:
*
Kalawaig River
*
Tagite River
*
Bubunaoan River
*
Tumalaong River
Mouth
The river's mouth is located in Cagayan de Oro. After a course from the mountains of
Bukidnon
Bukidnon(), officially the Province of Bukidnon ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bukidnon; fil, Lalawigan ng Bukidnon; hil, Kapuroan sang Bukidnon; Binukid and Higaonon: ''Probinsya ta Bukidnon''), is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the ...
, the river finally discharges its load to the
Macajalar Bay
Macajalar Bay is a deep water bay of the Bohol Sea, located north of the province of Misamis Oriental on Mindanao Island, in the southern part of the Philippines. Cagayan de Oro City, being the regional center of Northern Mindanao (Region X), is l ...
.
Tourism
Whitewater rafting and kayaking
Whitewater rafting
Rafting and whitewater rafting are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk is often a ...
,
kayaking
Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits fac ...
and river trekking has been one of the tourism activities being promoted in the river. The city administration and the
Department of Tourism made it as the banner tourism activity in
Cagayan de Oro
Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Cagayan Valley region, covering ...
.
Cagayan de Oro Tourism Website
/ref> The jump-off point of the river, whitewater rafting
Rafting and whitewater rafting are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk is often a ...
is at Barangay Mambuaya, a 30-40 minute ride from the city proper.
Recently, whitewater rafting in the Cagayan River is gaining popularity through the years after President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo (, born April 5, 1947), often referred to by her initials GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician serving as one of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines, House Deputy Spe ...
and other famous personalities in the country have tried the challenging whitewater rafting
Rafting and whitewater rafting are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk is often a ...
in the river.
Fishery
The stream is an important seasonal freshwater artisanal fishery producing an annual catch, as of 2016, of about US$500,000 from an average weekly catch of by each fisherman. In the lower reaches of the stream, this low catch of smaller immature fish is evidence of lack of management of the fishery. Less than 1% to as much as 10% of the local population may be engaged at least part-time as fishermen, most are men. Full-time fishermen earn about US$1,000 to 2,000 per year, which is below the poverty line. Gill net
Gillnetting is a fishing method that uses gillnets: vertical panels of netting that hang from a line with regularly spaced floaters that hold the line on the surface of the water. The floats are sometimes called "corks" and the line with corks is ...
s, cast net
A casting net, also called a throw net, is a net used for fishing. It is a circular net with small weights distributed around its edge.
The net is cast or thrown by hand in such a manner that it spreads out while it's in the air before it sinks ...
s, long lines, fish hook
A fish hook or fishhook, formerly also called angle (from Old English ''angol'' and Proto-Germanic ''*angulaz''), is a hook used to catch fish either by piercing and embedding onto the inside of the fish mouth (angling) or, more rarely, by impa ...
s and line
Line most often refers to:
* Line (geometry), object with zero thickness and curvature that stretches to infinity
* Telephone line, a single-user circuit on a telephone communication system
Line, lines, The Line, or LINE may also refer to:
Arts ...
sets, spears
A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fastene ...
, traps and traditional fishing boat
Traditionally, many different kinds of boats have been used as fishing boats
A fishing vessel is a boat or ship used to catch fish in the sea, or on a lake or river. Many different kinds of vessels are used in commercial, artisanal and recr ...
s are used. The catch includes Snapper (Aha-an), Flagtail
The flagtails (' or ' in the Hawaiian language) are a family (Kuhliidae) of perciform fish of the Indo-Pacific area. The family consists of several species in one genus, ''Kuhlia''. Most are euryhaline and often found in brackish water, but th ...
(Aligaman), Crab
Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (abdomen) ( el, βραχύς , translit=brachys = short, / = tail), usually hidden entirely under the thorax. They live in all the ...
(Alimango), Red-tailed goby (Anga), Squaretail mullet (Balanak), Goby
Goby is a common name for many species of small to medium sized ray-finned fish, normally with large heads and tapered bodies, which are found in marine, brackish and freshwater environments. Traditionally most of the species called gobies have b ...
(Batinga), Silver perch (Bugaong), Otomebora Mullet (Bunak), Indo-Pacific Tarpon
The Indo-Pacific tarpon (''Megalops cyprinoides''), also known as the oxeye herring or simply herring due to its superficial resemblance to the true herrings, of which it is not a member, is the smaller of the two species of tarpon and lives in ...
(Buwan-buwan), Loach goby (Dalapakan), Mountain bass (Damagan), Indian pellona (Ibis), Flathead grey mullet
The flathead grey mullet (''Mugil cephalus'') is an important food fish species in the mullet family Mugilidae. It is found in coastal tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. Its length is typically . It is known with numerous English names, ...
(Gisaw), Gourami
Gouramis, or gouramies , are a group of freshwater anabantiform fishes that comprise the family Osphronemidae. The fish are native to Asia—from the Indian Subcontinent to Southeast Asia and northeasterly towards Korea. The name "gourami", of ...
(Gurami), Mudfish
Mudfish most commonly refers to all species of ''Neochanna'', native to New Zealand and south-eastern Australia.
Mudfish may also refer to:
Fish
* Bowfin (''Amia calva''), North America
* ''Channa'' or snakehead, a genus of predatory fish in Asi ...
(Halu-an), Shrimp
Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...
(Hipon, Goby
Goby is a common name for many species of small to medium sized ray-finned fish, normally with large heads and tapered bodies, which are found in marine, brackish and freshwater environments. Traditionally most of the species called gobies have b ...
(Iswil), Carp
Carp are various species of oily freshwater fish from the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. While carp is consumed in many parts of the world, they are generally considered an invasive species in parts of ...
(Karpa), Eel (Kasili), Spotted Scat
''Scatophagus argus'', the spotted scat, butterfish, mia mia, spotted butterfish or tiger scat, is a species of fish in the scat family Scatophagidae. It occurs in two basic color morphs which are called green scat and ruby or red scat. This fis ...
(Kikilo), Mullet (Muli), Cyprinidae
Cyprinidae is a family of freshwater fish commonly called the carp or minnow family. It includes the carps, the true minnows, and relatives like the barbs and barbels. Cyprinidae is the largest and most diverse fish family and the largest verte ...
(Pait), Catfish
Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, ...
(Pantat), Rock goby
The rock goby (''Gobius paganellus'') is a small coastal goby of eastern Atlantic waters, from Scotland to Senegal.Miller P.J. (1986) Gobiidae. In: Whitehead P.J.P., Bauchot M.-L., Hureau J.-C., Nielsen J., Tortonese E. (eds.) Fishes of the North ...
(Pigok), Mangrove red snapper
The mangrove red snapper (''Lutjanus argentimaculatus''), also known as mangrove jack, grey snapper, creek red bream, Stuart evader, dog bream, purple sea perch, red bream, red perch, red reef bream, river roman, or rock barramundi, is a species ...
(Tadlungan), Tilapia
Tilapia ( ) is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish from the coelotilapine, coptodonine, heterotilapine, oreochromine, pelmatolapiine, and tilapiine tribes (formerly all were "Tilapiini"), with the economically most ...
.
See also
* Cagayan de Oro
Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Cagayan Valley region, covering ...
* Macajalar Bay
Macajalar Bay is a deep water bay of the Bohol Sea, located north of the province of Misamis Oriental on Mindanao Island, in the southern part of the Philippines. Cagayan de Oro City, being the regional center of Northern Mindanao (Region X), is l ...
* Bukidnon
Bukidnon(), officially the Province of Bukidnon ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bukidnon; fil, Lalawigan ng Bukidnon; hil, Kapuroan sang Bukidnon; Binukid and Higaonon: ''Probinsya ta Bukidnon''), is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cagayan River (Cagayan de Oro)
Rivers of the Philippines
Landforms of Misamis Oriental
Landforms of Bukidnon
Tourist attractions in Cagayan de Oro