Poems are made by fools like me, but only God can make a tree. This is the last line of a Joyce Kilmer poem. Here in Bohol, people not only make a tree, they grow an entire man-made forest. Located at the border of the Bilar and Loboc towns in Bohol, the man-made forest is a 2-kilometer stretch of purposely-planted mahogany trees, in the middle of which the road leading to the Chocolate Hills cuts through.
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- Lightray squeezes through the man-made forest in Bohol
Somebody from a group asked why call it a man-made forest and what’s the big deal with it? These questions made me think and, if only that person didn’t happen to be my wife, I would have probably shot back with some pointed answer (if I did that to her, I won’t probably be alive to write this post). One doesn’t ask such questions, while parked under the majestic mahogany trees lining the road, becoming more dense by the year that the rays of the sun fight their way to get through. One should just stand there in amazement. Still, I politely offered the following answers.
There are forests known as first-growth, the virgin forests. Once logged and the trees grow back, it becomes a second-growth forest. While a man-made forest is not along that same categorization, maybe it’s a way of indicating that the original forest cover here was wiped out and, in its place, these trees were planted by the residents of Bohol.
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- Man-made forest in Bohol
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- Lightray squeezes through the man-made forest in Bohol
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- Road through the man-made forest in Bohol
To see what’s impressive about the man-made forest, you don’t only look here. You look at the totality of Bohol. It’s a clean, environment-friendly place. They consciously maintain the cleanliness of the Loboc River. They purposely protect their cultural and natural heritage. While others pay lip service to conservation, they walk the talk and plant trees — an entire stretch of trees. What’s more impressive, is the fact that they weave an entire story around the man-made forest which makes tourists go and see it. And the tourists, as you know, pump cash into the local economy of Bohol. Generating income while preserving nature. That’s impressive.
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This is awesome!!! Filipinos should make more of these man-made forests!!!
[...] of Bohol, Philippines (map and directions). More stories on Panglao Beach, Chocolate Hills, man-made forest, blood compact monument, hanging bridge, Loboc River. Panglao Island, [...]
Hello Fred!
I quite enjoyed this article so I put it on Facebook. Beautiful, just beautiful. Always reminds of the Lake District in Cumbria where trees abound. It just shows when people are determined to do something, the outcome can be awe-inspiring. I wonder how many Filipinos outside of that island know about this fantastic feat? Let’s hope those trees would be left alone by “you-know-who” with their electric cutters. God forbid! Regards, Hill
Hi Phoebe, exactly, hopefully everyone — not just Filipinos — would have more of these.
Hill, hello. No problem, I’m glad you enjoyed the article and the photos. I’m always at a loss when you throw those foreign-sounding places, like Cumbria =) Many Filipinos are aware of the man-made forest, I’m sure, but not as many as we want to. It’s funny you mentioned that. As we were driving through Bataan from our Mount Samat trip, we were amazed how beautiful the surroundings and the roads are. We were wondering if only more Filipinos could see this. Would it make any difference in how we treat our locality and our country in general? Would it have any impact on how we perceive things?
Wonderful work of art. Let’s do more of this!
Fred, Hello, miss you amigo mio! Don’t think I’ve forgotten or the lechon for that matter, hahaha. Cumbria (Cumberland) one can find the Lake District, world famous for its fells, hills, mountains and of course the beautiful lakes. This county is also where W Wordsworth (poet) and Beatrix Potter (children’s writer) were born and bred. “I wondered lonely as a cloud…” Fred, you do remember that line, hahaha! We go there regularly as my husband was also born there. Next time you visit England, do the north…that’s the proper British place for you. Haaaayyayayay. Take care Fred, Hill
Hi, Fred,
I tried, just now, to send you a message under “Contact Us” but it was always rejected. I only wanted to tell you that, if you’re interested, you can find me at the new site: http://iftruthbetold.posterous.com which I opened recently to share my thoughts and of course, to keep me busy. I also mistakenly inserted some entries under “Comments” but you can still read all entries from 9th November 2009—Cheers! Hill
[...] the Philippine Tarsier, with viewing sites just beside the highway. The Hanging Bridge and the Man-Made Forest are also along the highway and you’d begin to wonder if the tourism planners in Bohol [...]