Giant Toog Tree - Agusan Del Sur

UPDATE: Good news, the Giant Toog Tree is given another lease of life after the mayor listened to the pleas of concerned citizens.

Found in Barangay Alegria, San Francisco (San Franz), in Agusan Del Sur, This Giant Toog Tree also known as Philippine Rosewood is considered as the oldest and tallest in the country.

Giant Toog Tree

Giant Toog Tree Details:

This particular Toog tree stands 318 feet with a diameter of 7 meters at its base. From a distance, the tree looks like a towering giant amidst a crowd. The tree was judged as the tallest of all toog trees by the Tree Preservation Foundation of the Philippines Inc. in 1980.

Agusan Des Sur's Giant Toog Tree

The marker tells the story of this particular tree.

Toog Trees are known for their toughness. It was said that during the olden times, man couldn't cut down the toog trees. Axes and manual saws are useless against its thick trunks. However, when the technology improved and machines were introduced to the Philippines, the mighty toog trees finally met its match. The once numerous giants slowly dwindled in number and seldom do the trees reach the same height that it once had. 

The tree towers higher than the electric lines

I had to crouch low to get this shot

Looking for nests

Me standing next to the tree.

Even my wide-angle lens can't capture the whole tree.

Today, this Toog tree found in Alegria remains a lasting symbol of environmental conservation not only to the people living near it but to all Filipinos.

A fence is built to protect the tree from trucks and buses.. and loggers

A few years back, a Manobo named Gil Andipa was paid to scale the tree to install Christmas lights. funding came from generous businessmen and locals. The project was finished in 2011 and the locals were hoping that the Toog tree of Alegria would be added in the Guinness Records as the "World's Tallest Living Christmas Tree". To date, the record is still held by a 162-foot Grand Fir in Couer d'Alene Resort.

Giant Toog Tree Admission Fee:

It's FREE to enter the vicinity of the Giant Toog Tree.

Giant Toog Tree Opening Hours:

The Giant Toog Tree vicinity is open 24 hours every day.

Why visit the Giant Toog Tree? 

Who wouldn't want to see Agusan del Sur's "Tallest Living Christmas Tree"? Although there is nothing much to do here, seeing this beauty and having a photo with it is a good way to appreciate Mother Nature's awesome gifts.

Getting to the Giant Toog Tree:

From Manila, book for a flight to Butuan City in Agusan Del Norte. Once you reach Bancasi Airport in Butuan City, board a bus heading for Davao. Tell the conductor to drop you off at San Franz (San Fransisco) in Agusan Del Sur. From there you could take a 10 to 20-minute motorcycle ride going to Alegria. The Giant Toog Tree is just beside the highway.

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