page_title: Mindanao
section_title: Mountains
hierarchical_section_title: Mindanao / Geography / Mountains
context_page_description: Mindanao, also commonly known as Southern Philippines, is the second-largest island in the Philippines. Mindanao and the smaller islands surrounding it make up the island group of the same name. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, as of the 2010 census, the main island was inhabited by 20,281,545 people, while the entire Mindanao island group had an estimated population of 25,537,691.
  Mindanao is divided into six administrative regions: the Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, the Caraga region, the Davao region, Soccsksargen, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. According to the 2015 Philippine Population Census, Davao City is the most populous city on the island, with 1,632,991 residents, followed by Zamboanga City, Cagayan de Oro, General Santos, Iligan, Butuan and Cotabato City. About 70% of residents identify as Christian and 24% as Muslim.
  Mindanao is considered the major breadbasket of the Philippines, with eight of the top 10 agri-commodities exported from the Philippines coming from there.
  Mindanao is known as "The Philippines' Land of Promise".
context_section_description: The mountains of Mindanao can be grouped into ten ranges, including both complex structural mountains and volcanoes. The structural mountains on the extreme eastern and western portions of the island show broad exposures of Mesozoic rock, and Ultrabasic rocks at the surface in many places along the east coast. Other parts of the island consist mainly of Cenozoic and Quaternary volcanic or sedimentary rocks.
  In the eastern portion of the island, from Bilas Point in Surigao del Norte to Cape San Agustin in Davao Oriental, is a range of complex mountains known in their northern portion as the Diwata Mountains. This range is low and rolling in its central portion. A proposed road connecting Bislig on the east coast with the Agusan River would pass through 16 kilometers (9.9 mi) of broad saddle across the mountains at a maximum elevation of less than 250 meters (820 ft); while the existing east–west road from Lianga, 48 km (30 mi) north of Bislig, reaches a maximum elevation of only 450 m (1,480 ft). The Diwata Mountains, north of these low points, are considerably higher and more rugged, reaching an elevation of 2,012 m (6,601 ft) in Mount Hilong-Hilong, 17 miles (27 km) along the eastern portion of Cabadbaran City. The southern portion of this range is broader and even more rugged than the northern section. In Davao Oriental, several peaks rise above 2,600 m (8,530 ft) and one mountain rises to 2,910 m (9,547 ft).
  The east-facing coastal regions of Davao and Surigao del Sur are marked by a series of small coastal lowlands separated from each other by rugged forelands which extend to the water's edge. Offshore are numerous coral reefs and tiny islets. This remote and forbidding coast is made doubly difficult to access during the months from October to March by the heavy surf driven before the northeast trade winds. A few miles offshore is found the Philippine Deep. This ocean trench, reaching measured depths of 34,696 feet (10,575 m), is the third-deepest trench, (after the Mariana Trench and Tonga Trench) on the earth's surface.
  A second north–south mountain range extends from Talisayan in the north, to Tinaca Point in the southernmost point of Mindanao. This mountain range runs along the western borders of the Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, and Davao provinces. This range is mainly structural in origin, but it also contains at least three active volcano peaks. The central and northern portions of this range contain several peaks between 2,000 and 2,600 m (6,600 and 8,500 ft), and here the belt of mountains is about 30 miles (48 km) across.
  West of Davao City stand two inactive volcanoes: Mount Talomo at 2,893 meters (9,491 ft), and Mount Apo at 2,964 m (9,724 ft). Mount Apo is the highest point in the Philippines. South of Mount Apo, this central mountain belt is somewhat lower than it is to the north, with peaks averaging only 1,100 to 1,800 m (3,600 to 5,900 ft).
  In Western Mindanao, a range of complex structural mountains forms the long, hand-like Zamboanga Peninsula. These mountains, reaching heights of only 1,200 meters (3,900 feet), are not as high as the other structural belts in Mindanao. There are several places in the Zamboanga Mountains where small inter-mountain basins have been created, with some potential for future agricultural development. The northeastern end of this range is marked by the twin peaks of the now-extinct volcano, Mount Malindang, that towers over Ozamis City at a height of 2,425 m (7,956 ft). Mount Dapia is the highest mountain in the Zamboanga Peninsula, reaching a height of 2,617 m (8,586 ft). Batorampon Point is the highest mountain of the southernmost end of the peninsula, reaching a height of only 1,335 m (4,380 ft); it is located in the boundary of Zamboanga City.
  A series of volcanic mountains is located within the vicinity of Lake Lanao forming a broad arc through the Lanao del Sur, Cotabato and Bukidnon provinces. At least six of the twenty odd peaks in this area are active and several stand in semi-isolation. The Butig Peaks, with their four crater lakes, are easily seen from Co
caption: Mt. Apo, the highest peak in the Philippines
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