page_title: Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur
section_title: Pinsal Falls
hierarchical_section_title: Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur / Tourist attractions / Pinsal Falls
caption_attribution_description: English: Pinsal Falls in Sta. Maria, Ilocos Sur
context_page_description: Santa Maria, officially the Municipality of Santa Maria, is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Ilocos Sur, Philippines. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of 30,321 people.
  The town is home to the Our Lady of the Assumption Church, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The townspeople celebrate their patronal fiesta in honor of the Virgin Mary as Our Lady of the Assumption every August 15 and lasting for several days.
context_section_description: Pinsal Falls, considered as the largest and grandest waterfalls in Ilocos Region, are located in a narrow gorge in Barangay Baballasioan of Santa Maria.  Pinsal is a group of plunge and cascades waterfalls falling from a 300-ft wide irregular shaped river ledge the highest of which is a drop of about 85 feet (26 m).  Upriver are several smaller falls with their own natural pools.  Behind the cascading water of the main falls is a hidden cave where one can swim from.  Another tall waterfall is located at the southern ledge.
  The grandeur and pristine beauty of these falls has long been attracting foreign and local tourists.  Crystal clear water cascades down to two natural pools where visitors can frolic during hot summer.  The surrounding hillsides are covered with verdant big trees making the place fairly cool.  A trip to Pinsal Falls is not complete without climbing the carved steps to the top where more natural pools are found, the biggest of which is the 'footprint of Angalo'.  According to the folklore, the ground indentation is the footprint the giant Angalo left behind while searching for his wife Aran. Another notable geographical feature is a phallic shaped rock, which the legend says belong to the male giant. Meters from this spot is the famous hot spring where one can boil an egg in 10 to 15 minutes.
  Adjacent to Pinsal falls are stones stairs carved out of the mountain to reach the upper falls.  It is also used by the residents of the adjacent town of Pilar, Abra province in hiking to or from the Municipality of Santa Maria.
  Pinsal Falls is located about 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) on paved road from the municipal hall of Santa Maria via the Pinsal Falls Road, and can be reached in 20 minutes by any vehicular transportation .
  On August 22, 2019, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed Republic Act No. 11409 that declared the falls as a tourist destination, which will prioritize its development by the Department of Tourism.
caption: Pinsal Falls
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon EOS 20D", "Image Orientation": "0", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image Software": "Picasa 3.0", "Image DateTime": "2009:01:10 14:36:47", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image ExifOffset": "202", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "9450", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "4729", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/250", "EXIF FNumber": "13", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "400", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0221", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2009:01:10 14:36:47", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2009:01:10 14:36:47", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "261023/32768", "EXIF ApertureValue": "15157/2048", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "22", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "Uncalibrated", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "1600", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1067", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "9326", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "233600/59", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "233600/59", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF ImageUniqueID": "5c268471b120d8eae80d370d863c22c6"}