Baras Rizal Online

Location and General Topography

Baras is one of the smaller  municipalities of the Province of Rizal. It is bounded on the north by the City of Antipolo, on the east by the municipality of Tanay, and on the west by the municipality of Morong. The town is  located between latitude   121o 13” & 121o 21” and between longitude 14o 30” & 14o 40”. It is around 40 kilometers away from the Rizal Provincial Capitol in Pasig and about 51 kilometers from the Luneta Grandstand. Geographically, the town is located at the foothills of the Sierra Madre Mountains and its funnel-like shape dips into Laguna de Bay.

The municipality occupies 8,492.64 hectares, based on official records It is divided into ten barangays with Bgy. Pinugay comprising two-thirds of the total land area. The built-up area or poblacion is located on the level area near the lakeshore. Eighty-eight percent of the households are concentrated here. Except for Pinugay, which is located entirely in the uplands, each barangay has an urban and a rural component. The municipality’s topography is characterized as ranging from level to rolling terrain. The uplands however dominate the landscape, overlooking the lowlands in the south.

The town is endowed with diverse natural features, ranging from the calm waters of the Laguna de Bay, the plains and valleys, to the forested uplands of Sierra Madre. Perhaps what is most striking is the fact that a town with such proximity to urban Metropolitan  Manila is classified as a fifth  class municipality. It has lagged behind other towns of Rizal in terms of economic development.

The mountainous northeastern portion of the area, partly covered by the Marikina Watershed,  is  where  the  highest  point  of  the  Municipality is.  This region offers lush secondary and primary growth forests, steep terrains and a cool climate,  but is only reachable by hiking through trails and passes. Features like the Bundok ng Susong Dalaga, the Baras Communal Forest, the former Manila Seedling Bank Nursery, said to have been well-maintained by Mrs. Imelda Marcos during their reign, and the protected Masungit Rock, site of Ulong Tubig and an underground river, are all notable landmarks in  this part of Baras. The only sections of this area where automotive vehicles may be brought would be via the Marikina-Infanta Road, also called Marcos Highway, and then going deeper into the inner roads of Sitio San Roque.

Going a little southward, traversing the length of the entire Baras portion of the Marikina-Infanta Highway coming from Antipolo, one gets a view of the rolling hills to your right, and the Sierra Madre to your left. Until one elevates to the Sitio San Roque portion, where imposing cliffs and ridges face you on your left, while veering your eyes rightward offers a fantastic view of the Laguna de Bay, and a little farther would be the skyline of the Pasig-Ortigas metropolitan area, just before  you enter the boundary of Tanay.

Taking a southerly direction further from the Marikina-Infanta Road section, one encounters the undulating hills, plains  and valleys of Baras. Large  agri-industrial  set-ups  like the Foremost Farms of Lucio Tan and  the Milestone  Farms  of  the  Veras,   come  enmeshed  with  agricultural   plains,
grasslands, mango orchards, pocket forests, and the Philcomsat Radar Station valley site.

Passing through the interlink to the town proper, the Baras-Pinugay Road, currently being developed, one encounters the rough course that includes the road side municipal dumpsite, thick mango tree foliage, sporadic settlements, intermittent concrete road portions, large area agri-industrial farms, and occasional development activities.

As you reach the lower ground, just as you come across the Manila East Road, here are the row of commercial establishments, tourist resorts and remaining rice lands. Passing through the stretch of the Manila East Road on an eastward direction, the town of Baras is a mix of the rural and the urban, just before you reach Tanay.

The Poblacion area in the southern end of the town is where the settlements and human activities are concentrated. Residences, commercial establishments, the local government center, institutional centers and the historic church of Baras are all found here. Amidst all these, winds the Baras River.

At the southernmost, Baras’  tip dips into the waters of grand old Laguna de Bay. Small fishing villages, marshlands, and fishpens intermingle in this area.