Lake Sampaloc’s Rebirth

Lake Sampaloc is the biggest of the seven lakes in San Pablo. It is located by the roadside, making it very accessible for the residents and visitors of San Pablo. More that ten years ago, night clubs and illegal settlers surrounded the lake. The exploitation was so drastic that because of the over population of fishes, rotting dead fishes floated everywhere and caused such a filthy sight and very foul smell. This occurrence served as a wake up call to many home owners near the lake and once and for all, decided to restore the lost beauty of Lake Sampaloc. They established a foundation and eventually launched a program called “Yakap sa Lawa” where in around eight thousand concerned citizens surrounded the lake in a display of a modern-day kapit-bisig and bayanihan. Even with just a minimal support from the local government, the residents of San Pablo helped each other hand in hand in cleaning the lake even if it took 10 years to restore the lake into its natural beauty. 

Now that it has been restored, it is a perfect place for families and friends to stroll and simply relax and enjoy the unruffled breeze before the picturesque view of the lake and the soaring mountain that stood still behind the lake. Private groups also started to establish mini-parks around the lake and today there are around twenty of them. It is now surrounded by playgrounds, mini parks and street-food vendors. There are also rafts and mini-boats for rents. Through the years, Lake Sampaloc tasted for itself the bitter implications of commercialization in the city but luckily for it, many never lost the heart for this natural wonder—the wonder that is sure to stay for many years more.

Contact: Mr. Mandy Marino

Cell No.:0917-501-6694