Mindanao is the second-largest 

island in the Philippines

Mindanao is the second-largest island in the Philippines at 97,530 square kilometres (37,660 sq mi),

[1]
 and is the seventh-most populous island in the world. The island is mountainous, and is home

to Mount Apo, the highest mountain in the country. Mindanao is surrounded by four seas: the Sulu

Sea to the west,[42] the Philippine Sea to the east, the Celebes Sea to the south, and the Mindanao

Sea to the north.

The island itself is part of an island group of the same name, which includes the Sulu

Archipelago and the outlying islands of Camiguin, Dinagat, Siargao, and Samal.

Mountains[edit]

Mountains in the province of Bukidnon

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).

Mt. Apo, the highest peak in the Philippines

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 Cotabato. Mount Ragang, an active volcano cone reaching 2,815 m (9,236 ft),

is the most isolated, while the greatest height is reached by Mount Kitanglad at 2,889 m (9,478 ft).
Mindanao coast

In South Cotabato, is another range of volcanic mountains, this time paralleling the coast. These

mountains have a maximum extent of 110 miles (180 km) from northwest to southeast and

measures some 30 miles (48 km) across. One of the well-known mountains here is Mount Parker,

whose almost circular crater lake measures a mile-and-a-quarter in diameter and lies 300 m (980 ft)

below its 2,040 m (6,690 ft) summit. Mount Matutum is a protected area and is considered one of the

major landmarks in the South Cotabato province.

Plateaus[edit]

Another important physiographic division of Mindanao is the series of upland plateaus in

the Bukidnon and Lanao del Sur provinces. These plateaus are rather extensive and almost

surround several volcanoes in this area. The plateaus are made up of basaltic lava flows inter-

bedded with volcanic ash and tuff. Near their edges, the plateaus are cut by deep canyons, and at

several points waterfalls drop down to the narrow coastal plain. These falls hold considerable

promise for development of hydroelectric energy. Indeed, one such site at Maria Cristina Falls has

already become a major producer. The rolling plateaus lie at an elevation averaging 700 meters

above sea level, and offer relief from the often oppressive heat of the coastal lowlands.

Lakes and waterfalls[edit]

Lake Lanao occupies a large portion of one such plateau in Lanao del Sur. This lake is the largest

lake in Mindanao and the second largest in the country; it is roughly triangular in shape with an 18-

mile-long (29 km) base, having a surface at 780 meters above sea level, and is rimmed on the east,
south, and west by a series of peaks reaching 2,300 meters. [citation needed] Marawi City, at the northern tip

of the lake, is bisected by the Agus River, that feeds the Maria Cristina Falls.

Another of Mindanao's waterfall sites is located in Malabang, 15 miles (24 km) south of Lake Lanao.

Here the Jose Abad Santos Falls present one of the nation's scenic wonders at the gateway to a

200-hectare national park development.

The Limunsudan Falls, with an approximate height of 800 ft (240 m), is the highest waterfall in the

Philippines; it is located in Iligan City.

Valleys, rivers, and plains[edit]

Rio Grande de Mindanao

Mindanao contains two large lowland areas in the valleys of the Agusan River in Agusan, and

the Rio Grande de Mindanao in Cotabato City.

There is some indication that the Agusan Valley occupies a broad syncline between the central

mountains and the east-coast mountains. This valley measures 110 miles (180 km) from south to

north and varies from 20 to 30 miles (32 to 48 km) in width. 35 miles (56 km) north of the head

of Davao Gulf lies the watershed between the Agusan and the tributaries of the Libuganon River,

which flows to the Gulf. The elevation of this divide is well under 200  m (660 ft), indicating the almost

continuous nature of the lowland from the Mindanao Sea on the north to the Davao Gulf.

The Rio Grande de Mindanao and its main tributaries, the Catisan and the Pulangi, form a valley

with a maximum length of 120 miles (190 km) and a width which varies from 12 miles (19 km) at the

river mouth to about 60 miles (97 km) in central Cotabato. The southern extensions of this Cotabato
Valley extend uninterrupted across a 350-meter (1,150 ft) watershed from Illana Bay on the

northwest to Sarangani Bay on the southeast.

Other lowlands of a coastal nature are to be found in various parts of Mindanao. Many of these are

tiny isolated pockets, along the northwest coast of Zamboanga. In other areas such as the Davao

Plain, these coastal lowlands are 16 km (9.9 mi) wide and several times in length.

From Dipolog City eastward along the northern coast of Mindanao approaching Butuan City extends

a rolling coastal plain of varying width. In Misamis Occidental, the now dormant Mount

Malindang has created a lowland averaging 13 km (8.1 mi) in width. Shallow Panquil Bay divides this

province from Lanao del Norte, and is bordered by low-lying, poorly drained lowlands and extensive

mangroves. In Misamis Oriental, the plain is narrower and in places whittle into rugged capes that

reach the sea. East of Cagayan de Oro, a rugged peninsula extends into the Mindanao Sea.