After our trip to see the non-sting jellies, we are now treading land and this time, we are headed for the caves. Bucas Grande has indeed got it all, from swimming to paddling and now spelunking!
Surigao Trip
[March 23-26]
And so we were told by our guide that the first cave we are going to visit boasts of shining shimmering crystals --thus, called Crystal Cave. It wasn't that far from the shore but we sure did have a taste of an exciting trail. While trekking we heard birds chirping and flying nearby. Ah..we're definitely not in the city anymore. We saw some locals on our way to the cave too. Boy they're lucky they are so close to nature.
And with just a few more steps, we are inside Crystal Cave. We were not allowed to use flash in our cameras when taking a photo as this could damage the crystals--which by the way, takes years and years to form. It's a good thing we got enough sunlight from the entrance that we're still able to capture some of the rock formations inside the cave. Stalactites and stalagmites all covered in crystals. Oh and you're not suppose to touch them too or they will lose their luster. Once you touch them..they are destroyed like..forever! You can't have that blame on your shoulders. So, be very careful.
Simply observe and look at the beauty there is of this natural wonder.
You may not be able to appreciate it very much in our photos but all the stone behind us are glimmering.
See? They are indeed shining, shimmering and glimmering! Glad we agreed to visit this cave.
On our way out, we saw this cute little pup. Aww.....
The next cave we are going to explore is Bolitas Cave. It is called as such because our guide said you can find plenty of "bolitas" (Visayan for small, round rocks..I think..) inside the cave. Not that inviting but wait till you see the cave's entrance.
Yes it's definitely a cave! One with a very small entrance.
Only one man is allowed to enter at a time because that's how small the entrance and the passageway is.
Are we good to go on this one??Well, we had a minute to examine the mouth of the cave and for our guide to convince us that it's okay if we don't push through but it's also better if we did. So?
Yes we're good to go. We just prayed real hard that we can squeeze our way in and of course squeeze our way out. It takes a brave heart to do this and we hope to have it. Haha!
We only had 1 flashlight with us and we had to pass it on to each other so we can see where we are going.
We managed well enough to even take pictures to document this crazy ordeal.
As we go deeper, we had to be flat on our bellies and crawl our way in. Man, was I not ready for this. My arms were sore from bearing all my weight. My knees started to hurt too when I tried to use to help carry my weight. It was quite a struggle for me..for all of us I suppose. But we carried on.
Then we got to this area and we needed to watch out for our heads too! These rock formations may not seem like they are very sharp but they can hurt you if you are not careful.
Our guide said this is the only part of the cave where you can actually sit and that's the highest you could go.
He said the cave extends to more or less 3 kilometers from this place but we will not move any further. The passage is the same all throughout-- about a foot or two vertical clearance and nothing more.
Because of what we've been through, we almost forgot about what we are expected to see inside this cave. So I asked our guide, where are the bolitas? Just then, he picked up some dirt/ rocks and placed it in his cupped hands and simply said, this is it. They looked liked regular rocks that you can see almost anywhere. However perfectly rounded it seemed, I personally think it wasn't at all that remarkable. But luckily, the stalactites and stalagmites inside did not fail to amaze us.
Those things on the ceiling don't just grow overnight you know. They take years and years and even more years to get to its form now. Wow!
We needed to establish a proof that we went through a great deal just to be here, so photo session it is!
We did not actually plan on staying longer. The place was so small that Oxygen supply is decreased and we felt that our brains were deteriorating without it. We might not be able to think straight so let's get moving...Haha!
We just had to go. At once!
Same way in. Same way out. But we were definitely faster in moving out.
The look of success plus sweat and mud and perhaps some bat droppings. Oh well.
Anyhow..we did it!!!!! Weeee!
Here we are, washing ourselves after our spelunking in Bolitas Cave.
Another memorable adventure with brave-hearted friends!
Off we go to the rest of the Bucas Grande Islands!!
photo credits[cro, paul & noel]
No comments:
Post a Comment