Camotes Island: Back Home

Camotes Island used to be my home. Though I wasn't born here, the early years of my childhood was spent on this small island. I think I was five years young when we finally moved to the mainland Cebu. Since then we visited Camotes yearly until the summer of 1997, which was the last time I saw the unexploited beauty of the island.

coconut trees

After almost two decades, I got the chance to visit Camotes Island again. I was stunned with the major improvements. The roads and bridges are already concrete. Most homes have now electricity. Several resorts and accommodation are readily available. Apparently, a lot of tourists both local and foreign have discovered the captivating beauty of Camotes.

RoRo going to Camotes

Previously, the only means of going to Camotes Island was through a 100-seater boat. Although these boats are still available up to now, the Jomalia RoRo ship has become the primary mode of transportation to many passengers heading to the island. 

My team and I planned to get the earliest trip. Unfortunately, we encountered untoward incidents so we got delayed. At around 6 AM we made our way to Danao port, and it took as less than two hours to get there. As we have expected, it was like a blockbuster film. A lot of passengers waited at the terminal. We bought our tickets at Php180 per person and Php10 terminal fee. Our scheduled departure was 9 AM.

Camotes Port

Finally after two hours, we reached Camotes Island. Welcome back to me! lol. I was mesmerized. The water was clean and clear. I wondered why I didn't notice this before... 

We disembarked and looked for our guide. And then I found my name.. Our guide took us to our temporary home.  

At Santiago Bay

setup a tent

Two of my friends brought their tents since it's allowed to camp on the long stretch of shoreline. After setting the tent, we decided to have our lunch before kicking off our Camotes tour. Our lunch food were awesome!

our tour service. pretty spacious eh?

Off to our first destination - the infamous Bukilat Cave. Supposedly it wasn't included in our tour package because it's a bit far from the rest of the popular destinations on the island. But I insisted on visiting the place, so I added Php500 to the original Php2000 tour package. And it was worth it.

Bukilat Cave

Going to Bukilat Cave

Although it took us almost two hours to get to Bukilat Cave from Santiago Bay, we enjoyed the entire journey. We witnessed the simplicity of the local's way of living on the island. It was such a different scenario - way too far from the city life.

Narrow road to Bukilat Cave

We passed by this long yet very narrow road going to the cave. At last, we reached Bukilat Cave. We paid Php10 per person entrance fee.

entrance to the cave

Mi madre se jacto de como descubrieron la cueva - I mean my mother always bragged about how they discovered the cave.... back in time. This is why I really wanted to see it. The cave was well-preserved, no trashes and no modern stuff installed. 

inside Bukilat Cave

Our guide told us that during high tide the cave looks very enticing. Sadly, it was low tide when we got there so the water was shallow. Hence, we weren't able to swim. Arg! 

We explored the inner part of the cave where we saw a rock formation at the center with an opening just above it. I even imagined rappelling from the top of the cave down to the altar-like rock formation. That would be so much fun! Moreover, the opening at the top serves as passageway of the natural light that illuminates the cave. There were also stalagmites and stalactites in most corner.

Bukilat Cave

Despite the low water level, some visitors still enjoyed the clear water. After a while, we decided to proceed to our next destination.

Altar-like rock formation

Buho Rock

Buho Rock

Next up we went to Buho Rock. We paid Php20 per person entrance fee. The Buho Rock is famous for its cliff jumping. It was my time to see it up close.

Cliff Jumping

There was a steep stairway down to the jumping area. From the top of the stair, I was amazed at the awe-inspiring scene. The sea looked so peaceful.

40 feet cliff

The jumping area was filled with tourists from Japan and S. Korea. Two of my friends tried the 20-foot cliff. But no one from my team dared to jump over the 40 feet cliff. It looked scary! I was exempted from the jumping thing because I don't know how to swim, so I was just the photographer. ;-)

20 feet cliff

Baywalk

Baywalk

On our way to Lake Danao, we dropped by the Baywalk just to take picture. According to my friend, this place has got delicious food. Too bad it was far from our accommodation.

Lake Danao

Lake Danao history

We wasted no time as it was already late in the afternoon. We headed to Lake Danao Park right away. We paid Php10 entrance fee. There were various activities to do in Danao Park. And since it is widely known for its huge green lake, it follows that varied water activities are the usual choice.

Ready to kayak

We only had one thing in our mind - Kayaking. It's like a must-try adventure in Danao Park. The kayaking activity costs Php50 (I thought it's 100). We made the activity even more fun, as we decided to race to an islet on the lake. At a regular pace, I think it took me 30-45 minutes paddle to get to the islet. I was the last one to arrive because I needed to take pictures!

Islet

Wondering how small the islet was? Probably one can run around it in just 5 minutes or maybe less. After taking some crazy videos and photos, we went back (another 45 minutes padding) T_T.

Sunset

We left immediately Lake Danao Park as we still have one destination on our itinerary. But on our way to our last destination, we stopped in an elevated road to take a photo of the beautiful sunset. 

Paraiso Cave

Paraiso Cave

We happened to be the last visitors in Paraiso Cave. The entrance fee was Php20 (if I remember it right). I expected it to look like the Bukilat Cave. But I was somewhat mistaken. The outside area of the cave was well-maintained and developed. There were even cottages for rent. But overall, it was nice.

lush green surrounding

When we got to the entrance of the cave, I was surprised as it was located under. It was indeed a small cave. The entrance was narrow and steep. Since it is under, the management installed lighting fixtures to illuminate the cave. Guests should be careful in going down because the steps are a bit slippery and the rocks are just above the head.

Paraiso Cave entrance

narrow entry

But what awaits at the bottom of the cave was pure treasure. Again I was speechless when I saw the crystal clear water in the cave. The area was just limited but enough for us to enjoy splashing and dipping into the cold water. If I was to estimate the entire swimming area, it is more or less 70 feet in length and 30 feet in width. I could be wrong though. ^_^ 

crystal clear 

 The six of us were having so much fun taking videos that we forgot about the time. We decided to head back then we realized it was already dark, past 6 PM. Yikes! There were no lamp posts along the road going to and from Paraiso Cave. *horror scene flashed* ^_^ 

Back at Santiago Bay 

We were so tired when we got back to Santiago bay. We had our dinner and rested. But the night was young and there was a live reggae band in our area. Just a few steps away from where we setup our tents. I love reggae music so I won't be left behind! 

night life

After the party, we all slept in the tents. No one slept in our room. lol. The following day, the heavy rain woke us all. So we opted to savor the rain and the beautiful beach! 

heavy rain on the beach

yoga pose and rainbow

We had a quick breakfast then went back to the beach since it was already high tide. We spent the entire morning swimming. Santiago Bay is fantastic! 

Then it was lunch time and we had to go...... The entire trip was remarkable. With several accommodation in Camotes as well as fun things to do, undoubtedly, there's going to be a part 2 of this adventure. 

I was glad to be back home. 


May '15