We resumed our search for
the best summer destination in the country last week in Mindoro. What we found was
surreally beautiful and undoubtedly one of the best this country offers.
Apo Reef is the second largest
contiguous coral reef in the world and the largest one in the Philippines. But that’s not all Sablayan has to
offer. Pandan Island can rival the best
resorts in the country, not in terms of luxury, but the kind of island life
experience it gives its guests. Sablayan
is also home to Libao Lake, a quaint inland lake surrounded by the Sablayan
Watershed Forest Reserve.
These three were the
highlights of our recent vacation, which took years of dreaming, weeks of planning, and
hours of travel.
The Long Wait
Mindoro is a mecca of
amazing biodiversity with its number of endemic species and diversity of
habitats.
I first visited Mindoro in 2006 with a group from Haribon, an
organization committed to nature conservation.
We were with Anya Santos-Uy, who briefed us on why Mindoro is unique.
According to her,
millions of years ago, the major islands in the country were still merged. However, Mindoro remained an isolated island
from the rest of mainland Luzon. This
explains the number of endemic species like the Tamaraw, Mindoro Bleeding Heart, and
Mindoro Tarictic.
That time, we only visited Pandan Island and Libao River. Apo Reef since then has been added on my
bucket list.
Happily, I met Mayor Ed Gadiano of Sablayan weeks ago in Mamburao during
its Tuna-toneladang Festival, who told me it was high time I go back to
Sablayan to see Apo Reef. I started
inviting friends and we planned this adventure.
Pandan Island
A good beach for me is one
that will make me want to do nothing but just dig my toes on its powdery sand
and enjoy the company of friends. Pandan
is even more. It got exceptional marine
life that made me want to stay in the water longer.
Just look at who
welcomed us to the island.
The island can be
reached via 20 minutes boat ride from Sablayan.
We chose to rent a glass bottom boat through the Sablayan Tourism Office
and it was a wonderful experience, especially when we spotted a turtle.
We paid P 1,100.00 one-way for the boat,
which was big enough to accommodate our group of 17 pax.
We paid also an
environmental fee of P 55.00 each. Since
we were guests of the resorts, we were exempted from the entrance fee.
We rented four rooms, which included two
budget rooms, good for two pax, for P 800.00; a large bungalow, good for two
pax, for P 1,600.00; and a family house, good for four pax, for P 3,250. We paid P 250.00 each for additional
pax.
We were also required to take a
dinner buffet of P 470.00 each. We expected
alcohol to be expensive at the resort but we were surprised to find out that
beer was only P 50.00. Woohoo!
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| The Family Room |
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| The Large Bungalow |
We spent a lot of hours
lounging at the porch of the family room and snorkeling. When the sun started setting down, we all
went to the beach to watch the colors of the horizon change. By sunset, we were all at the bar to
have beer and wait for dinner. It was a
lucky day for us. One of the guests of the resort threw a party with free
drinks for all.
Apo Reef
We left the resort early the following day to meet the other members of
our group and buy our provisions for the next three days, which included water
for drinking and cooking. Our two
guides, Senen and Rovil, who were assigned to us by Sablayan Tourism Office,
helped us. We paid P 4,000.00 for our
guides. The tourism office also arranged our boat to Apo Reef, which cost P
12,000.00. The fee is for a big boat
enough for 20 pax for three days. It
also included a small banca, which hauled all our supplies.
The more than two hours boat ride was definitely worth it. We landed in paradise.
The Apo Reef Natural Park consists of three islands, which are the Apo
Island; Binangaan, a rocky limestone island; and Cayos del Bajo, which is a
flat corraline rock fomation. Apo Island
is about 22 hectares. There is a
designated campsite near the registration area, which also has comfort rooms
and water pumps, which expels salt water.
We stayed for two nights at Apo Island.
We paid P 270.00 each for our entrance and environmental fee. Our itinerary included exploring the island’s
lighthouse, lagoon and of course, snorkeling around it.
The caretakers of the island advised us that there are migratory birds
nesting in the island so we needed to keep quiet. It was okay.
We wanted to enjoy nature.
The best part of the Apo Reef experience was snorkelling. Good thing this was declared a protected
area, so the underwater scene was so alive.
We also had beautiful sunsets at the island. Despite warnings of strong typhoon, we were blessed
with clear skies.
Libao Lake
We were requested to leave the island very early on our third day, which
we didn’t mind because of the looming typhoon.
It was a good sail back though to Sablayan. We even passed by Parolang Putol for more
snorkeling, which I think is part of Cayos del Bajo.
We washed up at Emilie Hotel for P 50.00 each then had lunch at the
public market. Since we had more than
six hours left before our scheduled bus trip, we decided to see Libao
Lake. We rented a joylong van for P
2,500.00 at the Dimplestar Bus Terminal.
It was spacious enough for 15 pax, plus our backpacks. The tourism office arranged for our permit
and we paid P 80.00 each, which included environmental fee and entrance.
Libao Lake is situated inside the Sablayan Penal Farm. It has an
approximate area of 24 hectares. The
name Libao is from the word libua, a mangyan word for white lotus, which is
abundant in the lake.
It was a quiet afternoon spent having snacks, exhanging pleasantries
with the inmates who were there at the lakes and of course, taking photos. Some took naps.
It was definitely the best scene to cap our five-day adventure in
Sablayan.
PS
There are other places to see in Sablayan like the Parola Park, which is
the future site of the longest island-to-island zipline in the world. The Sabalayan Museum is also worth a visit
for a brief tour about Sablayan’s history and brush up on their culture. They also have beautiful murals at the
park. There is one dedicated to its
early inhabitants, the Mangyans and another one on Sablayan’s history.
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| This is where the zipline lands |
Dimplestar, with stations at Santolan, Sampaloc and Alabang, offers
airconditioned buses to Sablayan. Seats
are not that comfortable though but it is cheap at P 800.00.
Lastly, it is best to coordinate with The Sablayan Tourism Office
(09984259898, 09166831709). They are very
helpful. Look for Ms. Norie. She made our trip really hassle-free.
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