We left the Crystal Cave around lunch time and made a number of stops before finally returning to Socorro. Because Bucas Grande’s terrain makes it impossible for an island-wide road network to be constructed, we had no choice but to go to and from Sohoton by boat. On the way back to Socorro, we stopped by some spots that we passed by going in the other direction in the morning. Continue reading
BUCAS Grande Island is located off the coast of the Surigao del Norte mainland, across the Hinatuan Passage. For good or bad, it’s usually bypassed by tourists in favor of its internationally famous neighbor, Siargao Island. Unlike Siargao, Bucas Grande has no airport and access to the island is limited to a seaport located in the administrative capital of Socorro, located on its western coast. Its most famous feature, and the reason why tourists go there at all, is the Sohoton Cove, which is on the opposite side of the island. Continue reading
I’VE always wanted to visit Mindanao. Everyone I know in the traveling community seem to have visited some part of it – Davao, CDO, Camiguin, Bukidnon, etc. – and have only good things to say about their experiences going there. Since I was beginning to feel left out in discussions on Mindanao among my traveling buddies, and my online albums are conspicuously missing photos of anywhere south of the Visayas, I resolved to make a visit to Mindanao a priority in 2011. Prior to this trip, the closest I’ve gotten to Mindanao was to view the coast of Zamboanga del Norte from far away Siquijor in the Visayas. Continue reading
This is a Google Maps satellite image of an area that constitutes the Municipality of Claver in Surigao del Norte. I was able to observe this from a distance last September 22-24. The large area appears to have a striking reddish hue because the entire coastal mountain range is DENUDED of its forest cover. Claver supposedly has the largest iron mineral deposit in the world, and one can surmise that this denudation of the mountains is partly due to the mining activities that have gone on in the past years. Continue reading
