May 28 - Last night arranged a tour today for several sights on Coron Island and nearby locations. Cost is 3,600 pesos. Down at the ‘pier’ (just a concrete seawall and muddy parking lot) at 08:15. Get loaded on a small boat with ten other tourists and sit for 1.5 hours.
We never do find out why we have to wait this long. All the tourists are already on the boat. But for whatever reason, the guide is doing something else and shows up only around 09:30. There is a lot of complaining, to which he only says ‘don’t worry, you’ll like the tour’. In other words, no apology.
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Cross the narrow strait to Coron Island, the first destination being Kayangan Lake. This is probably the most photogenic spot in the country. The key spot where the famous photos are taken is so jammed with people that we decline to wait for our chance.
The lake itself is cut off from the ocean, but very salty. The sheer limestone cliffs all around are full of holes that allow seawater in. Here, it mixes with fresh water flowing from the island interior. The lake is completely jammed with tourists, and everyone is obligated to wear life jackets due to a drowning here years ago.
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I didn’t have a mask on here, but the water is crystal clear and it is possible to see to a great depth. The rocks are all limestone of course, jagged and fissured. There are a few needlefish.
From here we stop at Barracuda Lake, a similar body of water to the west. This, however, is not officially on our tour (only a few people on the boat paid for that one), so we are instructed to just sit and wait. There is a near mutiny, so the guide parks the boat off to the side where we can jump in and snorkel. It turns out to be the best bit of snorkeling of the day, with a sheer reef wall and some fantastic sponges.
After this, on to Twin Lagoon. As a place to swim around and admire the scenery, this is the best stop. We swim off the boat and across one salt lagoon to a spot where you either have to dive underneath a limestone arch or climb a ladder over it. The sea life here is good, with many fish (including some pufferfish) and abundant coral mixed with the jagged protrusions of limestone. Swimming around, it feels less like a snorkeling destination and more like a secluded lake. The cliffs all around are pristine, with nothing built along the shore or up the sides. Birds call from the trees and we are christened with the occasional drizzle of rain.
Then is lunch, which we eat at a wooden hut built into the side of the cliff. They go all out on the spread, basically, the only thing they get right on the tour. The guide wants to video everyone shouting out praises for the tour company, but the stony silence suggests this is a stupid request.
Cross the strait again and anchor at a small island where an old Japanese war vessel (called Skeleton Wreck on the tour) was sunk just offshore during WWII. The one end of the ship is shallow enough that it can be seen by snorkeling.
Nearby here is Cyc Beach. We are officially on the Busuanga Island side of the strait, where the rocks immediately change to cherts and other silicious sediments.
The beach is nice enough, we jump off the boat and swim over. There is a stand of mangrove trees at the northern end of the island. Unlike many we’ve seen, these root in sand and are taking on a lot of wave activity.
The guide announces that we will not go to any further sites because of the weather. We mention how nice it would have been if we had started on time today, as this would have given us more time before the weather turned. But he already has our money so why should he care.
Philippines