I have always loved going to Calauit. Even when we used to wake up at 3am and take four-hour banca rides, or the two and a half hour rough roads, Calauit and to a lesser extent, the islands around Busuanga were always exciting destinations for me.
Sometime in April, a group from Bicol was referred by former DOT MIMAROPA RD, Danilo Intong. Unfortunately we were already full on their travel dates so the group had to book their rooms at another resort. They did booked the tour with us for May 1-3 which included the usual Coron Town Tour on Day 1, a Coron Island Tour on Day 2 and a Calauit Tour with Black Island on Day 3. Coincidentally, we had two other tours running on the same days - a Bird Tour which I usually accompany and a group that included my son Luis and his gaming friends from UP, including Prof Neon Rosell, one of the old time bird photographers. I was in a quandary as to which group I will go with. But, since the Bicol group was entrusted to me by RD Dan, I felt the need to personally accompany them.
Here are a couple of photos from Day 1:
On the way to Kayangan Lake
Banol Beach
The following daw, we picked up the group at 6:30am. This was the new schedule of the Calauit Tour. Guests would have an early breakfast (6am) and then drive direct to Macalachiao and board the banca to cross the narrow channel to Calauit island. Personally, I prefer the 5am departure, breakfast at Salvacion, arrive at Calauit a little before 8am and start the tour at 8. The early morning light was much better for photography. Animals also tended to be more active in the morning. But I was told by my staff that this was the way it was being done in the new normal so I complied (grudgingly...).
As expected, we arrived a little later and started our tour almost 9am. The good news was, Calauit had a new tour vehicle (provided by Gov JCA), and there was already Globe signal in the island!
The new tour vehicle, more comfy and spacious. Front facing seats too!
The highlight of the Calauit tour is feeding the giraffes and of course a selfie (or groupie) with these gentle animals. Sharing a couple of shots of our guests enjoying the experience.
And here are some images that I was able to create:
I was hoping for shots of the Blue-headed Racket Tail (Kilit) and the Green Imperial Pigeon (Balud). But there were no Kilits. I heard a few Baluds and saw a couple fly by in the distance. But not photo opportunities. I did get a photo of their captive juvenile White-bellied Sea Eagle (there are two of them now). Come to think of it, I never got to ask why they are caged.
A caged juvenile White-bellied Sea Eagle.
After a couple of hours, the tour was over and it was time to go.
The Calauit wharf
It was almost 11am and next on the agenda was lunch at Buluang Fishpond Restaurant, which was located several kilometers away.
Owned by the Pescador family, Buluang Fishpond Restaurant, is located beside the sea, a few kilometers outside the main barrio site of Bgy Buluang. They serve freshly caught seafoods at very reasonable prices and has since become a popular food stop for Calauit goers since its opening sometime in 2019. Customers dine on cottages built over water and this provides a very rustic ambiance. Very relaxing.
It's location was also the ideal habitat for one of my favorite birds, the Stork-billed Kingfisher. Needless to say, I brought by birding camera with me when we alighted the van. But it seemed that luck was not with me on this day because we had already finished our big family-style buffet lunch and no Stork-billed had shown up. We were getting ready to leave when suddenly I saw one Stork-billed KF arrive. I frantically got my camera and began firing like a madman, running from one spot to another (people were probably gawking at me as I was doing this).
Stork-billed Kingfisher
At one point, there were two of them
And THE shot that made my day, Stork-billed KF in flight!
Next stop was Malajon Island, or more popularly known as Black Island. According to what I heard, the real name of the island in Tinagbanua, is Malahum, which beans black or dark. Probably due to the dark gray limestone karsts that dominate the island. That it is listed as Malajon in maps is probably an error made by the original map makers. This is not uncommon, Diwaran Island is listed as Dinaran in maps. We boarded the banca at Salvacion and took the 45-minute trip to Black Island.
Finally, we arrived at our destination...
A portion of the long beach of Black Island
Apart from it's long beach with powdery white sand, Black Island is also famous for its caves. There are three holes in the face of the cliff. The largest leads to a big cavern with pools of ice cold water.
The big pool at the back of the cavern. I did not bring a tripod so I was shooting this handheld in the dark. Thus the blur.
The two smaller openings are actually connected to each other in a sort of a U shaped tunnel.
The lower entrance to the smaller cave
Some of our guests before entering the smaller cave
The higher opening of the smaller cave
Our guests posing for a family photo as they exit the smaller cave. With them is Janet Gamboa, one of our guides for the day.
The view from the beach hut that we were staying at
Our guests doing a "human starfish"
And as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end, so by around 4pm, we had to reluctantly leave this island paradise. But not before one last group shot...
A farewell group shot, taken by guides Stephanie Mortal and Janette Gamboa
A long and tiring day but a fun-filled one! Thank you for visiting our town! Thank you RD Dan for the referral and above all, Thank you Lord for your Blessings!
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