Cabilao Island, Philippines

I am staying in Tawala, (at the bottom on the little island of Panglao).    I headed for Cabilao Island on the western side of Bohol Island (marked on the map).    I read about Cabilao and Pangangan Islands last year, i wanted to visit, but never made it.   They are quiet islands and supposed to have good snorkeling from shore.
So this was the year.
As always, there are many decisions and challenges when visiting somewhere new..  I finally decided to stay at Polaris Dive Resort on Cabilao.    There are several options for getting there.  The fast, easy and expensive: The resort can arrange for your transport for US$34; plus $10 private taxi to Tagbilaran.   or, ...the slow, confusing, and cheap, local public transport.   this is of course, also the most adventurous !   ....who wants to see a country from a sterile bubble ?    Luckily, Pat, Nadia's niece is a young Philippina who knows the 'ropes' of public transport.   she was invaluable.
The first leg is via a 'Jeepney', a small old bus, very old bus, with open air, but covered flat-bed-like body, but with bench seating for maybe 10 people on each side.    The reality is they pack as many people/kids as they can.   There were easily 13 people on each side, plus some children and chickens on laps.   Then they put little bench stools down the middle 'aisle' so people can sit on those too.   This what the ride is like.

there is a guy that rides on the back that has one 'grunt' to tell the driver when to stop, and a different 'grunt' to tell him when to go.   he also will toss your bags on the top of the Jeepney and take your pesos.   It was about an hour ride, stopping all along the way to pick up and drop off, according to the 'grunts'  ...all this for 25 pesos, that's $.50, as opposed to $10 for a private taxi.

at 8am, like a child's first day at school, Pat walked me down the street to make sure i got on the right Jeepney, unfortunately, the Jeepney was running early, but she stayed with me and told the guy that i needed to get off at the Museum.

i don't know why, but i have this 'anxiety' about riding buses; ...that i can't get off at the right place and i just keep riding.   what's that old song?   "one more nickel, Charlie couldn't get off that train".   The Kingston Trio, 1949, .... i had to google it...  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7Jw_v3F_Q0

but i 'digress'  ... so, i get off at the Museum, where i'd been instructed to take a Tricycle to the Marcela Mall.  a Tricycle, is a motorcycle with a 'side-car', and looks like this is and is a very common mode of transport... kind of clever i think.

Pat told me the Tricycle fare was 8 pesos to anywhere.   i confirmed with the Tricycle driver who said the fare was 20pesos, i told him i knew it was 8, we agreed on 10,, $.20.   i should have just given him 8, and gotten out, but didn't have change ...note to self

arrived at the Marcela Mall and found the Che Che Jeepney for the next leg of my journey; and i didn't have to wait long before we were off again.   this trip took about 2 hours and was not as crowded as the first, it was 40 pesos, $.80.

now i have arrived on Sandingan Island, via a 'causeway', which was quite nice since it was repaired after the 2013 earthquake.    here i take a 'Banca' boat, with at least 6 people, about 10min to Cabilao Island, 20pesos, $.40.     i know this because i was told we needed 2 more people, or i could pay 60 pesos and we could go now.  i told him i wasn't in a hurry, and 2 people showed up within 3 minutes.   they love to get $$$ from us 'rich' folks....

now i'm on Cabilao Island, but not to my destination yet.   i was instructed to take a 'habal-habal' aka motorbike, with my bags, to Polaris, about a 10min ride for 50pesos, $1, negotiated down from 60pesos.
 
That's a LOT of transfers for someone who has always had a phobia about riding public transport, But all the transfers went smoothly, and it took just a little over 3.5 hrs... i was there before noon.

so my transportation cost me  $2.90  vs  $44  ...the adventure ... 'priceless'

i was greeted at Polaris with this .. i kind of like my new name, it looks very Italian  :)

the staff at Polaris could not have been friendlier and eager to help.   there was always someone around if you needed anything.   i was given some welcome tea, an orientation, and escorted to my Tree House   !

with a balcony, it was perfect

the resort was very nice, lots of beautiful gardens, pools, and right on the sea

 

and beautiful sunsets

i changed my clothes and immediately got into the water ..

i was a bit disappointed at all the algae as i snorkeled though the shallows, but out deeper, the corals were real pretty, and the water clear

deep down under a coral ledge i came face to face with this Blue Girdled AngelFish

just before he turned and fled ... a new AngelFish face for me !

diving back down into the depths again, i found this Semi-Circle AngelFish with his unidentified friends which i think were Dusky Sweepers

the next morning i was out early at low tide.    the coolest new find was this Anna's Chromodoris annae.

i watched as it crawled over the top of this sponge

of course i had to take more photos, and when i looked, it had a friend...

this is a very small fish, a Speckled DamselFish

and a few unusually colored Christmas Tree Worms

the food at Polaris was very good.  i had fresh fish every night, this one was 'baked' and EXCELLENT !

i booked a Snorkel Tour for 9am.   it was a 'personal' tour, ....only me, so i thought it would be ok, since i could be the 'princess on the boat'  :)

i saw this Cushion Sea Star in the shallows before i got into the boat.

this is Peuchre, my guide for the morning  ... strange name, i know  :(

i found this very cooperative Papua Toby

he was very pretty

i also saw a new 'Nemo'  ... a Spine Cheeked AnemoneFish.    i like how 'fat' he is  :)

other than that, it wasn't as good as the (free) reef that was right out front.   of course, i only had a limited time snorkeling, so who really knows.

snorkeling later that afternoon, i found a new different LionFish than is on our side of the world.   This a Spot Fin LionFish ... appropriately named !

i came across something while snorkeling that i didn't understand.   there was a hole in the sand, and a little fish and a crab/shrimp-looking thing with it.   Clearly they were not the same species.  The shrimp was using it's claws to 'plow' the sand from the inside the hole to the outside. ..... strange.   i wondered what kind of relationship was going on.   I visited my favorite Dive Shop back in Panglao and i found out.
The little fish is a Gobie and it was a Snapping Shrimp.   It works like this:   The nearly-blind Shrimp needs the sharp-eyed Gobie to warn him of danger.   And the Gobie needs a place to hide.   The shrimp industriously maintains extensive winding tunnels by continually hauling sand up from below.   The Shrimp battles the shifting sand like a power robot, heaving, hoisting, poking and plowing, using their single enlarged snapping claw.   While the little Shrimp toils endlessly, the Gobie perches near the opening acting as sentinel.    When the shrimp is outside of the hole, it maintains contact with the Gobie's body, usually near the tail so the Gobie can alert the Shrimp of danger.   They can disappear back into their hole in tenth's of a second!    I believe this .... as it was hard to get a photo, especially with the tide surge at the time.
You can see the Shrimp's antennae, pointing back, touching the Gobie's body.

I also got a short video ... it was so very interesting to watch this symbiotic relationship in action.

unbelieveably,, i saw 3 more Anna's Chromodoris

and another Nudibranch called a Ringed Phyllidiella, not as exciting and colorful as the Anna  :)

i've always 'liked' snakes and Sea Snakes are no exception.  you can skip this video if you don't like them.  but i am just fascinated by how they move through the water.    i followed this guy for a long time, and he was totally uninterested in me !

one afternoon i decided to try to see an inland lake.   my trusty Keen sandals were starting to give me a blister , so before i came here, i bought a pair of cheap flip flops that fit differently.   i was wearing these and before i even got to the lake i had worn a hole between my toes.   i found some old torn balloon parts along the side of the road/trail and tried to cushion that area.   it didn't work very well  :(

the whole trip was a disaster.   it was in the heat of the day (mistake), and after 20 min i took the right turn, and walked down a long path and decided it wasn't the right path, and walked back up and took the left turn a long long way down a road and finally saw a woman.  she said it was the other road that i was on the first time.   i limped back up that long long road and kept right on going .. screw the little lake  :)

last year i vowed to 'limit my load' and 'downsize' before my next trip.    one of the things i decided to do was to leave my big heavy 'dive camera and housing' home and buy a small light weight GoPro camera for my diving.   any new camera takes some getting used to, do i took it out with me on a snorkel to see what i can learn.   before you even get in the water:
1. make sure the battery is fully charged
2. make sure you have an empty SD card
3. make sureyou have a large enough SD card.
i failed on all three, within 10min, the card was full, so i started deleting videos ...then the battery died.   luckily i brought along my trust Olympus  :)

however, i did get a few seconds that i think will show you what a beautiful morning it was under the sea.    the GoPro takes nice video, ...if it's clear.   but i need a LOT of practice.

most of the videos would make you dizzy and nauseous  :(

my last morning i was in the water by 7:30 and it was calm and sunny.   i really enjoyed my snorkel.   although i'd been in this area of the reef before, it was calmer and clearer than other times.

this beautiful ParrotFish let me get close enough for this shot

this is one of the many Damsel Fishes ...difficult to identify

this pair of BumpHead BannerFish just kept swimming around and around me, daring me to take the shot.

my new fish for this day was this ThreadFin DartFish ... with the pretty trailing tail

this is another shot of the reef overlooking the 'deep blue'

another new fish .. there were a lot of Circle Cheek Wrasse swimming around this morning

these little white-nosed fishes are called HumBug Fish ...i do not know why.   they are tiny, about 1" and pretty cute.

as i come into the shallows, i am always looking for the 'little things'.... right at eye-level.   this is what it looks like

i saw this guy last year in a similar habitat.   he is a master at disguise, blending perfectly with the grasses and algae he calls home.... can you see him?     ...just below the little yelllow/black fish ..... their eyes are lined up almost perfectly.

this is the same fish, but he has changed his colors to match his surroundings ... the abilities of nature amazes me  :)    he is a Bristle-Tailed FileFish

i really enjoyed my stay at Polaris Dive Resort, and they had great weather for me; only one rainstorm at night.   the trip back home started with a downpour, however, just as i got off my motorbike ride (luckily for me).   we waited 20min for the rain to stop and then took the banca across to Sandingan Island.   the Jeepney appeared soon after and in 2+ hrs i was in in Tagbilaran, trying to figure out where the next jeepney was located.   i kept asking and people kept pointing, 'down there turn right'  ...and 'over there go left'.    it started raining again, but i eventually found the jeepney and got back home.   it took a little longer, but it wasn't bad.
it was nice to see the smiling faces of my friends greeting me  :)