Nature Tripping at Coron

I have been to Palawan once when we went to Port Barton a year ago, the details of which I narrated in my previous blog. During that trip, I thought I have seen the best of Palawan with all the beautiful beaches and exotic islands that we visited there. I was wrong. I got to see the better part of Palawan, in fact the better part of the Philippines, when we went to Coron last April 4.

Coron is a group of paradise islands located on the northern tip of Palawan. The place is still seldom travelled by local tourist due to its inaccessibility and the high price of tour package to Coron. We're just fortunate that part of the benefit we get from our company is a free annual team outings on destination of our choice. We have a budget to meet though, and since our team wanted to try other destination this time, we opted to take the ferry to Coron to bring down the cost of the tour package.

Our trip to Coron by sea was a vacation in itself. The ferry was complete with amenities and the cabin where we stayed was like a hotel room with cable TV and comfort room. And since we travelled at night, we just slept throughout the trip and enjoyed the comfort of our cabin until we were awaken to the sight of the beautiful islands of Palawan the next morning. From the port, we went directly to DiveLink Resort where we were billeted. The resort is located in Uson island that offers nice cottage rooms by the mountain side and provides visitors a good view of the sea.

From the resort, it takes 5 to 10 minutes of boat ride to go the nearest exotic island that Coron is known for. But going to those islands is never a bore since you'll get entertained and mesmerized by the limestone formation that are lined up the horizon.

Our first destination on our harbour tour itinerary was the Pinnacle Beach which is a short stretch of beach with white sand and clear blue water. It was quite a challenge to go the shore from the boat since the boat can’t go near the shore, hence we used kayak to get to the beach while others swam with the support of life vest. Those few who did not want to swim just stayed on the boat and it proved to be a better option since two of our mates who swam were stung by sea urchins and their feet had to be peed on.

Next on our itinerary was the Hidden Lagoon. Believe me, the view of the limestone formation and the aqua blue water of the hidden lagoon really took my breath away. All that I said in unison with the rest of my team mates upon seeing the majestic view was “WOW!!!”. It was one of those moments that I truly admired the beauty of nature. The view was even better when we plunged into the water and made our way into a small cave that led us to another paradise.

We went to other beautiful beaches of Coron that day and made our way back to DiveLink before the sun set to relax and enjoy the amenities of the resort. Some of our team mates who seemed to never get enough of the fantastic view of Coron even went on top of mount Uson to take picture of the place several feet above and to capture the setting of the sun on a different angle.

The next day of our trip was the continuation of the harbour tour prepared by the resort. Like the first day, we were once again captivated by the beauty of Coron. We were brought to a snorkelling area where corals and fish abounds. We enjoyed the view underneath but the water current was so strong so we moved to our next destination. We were supposed to go next to Kayangan Lake which is touted to be the cleanest lake in the Philippines. However, when we were about to enter a lagoon leading to the lake, we were stopped by local guards to inform us that a telenovela was being shot in the lake which we later found out to be “Dyesebel” of GMA7 and visitors were not allowed. We were very disappointed since we were told that the lake is really beautiful and that it’s one of the places that should not be missed in Coron. To keep our disappointment at bay, the resort guide just took us to another beautiful lake, the Baracuda Lake which according to them is similar to Kayangan but the water is a bit deeper.

Going to the lake was frightening since it involved a short hike on sharp rocky mountain. We had to climb a steep slope while holding on jagged mountain edges. But our fear subsided after that dangerous trek as we saw heaven on this part of the world. The lake is like a big basin enclosed by mountain of limestones and the water is deep blue similar to ocean but as fresh as drinking water. Another fantastic sight for dreary eyes.

Coron is a manifestation that indeed our country is blessed with several wonders of nature. Let's just hope that this will be preserved for our children and grandchildren to see.