If I’m not mistaken, the original plan for this trip was just for some time around Cagayan de Oro, or thereabouts. Somewhere along the pseudo-planning stage, it became a getaway with the island of Camiguin at the center. And quite the adventure it turned out to be! I’m telling you, if you get the chance to go on a trip (that’s more than one or two days) with good friends and kindred spirits, GO FOR IT.
It took a while, but we finally reached Camiguin after more than 12 hours on the road (and air), all the way from that bus ride from Baguio City, taking the flight to CDO, then another van ride to Balingoan Port in Misamis Oriental where we took the ferry to the island. Had we planned on Camiguin from the beginning, we’d have come in via the nearer airport, sparing ourselves from the long trip from CDO to Balingoan Port, but… well, that’s that.
It was evening when we finally arrived at Pabua Cottages, where we were going to stay for three nights, so we just grabbed some dinner then turned in for the night.
Rise and Shine~
The next day was going to be devoted to a tour around the key spots of Camiguin, which we coordinated with the Cottage’s owners.
UNFORTUNATELY, that time, a storm was brewing in that side of the country. Typhoon Marce was about to come in, so it doesn’t appear that it’s going to be completely sunshine-y that day.
Regardless, we headed off early and took a boat ride to the famed sandbar of Camiguin, predictably called “White Island”.
Not quite white, but close to it
Maybe it was the kinda dreary weather, but I’m guessing that if the sun shone at its most earnest that day, the sandbar would definitely live up to its name.
Still, the sight that greeted us the moment we got on land was already very awe-inspiring.
Being a sandbar, it’s not too large, but it’ll still take more than a few minutes to walk from end to end.
Apparently, the best place to visit this is early in the morning, when the sun rises. Sure, it’s also good to visit it later in the day, but imagine how scorching hot it would be.
There was none of that worry when we went there, though, because the overcast sky pretty much nixed any chance of the sun peeping through the clouds. Still, what little light it provided managed to allow the sandbar to still show off its charms.
By the way, the main reason for us picking Camiguin to visit was our plan to hike up Mt. Hibok-Hibok.
UNFORTUNATELY, we can’t even see her from the sandbar. The clouds kept her hidden. At the time, we refused to take it as a sign that we won’t be able to go on with the hike. We were still hopeful that the weather will lift up the next day. 🙂
Ah, such optimism.
So, what can you do on this tiny patch of sand in the middle of the sea?
Lots, surprisingly.
First, walk the stretch of sand, further out until you are submerged in the water, up to your waist, but with your feet still firmly planted on the sand. It was interesting to see how far out we could get.
Walk on, look back, and track your footsteps in the sand with your eyes. That was such a chill moment for me, for some reason. And you don’t really realize how far you’ve gone unless you took a moment to look back. Literally and figuratively.
Listen to the sound of the waves, and watch them wash up to shore, then move back out again. It’s… calming, in a way. Try it. It’ll do you good.
Now, no one would think less of you if you just sit there and stare into the water. If you’ve lived way too long in the city, you’d realize just how precious these moments of relative calm and silence are.
Lie down, preferably under a shade, and take a nap.
Well, we would’ve done that if (a) we didn’t have other plans for the day, and (b) the weather is much nicer. At this point, there was a high chance that it’ll pour in an hour or so, so being caught napping in a downpour is not really how we’d want to wake up. 🙂
Get some local grub.
And by “local”, I mean fresh off the sea.
We saw this man, a local, with a basket full of sea urchins, freshly caught. He sells them to be eaten raw. Needless to say, we tried it.
Basically you crack it open, remove some of the inedible parts, leaving the soft… I dunno, membrane (?) inside, because that’s what can be eaten. He poured some kind of mixture, something with vinegar in it, to taste.
And we dug in.
Some of us didn’t like it. Me? I liked how unique it tasted. And yes, I went for seconds.
Have more than a few laughs with good company.
At some point we all sat down together and just… talked and laughed about the most random things. And when it was over, it didn’t feel too random or even nonsensical at all. You know what I mean, right?
The White Island Sandbar of Camiguin is one of the first must-see places in any Camiguin itinerary. And I can see why. Even with the not-so-good weather, it still managed to charm and inspire us.
Definitely a good start to any day, if you ask me. If I can have a personal sandbar right on my doorstep, and it is geographically possible, I’d probably step out earlier every day.
Leave a Reply