Bohol: Balicasag Dives Finally

For more than four years of being a scuba diver, I believe I have already visited the major dive sites of the Philippines except Subic and Bohol. I am not keen on visiting Subic anytime soon but Bohol had been on my bucket list ever since I started diving. But I find Bohol quite elusive after a couple of failed attempts to revisit the place and so my penchant to dive in its water grew and grew. And at long last, the dream to dive Bohol finally became real for it was my opening... Read More

Snapshot: Balicasag Dive Buddy

Diving in Balicasag Bohol Balicasag Island, Panglao, Bohol January 12, 2013 My first dive after almost five months of hiatus in scuba diving and also my first this year was in Balicasag Island, Panglao, Bohol. It was also my first time to dive in Bohol which had been quite elusive for me until this weekend. We descended twice in the water around Balicasag Island and I was in total awe with the amazing scenery underneath. I have heard and read a lot of great reviews about the... Read More

Diving in Camiguin

With a different agenda, I returned to the Island Born of Fire, my third time overall and twice in just a span of one year. No I didn’t do the usual island tour, I am through with it twice. I went there to dive! Technically speaking, I have already dive in Camiguin before, specifically in the waters of Mantigue Island. Not the usual Camiguin but it still is. But I have heard a lot of positive reviews on the waters surrounding the main island of the province and my scuba... Read More

Snapshot: Linamon Coral Transplantation Project

Linamon Coral Transplantation Project Barangay Mago-ong and Samburon, Linamon, Lanao del Norte May 26, 2012 The 3.33 million coral reef restoration and enhancement through community-based coral transplantation is a project of Mindanao Rural Development Program, Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Management and the Local Government Unit of Linamon and Lanao del Norte. The project aims to rehabilitate the the six-hectare marine protected area off the coast of Barangay... Read More

Puerto Galera Underwater Revisited

The boat to Verde Island left Sabang at eight in the morning and we missed it by half-an-hour. Lovie, the receptionist of Big Apple Dive Resort explained that despite their pleadings to delay the trip for a bit, the foreign divers were all eager to leave early, so away they went. A sea turtle swimming on the surface as seen underwater at Sabang Wrecks A cheerful and helpful Lovie tried contacting other dive shops, asking for Verde Island trip for the same day but all her efforts... Read More

Weekend Bliss: Return to Apo Reef

It was a last minute decision and it seemed like a coincidence that Gael’s feature on Apo Reef was just published in Yahoo!Travel. Reading her piece along with some of my photos made me missed Apo Reef even more. Perhaps it was the sign. After all, if there are places worth coming back over and over again, Apo Reef is surely one of them. So for third year in a row I went to this paradise off the coast of Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro and once again had a great time in this... Read More

My Year End Dive at Agutayan Island Marine Sanctuary

I went to Cagayan de Oro the day after Tropical Storm Sendong lashed the city. From the airport, the situation seemed normal and calm but as I came close to the city proper, the disaster brought by the storm became perceptible. As the jeepney passed the bridge crossing the brown and murky Cagayan River in Carmen District, I saw communities along the river totally washed out. People covered with mud, barefooted and wearing the saddest faces I’ve ever seen, were everywhere.... Read More

Diving the Monsters of Coron

Coron, an enchanting place dotted with limestone cliffs, amazing inland lakes, caves, lagoons and beautiful white sandy island beaches, is also blessed with superb scene underneath with its vibrant and diverse marine life and of course the important pieces of history that remind us of our past. Navigating the creepy and narrow pathways of Coron Wrecks is a surreal experience The enclosed coves and waters in between the islands of Calamianes Group is home to the Philippines’... Read More

Medina, Misamis Oriental Dive Against Debris

A scene underneath the water of Medina Port It is always a slow day at the port of Medina, a small town north of Misamis Oriental fronting Gingoog Bay. Save for a big fishing vessel quietly docked in the town’s concrete port, traffic and activities are almost always very light. The big fishing boat was captured by local authorities in the neighboring town of Magsaysay for violating the Fisheries Code of the Philippines (Republic Act 8550) when they illegally entered... Read More