7 caves await an all-clear
Minglanilla town has set aside P500,000 to clear the path for explorers bound for Camp 7
A TOUR of seven caves, including a large site that locals call the White Cave, may soon be offered in Minglanilla.
All seven caves are located in Barangay Camp 7, the town’s mountainous boundary with Toledo City. White Cave is the largest of the seven.
“Kinadak-an, kina ibabwan ug puti (It’s the largest, the highest and it’s white),” was how former Camp 7 barangay captain Elsa Repunte, 60, described it.
The cave’s white, chalk-like front wall is so large it appears to be about three times the size of the Metro Cebu Cathedral’s façade.
Getting there won’t be quick, whether one goes through Barangay Cantabaco in Toledo City or through Manipis Road in Talisay City, from Tabunok.
From Tabunok, one has to ride a motorcycle for half an hour, at P35 per head. For now, only motorcycles can pass through Manipis Road, where a portion of the narrow pass is blocked almost entirely by landslide debris.
To go via Cantabaco, one has to take a Toledo City bus, get off at the Cantabaco corner and take a P25 motorcycle ride to Camp 7.
Guests have to hike on a trail and scale rock formations to reach the cave sites.
Tricky hikes
During the climb, one has to grab some grass to prevent a slip or hold on tight to protruding rocks. One of the guides, Ryan Abecia, chairman of the Pag-asa Youth Association of the Philippines, warned a recent tour group to stay clear of a foot-long green diamond-head viper that coiled itself around a stalk of grass. Look closely at the trail, Abecia advised.
Marchia Resuelo, 19, one of the local guides and business manager of Pag-asa Youth, said it takes 15 to 20 minutes to reach Cave 1.
Then, from that cave’s exit, one hikes another 20-25 minutes to reach Cave 2.
For those going directly to White Cave, an hour-long hike is expected.
Camp 7 Barangay Councilman Jose Joe Tabares, 56, said that at present, the cave is closed to visitors to prevent accidents and vandalism.
Sun.Star was given the chance to enter only the first two caves.
Cave 1’s smooth interior walls and floor are in stark contrast to its rocky surface outside. Once in, guests walk about 50 meters, with a few turns, to a bright, sunlit exit. One has to bow to get out.
Safety
Abecia and Resuello require visitors to wear hard hats and bring flashlights. Without a light, one could kick a stalagmite or stumble.
Swallows glide into and out of the cave entrance. Bats hang high in the cave’s inner chamber.
“Karon gi-pang hold namo kay wa pa man mahan-ay ang tanan, basin simbako lang naa’y madisgrasya (We’re not opening it to visitors unless everything is ready, so we can prevent accidents),” said Camp 7 Barangay Councilman Hector Gabiana, 53.
Part of Cave 6, said Resuello, has collapsed due to massive mining.
Exploring the caves takes a sense of adventure.
Cave 2 has a small opening, but a wide chamber inside. Explorers must make numerous turns until they reach a narrow area where they must climb. They slide out of the cave through a hole.
Another slippery climb on a muddy trail follows, until one reaches higher ground. From that level, one can see the shrubs, trees and the tall grass, as well as the white side of a mountain.
2 ways in
This is White Cave, which has two entrances, each more than six feet in diameter. Their tunnels lead to the same large chamber inside.
In front of the cave, old bamboo poles still hang, the lowest end some 100 meters above the ground. The poles once formed parts of scaffolding, where people stood to gather birds’ nests.
Marlo Panganiban, 19, another Pag-asa member, said the whole facade was once covered with bamboo scaffoldings. But one fall discouraged the rest from pursuing the activity.
The ground leading to the cave entrance is thick with bird droppings.
Inside the cave, the air is cool, as if the chamber was airconditioned. Thick ferns grow in the cave’s entrance. Small openings let the sunlight in, giving the chamber a greenish glow.
Barangay Councilman Hector Gabiana said that the Municipal Government has allocated P500,000 to clear the pathways leading to the cave site.
Check again
“Dunay bag-ong resolution ang municipyo nga ipa-reassess ang mga caves (The town has a new resolution asking for the caves to be assessed again),” said Barangay Councilman Joe Tabares, 56. Barangay officials believe an assessment by the environment department in 2010 may no longer be reliable.
He said that the local government is interested in developing the site as an eco-tourism destination.
Resuelo said the officials look forward to offering the Seven Caves eco-tour package.
First, they need to put harnesses along the muddy trails and rock formations to prevent falls. Until guidelines are set and activities are explained, the youth who serve as cave guides worry about intruders getting in and vandalizing these mysterious sites.