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///// home – travels – philippines
– negros and apo island /////
:: Negros and Apo Island ::
The
sun sets over Apo Island and the mountain ranges in Negros while fishermen
return, Philippines, 2005
Right off the coast of
Zamboanguita in Negros (a larger island in the Visaya Archipelago), rests
Apo Island. This little volcanic, rocky and remote paradise island only
encompasses 52 hectare, and you can easily sail around the island on a
pump-boat – a Philippine outrigger – in 30-45 minutes. Apo Island is known for its sublime
diving and well-kept corals, since it is part of a maritime eco-system. The
underwater conditions are not entirely for beginners, as there are lots of
strong currents around the island. But, if you’re not into diving,
the snorkeling is some of the most fantastic we have experienced. And, best
of all, the island is entirely yours alone – only a little core of
intrepid and independent travelers manage to reach this place. We consider
it one of the undiscovered wonders of the Philippines and the world diving
community.
Getting to Apo Island from
Negros
First you have to go to
Dumaguete, a typical Philippine fishing port from where you can reach a lot
of cool destinations in the Visayas Archipelago. We arrived there the in
the night after visiting Bohol and Siguijor, and now we wanted to reach Apo
Island. By the way, Negros offers a range of cool activities such as
trekking in the Twin Lakes National Park, climbing Mt. Kanaloan and Mt.
Guiting-Guiting and diving at Dunjungan Island…But that’s
another story.
 
Locals fishers in
Dumaguete and view towards Apo Island from the beach in Malatapay –
both places in Negros
From Dumaguete we jumped
onto a truck, which drove us to the beach in Malatapay village outside
Zamboanguita in approximately one hour. The beach was very sleepy, only a
few fishermen was there and some young girls was about to prepare their
stalls at the small market. The driver threw our bags on the beach, and
told us that we had to get in touch with one of the local fishermen in
order to reach Apo Island. As we were standing at the beach, gazing the
sea, we were contacted by a local, who wanted around 400 pesos to sail us
to the island. Deal! And he even wanted to pick us up a few days later, to
prevent us from getting stuck over there.
The small banka was packed
as it was moving through the scorching heat. Only the splashing waves could
cool us down. Although the home-made engine was extremely noisy and the
fresh sea air was mixed with the smell of gasoline it was hard not to enjoy
life. The captain was sitting in the rear, chain-smoking cigarettes and
smiling friendly with his yellow teeth. As we approached Apo Island, the
sea became glossy and calm, and we could see faintly small cottages and
buildings among the palms on the beach. Few minuets after, we landed on
Chapel Beach.
Looking for a boat to
Apo Island in Malatapay, near Zamboanguita, Negros
Arrival in Apo Island
– We lived in the turquoise building in the hillside above the palms
Apo Island… Is
this paradise?
Landing on Chapel
Beach, Apo Island
Staying in Apo Island
We
quickly realized that there are only two guesthouses on the entire island,
Liberty’s Lodge and Apo Island Beach Resort. We chose
Liberty’s, placed high above the beach and village on a steep cliff.
A long staircase molded in concrete lead us to the guesthouse with small
restaurant on the ground floor and four small rooms upstairs, separated by
thin bamboo-walls. Our room had two double-mattresses placed on a fundament
of bamboo, an eclectic lantern, mosquito nets and a terrace worth the whole
stay. We had a fantastic view over the azure-blue ocean. Furthermore, small
rusty water pipes penetrated the floor and lead to a white plastic tub, and
hence we could have a cold wash in the morning. Refreshing.
Quickly
after arrival – and after eating a sandwich in the restaurant –
we decided to explore Apo Island and do some snorkeling. The island is home
to nearly 800 people, mainly fishermen and their wives selling t-shirts,
who live in a single village. There is no traffic on the island, and only a
single path leading through the quaint village towards the Marine
Sanctuary.
View from the terrace
in front of our room
Exploring Apo Island
and the small village – nearly all live from fishing
Snorkeling at the Sanctuary
The Sanctuary is placed in n the south-eastern corner of the island
The beach there is more rocky and vigorous, and small fishing boats and
nets are scattered along the beach.
We brought our snorkeling gear, and jumped in the water. The
Sanctuary consisted of a gradual slope with a shallow wall, of which the
first 20 meters was pure white sand. But already after 30 meters there were
corals everywhere and thousands of fish clustered around bushes of black
corals in crevices. The visibility was perfect (30m) and we saw lapu-lapus,
surgeons and various species of clown fishes and anemones, huge table
corals, stag horns, brain corals and a variety of soft corals. The
temperature was perfect, there were no currents, and we were alone. All
alone.
In conclusion, we all agreed that this was one of the best –
perhaps the very best – snorkeling site we had ever encountered. In
this respect, see our list of the 5 best snorkeling sites in the diving section.
Ready to go snorkeling
The Marine Sanctuary on
the south-eastern shores of the island
Hiking to the top of Apo Island
After
our snorkeling trip we wanted to explore Apo Island some more, and we found
a path leading to the highest point on the island. It was a 30 minutes hike
to the top, and the hike was not easy. We got a bit lost, as the path
crossed overgrown fields with grassing cattle. Along the way the views
towards Mt. Talinis on Negros were beautiful. Atop Apo Island we found an
old lighthouse and two worn-down cottages. We were told that a few families
live on the top of the mountain, and they come down to the village rarely,
just living a simple life there.
The
360 degree view from the lighthouse was overwhelming. Just thinking about
the isolatedness of the families and the view of the Visayas Archipelago
makes me want to go back. What a feeling.
View towards the Blue
Mountains in Negros
Small lighthouse atop the
hills on Apo Island
Magical sunsets, unforgettable
evenings and a perfect setting for true contemplation
As we came down from the lighthouse, the sun was about to set. Women
were chatting on the beach, and the beach was transformed into a playground
for kids. Quickly, we ran for some beers, found a hammock and did a last
dip in the warm tropical waters. Apo island is extremely quiet and peaceful,
and thus it’s great to lie in a hammock with a cold beer or a fresh
coconut and just enjoy the tranquility and isolatedness of the island. If
you don’t want to dive or snorkel, bring a good book and an effective
sun screener.
In
the evening, we had a great dinner in our restaurant. Also, our guesthouse had
a very inviting lounge-alike terrace with pillows and chairs outside. In
the night, we were on the terrace playing cards, having drinks and planning
the dives the following day.
One last dip in the
warm tropical waters from Chapel Beach before the sun sets
 
Local boys playing on
Chapel Beach
Almost behind the mountains in Negros
The sunset creates
magical silhouette views of the vast mountains in Negros
Diving in Apo Island –
speedy drift dives along huge walls
The following day, we went up early to dive. Paul’s Diving
– an in-house diving station – offered diving gear and
friendly, laid-back diver masters to lead the dives. We were very excited,
as Apo Island has 560 documented fish species and 400 kinds of corals.
After grubbing some coffee and a bowl of mixed exotic fruits, we rigged a
pump-boat and left the beach.
After only 30 seconds, the boat man turned off the engine, and the
dive master signaled that we had to put on our gear. What…? We were
only 50 meters from the beach, it was almost comical.
The first dive site, Chapel and Balay, was fantastic and a bit
technical, perhaps not suited for beginners due to unpredictable currents.
At 10m the currents got stronger, and at 20m we had absolutely not power in
terms of the direction of the dive. We could only control the elevation and
got dragged forward at a high pace by the powerful underwater stream,
hovering along a vast perpendicular underwater wall in the north-east
direction. During 45 minutes, thousands of fishes and corals were displayed
in the mighty 360 degree underwater cinema. We saw a lot of fishes, mainly
trevally, jacks, barracudas, bumpheads, parrotfish, seasnakes, garden eels
and tutles. After a safety stop we returned to the surface and saw that we
were more than 350 meters from Apo Island. Wow… it was a perfect
drift dive.
After a tuna steak for lunch we did another fantastic dive at Olo
Point. The currents were smaller here, and the dive was not as challenging
as the first. Nevertheless, the wall displayed abundant fish and perfect
corals.
 
Anders was satisfied with his first dive
The captain of the boat
 
Back in Apo Island, after the first dive
Back on the beach
Goodbye Apo Island – travel
towards another isolated paradise-archipelago
The encounter with Apo Island was strong and intense. The island is
truly unique and very beautiful; a hedonistic yet sporty place.
But we had to continue our trips, and we wanted to travel even more
remote islands in the Philippines. We wanted to go to Muslim Mindanao,
especially to Surigao del Norte, an
isolated paradise archipelago encompassing more than 250 islands.
 
Leaving Apo Island
What I remember most
about Apo Island: Hammock-times in paradise
///// home – travels – philippines
– negros and apo island /////
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