A Magical Trip to the Underworld

The Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park formerly St. Paul National Park is Palawan's most popular attraction and covers 5,349 hectares of lush forest, dark mountains, caves and white beaches. In the deep recesses of the marble and limestone peaks of Mt. St. Paul flows the 8.2 km. long Underground River, said to be the longest navigable underground river in the world. The caves are filled with filigree-like sculptures formed by stalagmites and stalactites. Near its mouth is a beautiful lagoon with crystal-clear water that teems with fish. Also within the park is the Monkey Trail, a series of wooden paths that winds into the forest where monkeys, squirrels, lizards and some 60 species of birds are found. The Park is inscribed in the World Heritage List.

It is a core area for the Palawan Biosphere Reserve and is designated as an Important Bird Area (IBA). It was also declared as a National Geological Monument. In recognition of global significance, the PPSRNP has been inscribed to the list of natural World Heritage Sites.

As a natural area, the Park has attracted an increasing number of hikers, biologist, photographers, students and nature lovers. It is a source of pride and a key element in the identity of the people of Puerto Princesa in particular and of the Philippines as a whole.

Support the world's longest navigable underground river for the search of the world’s new seven wonders selection. Vote at http://vote.puerto-undergroundriver.com/

Puerto Princesa Underground River: The Longest Cave System in the Philippines

If Mammoth Cave is the longest cave system in the world, the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River is the longest in the Philippines. Proclamation No. 835 on March 26, 1971 gave the cave its name as it is known today, but it was previously called Saint Paul Underground River.

It forms part of the lush and limestone-filled Mount Saint Paul. The navigable 8.2 kilometers of cave system was declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1999. No wonder it is one of the major tourist destinations in the City of Puerto Princesa with an annual income of about five million pesos (Php5,000,000.00) every year.

The Underground River is located in Bahile, in the west coast of Palawan, 81 kilometers north of Puerto Princesa City. The Saint Paul is covered with limestone cliffs and lush rainforest: two-third is covered by lush tropical rainforest from the shoreline to the highest peak, and one-third is thinly vegetated karst limestone. It has become a habitat for thousands of variety of flora and fauna including endangered species such as the Pheasant Peacock and Philippine Cockatoo.

However, among the many wildlife that inhabit the area nothing beats the famous monkeys and picture-friendly monitor lizards or “bayawak”.

Whatever kind of traveler you are: trekker, tourist or a mere adventure-lover, you must never miss this World Heritage Site. This should be part of your itinerary. Ideally, it should come somewhere in the middle of your trip. This is because if you’re a tourist traveling to Puerto Princesa, it is not advisable to travel directly to Sabang due to the difficulty of travel.Sabang is the coastal area with lots of resorts where most of the visitors of the Underground River check in. During wet season expect a muddy and slippery adventure while on the road.

There are vans for rent in Puerto Princesa City and there are also public utility jeepneys in San Jose terminal. If you prefer to take the public transport be prepared however for some discomfort like when some passengers are bringing grains and feeds home or if it’s a bit cramped inside. Tip: try to reserve the front seat. Despite some discomfort, you have lots of chances to take pictures of Honda Bay from afar and the verdant sceneries along the way.

Much about the facts, here now is the imagery.

Serene like a mother lulling a child to sleep, and unexploited like the towering mountains that surround it, that is Sabang Beach. If you are lucky, you might chance upon some tribesmen of Batak trading their woven stuff with fishes or canned foods. The Bataks of Palawan live peacefully in the neighboring mountains in Bahile and Cabayugan. They are a shy bunch but friendly to offer help if you need one.

Sabang has lots to offer from waterfalls, Chinese temple, mangrove tours and Central Park but nothing beats the proven tourism-magnet, the Underground River.

You have two options to get there from Sabang Beach. Walk through trails (Monkey Trail is the more famous one) passing by Central Park where there are lots of endangered species roaming around freely. Squirrels, anteaters, lizards, and snakes — all are more than willing to have a picture with you, except the snake which is the most untamed of the wildlife in the park. There are well-trained park rangers to accompany you to the rest of the trek should you ask them. Upon leaving Central Park to enter whichever trail, you will be asked to register.

The Central Park is a good stop after about thirty minutes of walking and climbing narrow steps. There is the sea that’s inviting for a dip in the middle of a scorching heat. The water here is restful because it is surrounded by several other mountains. This is not exactly the middle of the forest but the element of water (sea), fire (sun), wind and forest would conjure one to a contemplative mood while sitted on the benches below the towering trees. Commune with Mother Nature. She is everywhere.

The port area has an organization of boatmen that you have to approach to get to the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park. They usually charge Php600.00 as rental for two-way trip or depending on the number of passengers. If you are travelling alone or in less than four, you may want to save money by joining other groups in taking the boat.

Arriving at the National Park, you have to walk a wooden pathway to the station where guides are at post to give you your life jacket and help you get in the boat. The water is crystalline in light shade of blue. The mouth of the cave is narrow but the expert guides who also serve as boatmen maneuver the boat like a captain who knows the way by heart.

The water averages to eight kilometers in depth into an underground lagoon. True to its being a cave, it is obviously dark inside but the light of the torches brought by the guides is enough to lit the cathedral of different forms and shapes made from the stalactites and the stalagmites. Stalagmites are rock formations formed from the dripping minerals from the ceiling. In time, they shall reach the ground and no longer shall they be stalagmites but completely-formed rocks. Those that have broken apart from the ceiling and grew from below are called stalactites.

Amazing, funny and weird but it seems the Underground River was made carefully from a blueprint or a plan. One part has been known to the guides and the tourists as “fruits and vegetables section” because the stalactites and the stalagmites are shaped like fruits: Sing the famous “Bahay Kubo” and you can figure out literally from the rock formations, those vegetables, this time with fruits also for bonus.

In another wider portion, you might get the feeling of being transported from awe to sudden solemnity. Around you is what is known “The Cathedral”. Not a single sculpture could beat the forms in this part: the Holy Family, candles, angels, chandeliers. How magnificent. There is even a part where some people throw coins as offerings.

The other parts of the cave get more and more human. Some phallic symbols, sexual and yet very unique. Madonna and Child is also replicated in the cave.

There are over a hundred clear carvings from the stones of the cave. If you are imaginative enough you can make a storyline — one story that entangles each form from the other. Probably, some Salvation History from the Bible if you are a religious type or if you are an artist, they’re all part of a social reality that has been depicted in the most surreal kind.

In the journey from end to end of the tunnel-like cave, for sure you will meet a lot of other groups, locals and foreigners. In everyone’s face is a common denominator of awe for such natural grandeur and beauty of Palawan’s Underground River. Source: http://www.pilipinas.ph

-oOo -

The Underground River in Puerto Princesa City (a city in the forest), Palawan is the longest explored underground river in the world. A total of 8.2 kilometers have been discovered and 4.3 kilometers are navigable; but access to tourists is limited to 1.5 kilometers.

On the way to the river entrance…views of the beach and the limestone karst landscape that characterizes the park.

Flock of tourists as they enter the river entrance…the cave!

…the outside world as viewed from the inside.

Flying around inside the cave were cave swallows or swifts, known locally as “balinsasayaw” that are most known for the nests they create from their saliva which is the vital ingredient for the exotic ‘bird’s nest soup or the so-called,”nido soup”.

Rock formations inside the cave are spectacular…the speleothem (from the Greek for “cave deposit”), commonly known as cave formation, is a secondary mineral deposit formed in a cave. Speleothems are typically formed in limestone which are formed thousands of years of mineral accumulation.

Indeed there’s so much fun in Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park popularly known as the “Underground River”.