carles iloilo

It was the start of summer and I was dying to set forth on another ultimate adventure, just as I did last year when I visited Caluya Islands in Antique. While I was on my usual rounds of the city, my friend Tara (an excellent  photographer I look up to) texted me and invited me to go on a 3 day trip to Isla Gigantes Sur (South Gigantes Island) in Carles, a coastal town in the northern tip of Iloilo. My fingers then took control of my phone and tada! I was booked on yet another summer escapade. The timing was a bit horrible. The day before the trip, My oathtaking (for new nurses) was scheduled  in the afternoon and I had made plans of shooting for a client later that night. I didn’t sleep the whole night for the exhausting photoshoot and editing of photos to be submitted ASAP. It was 4am when I finished the job and rushed to our meeting place in Tagbak Terminal in Jaro.

There, I met my flickr photobuddies that I invited and new faces that Tara had invited. More than half of the group was sporting an SLR. I was thinking it was going to be a fun trip being with other people who enjoy the same things I do: traveling, and photography. I slept during most of the 3-hour bus trip to Estancia port, the jump-off point to Isla Gigantes. Tara and her crew :) bought supplies and food when we were in the market, while we were left in the seaport taking photos and having a light snack. Estancia is a major port in Northern Iloilo, it’s market and seaport is filled with huge volumes of seafood.

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

We rode a pumpboat to Gigantes Sur, which lasted for about an hour. During the trip, we got to see nearby islands such as Sicogon Island (the famed Boracay of the 80s). I really want to go there and see for myself what the fuzz was all about but since Sicogon wasn’t in our itinerary, I had to make myself content on seeing it from afar.

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

During the afternoon, we visited tangke, a natural salt water lagoon, found at the southern part of Gigantes Sur and watched an exhilarating sunset in a long sandbar in one of the islands.

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

We stayed with a family that Tara knew. They were our guide, who toured us around the beautiful islands of Carles and shared stories of the island’s mysticism and enchantment. They also helped us cook our meals of fresh squid, fish, and crabs. Seafoods are my weakness. I even suffered an episode of a medical disorder (I recurrently experience)  during the second day of our trip because of over eating. Because of my fragile stomach, I’m prone to something called a Mallory Weis Tear, which is basically a tear on the opening of my stomach caused by ingesting too much food at one time resulting in bleeding inside the stomach:(

It was raining heavily during the night. We slept inside a tent I brought. Even though some parts of the tent were wet, we still managed to sleep the whole night.

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

The next day, we had planned on visiting more spots in nearby islands. Our first destination was this island called Wala Dahon, which looked like a small island of rocks stacked on top of each other and on one part of the island was an abandoned house wrecked during a storm. I’m amazed on how these formations could have been formed naturally, it’s truly an interesting place to visit. This spot was my favorite because it was fun to climb and had a dark allure to it ;)

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

We then had lunch in the white sand beach of Cabugaw Gamay Island. This was the time when I was attacked by my gastric condition. The rest of the day was gruelingly uncomfortable but I decided not to mind it so I can enjoy the sights.

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

Our next destination was Pawikan Cave located near Tangke in the southern coast Gigantes Sur. To get to Pawikan Cave, we had to undergo a steep climb (approximately 135 degrees on the average and a height of 80 feet). The suffering was worth it. The cave had many spacious caverns, many of which had holes on the ceiling forming an enchanting series of atriums. We took a lot of time taking photos inside Pawikan Cave. The locals told us the story of treasure hunters retrieving 24 gold, suspected to be part of the Yamashita Treasure, bars inside the cave.

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

The most scenic location was saved for last. It was Pulupina Island, an islet that the locals use to “hang”. No one lives in the island because it is too small and very susceptible to natural hazards. I had circled the island and went to deep sleep on the shore while other others were busy taking photos and bonding with the locals.

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

The next day we were on our way back to the mainland. We were able to shoot more of the scenes in Estancia

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

carles iloilo

It was indeed a fitting summer escapade. The sights were up to expectations, got to meet new friends, and had many fun moments with people I barely knew. I didn’t get to gather any information for advice on traveling to Carles though, which I really regret. Will certainly return to Carles, sometime this year to experience the things I missed this first time.