Natural attractions of Camiguin Island
Natural attractions of Camiguin Island a little known (even to the local population) but very interesting island in the Philippines Camiguin. It reminds me a lot of Bali in Indonesia in terms of scenery, but it's smaller. Camiguin is the smallest island in Mindanao and the second smallest province in the Philippines, with an area of approximately 238 km2, located in the Bohol Sea off the northern coast of Mindanao. The province is famous for its sweet fruit lanzones, to which an annual festival is dedicated, celebrated every third weekend of October.
It was destroyed during the eruption of Mt. Vulcan. Due to its extremely rich volcanic soil and abundance of fresh water, Camiguin Island is home to lush interior forest reserves, collectively known as the Mount Hibok-Hibok Protected Landscape, which has been declared by all Southeast Asian countries as an ASEAN Heritage Park.
The name Camiguin is derived from the local word Kamagong, a type of ebony tree that grows near Lake Mainit in the province of Surigao del Norte, the region where the islands' earlier inhabitants, the Manobo, originated. "Kamigin", the local island dialect, is the northernmost variant of the Manobo languages. There's a reason why Camiguin is also called "The Island Born of Fire." Camiguin has seven 7 volcanoes and one of them, Mount Hibok Hibok, is still considered active. People have made a very beautiful pool at the Macao Cold Springs.
The blue color of the water comes from algae living on the walls of the pool. It is the island with the highest concentration of volcanoes per square meter on the planet. Its last eruption was in 1951, when boiling lava, poisonous gases and landslides killed 3,000 people on the island.
Camiguin Island photogallery
The highest volcano is Mount Timpoong at about 1,600 meters, followed by Mount Mambajao at 1,400 meters and Mount Hibok at 1,240 meters. All these volcanoes are responsible for Camiguin's climate and most of the tourist attractions. It's always foggy up there, and it often sprinkles light rain. Very cool climate, but the locals take a big risk living so close to the active volcano above.
The high mountains catch and hold the clouds, there is a highly pronounced microclimate and almost daily rainfall in the interior. The waters rise in numerous hot and cold springs throughout the island. The most difficult-to-access waterfall on the island - Binangawan Falls. Most locals advise not to go, there are even many signs that it is closed lol. The problem is that it is in a steep valley and the "trail" is a Mowgli type of descent along vines, tree roots and is a bit muddy.
On my second visit, however, leeches found me on my feet, the locals said that when there was no sun - that's when they went out. Many endemic animals live in the interior of the island, and the overall biodiversity is extremely rich. For the first time during my visit last year, I found wild Philippine raspberries in the forest (Sapinit they are called, they are not sweet at all), I met a huge grasshopper, probably 20 centimeters, of the Round-headed katydid species, and in general I was constantly amazed and delighted of the super tall huge trees, bushes and plants all around the inland roads.
Everything is big, bigger than normal, faster growing. The island is rich in mossy valleys, old riverbeds with basalt stones polished by time and water. Locals have diverted large springs in many places, and made themselves public pools and gazebos for eating and socializing (typically Philippines). There are no impressive beaches around the island, most of the sand is black-grey volcanic. There is a beautiful white sand drift White island, which changes its shape constantly and is of interest to tourists. On the eastern side of Camiguin is a small satellite island called Mantigue, about 10 minutes away by boat.
There are no people living on it and it is a nature reserve. It can only be visited during the day, for a few hours, there are gazebos for rent, toilets, chairs and tables, you just need to bring your own food and drinks. Mantige is an extremely beautiful tiny island with a 360 degree fine white-yellow sandy beach.
