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Thursday, February 12, 2004
Off bohol beaten paths
Mangrove street in banacon. Some of the “streets” in Banacon’s mangrove plantation are wide enough for paddleboats to pass through during high tide.
It’s what you would call a visual cliché—the digitally modified Chocolate Hills, the exhausted tarsier’s glassy-eyed stare, white sands and resorts ad infinitum that might as well be anywhere else.
The way the posters look, you would think there’s not much more in Bohol than that highway stretching northeast from the bridge to Panglao all the way to the town of Carmen. Of course, this one highway will give you a good sampling of beaches, old churches, a river and some hills, but if you’re a been-there-done-that kind of adventurer, you’ll be glad to know Bohol has many more roads less traveled.
The Bohol Coastal Resource Management (CRM) Learning Showcase Tour is an ecotourist’s dream come true: three or more days visiting Bohol’s unexploited natural treasures, with the unique feature of the locals themselves taking the guests on entertaining tours. Visitors become not just tourists but students of tried-and-tested ways to balance nature and human needs--a lesson Cebuanos could definitely use.
Basdio, Guindulman
Standing on a cliff overlooking nature’s brilliant blues and greens, you will have but one word left in your brain: breathtaking! The yellows, pinks and oranges of parrotfish and clownfish complete the masterpiece of the 18-hectare Basdio Marine Sanctuary in Guindulman Bay.
People who watch delightedly as schools of fish leap out of the water find it hard to believe that the sanctuary, once a favorite site for blast fishing, is little more than two years old. Nong Ado, a local tour guide, says they have had zero blast fishing ever since they thought of creating a sanctuary in 2001. Fishermen can now catch up to 20 kg of fish per day. The project is such a renowned success that two barangays on the other side of the bay have also created their own sanctuaries.
Adding to Basdio’s fascinating appeal are centuries-old burial caves found along the beach. The bones are now on display at the University of San Carlos, but the wooden coffins and limestone formations on the side of the cliffs are still intact for the curious traveler.
Banacon Island, Getafe
Banacon would have been just another 11-hectare island village on the Danajon Double Barrier Reef. That is, if not for its 484-hectare mangrove plantation, the largest mangrove reforestation project in Asia. Just like Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, the secret to Banacon’s beauty is sheer size.
After explaining how the trees have provided the community with a steady source of income and protection from typhoons, the locals will take you down an avenue of mangroves stretching 300 meters long. The avenue, called Paden Highway, is named after Eugenio Paden, who introduced the idea of mangrove reforestation in 1957.
Branching off from Paden Highway are mangrove “streets”, with each “block” exclusively used and reforested by a specific family.
“If the family doesn’t replant the area with mangroves, somebody else can plant there and claim ownership of the place,” says a local guide of the foolproof mangrove management system the islanders have used for years. They have also reserved part of the forest as a wildlife refuge zone.
Cambuhat, Buenavista
In the neighboring town of Buenavista, coastal resource management begins in Cambuhat River. Once the ultimate dumpsite for domestic garbage and farm wastes, Cambuhat is now one of the cleanest rivers in Bohol. Women lead the way in the Cambuhat River and Village Tour (CRVT).
The tour starts at Dait Bridge with a river cruise on board a paddleboat. Along the way are family-managed oyster culture farms that provide a major source of income for the community. Ever since the villagers cleaned up their act in 1998, not only have oysters thrived, but seahorses and other fish have also come back to the river.
The river cruise ends at the community receiving center where members of the local organization serve a mouthwatering lunch of shrimp and oyster dishes in all forms and sizes. Afterwards, the villagers demonstrate how they make native crafts. The best thing about this CRM stop is that you can go home with real proof of your adventure—fresh oysters and handmade crafts made from local materials.
The whole showcase tour includes at least five other CRM sites. As the tour brochure promises, you’ll see “not just sights…INSIGHTS”. And now, on with the showcase, and let the locals tell it like it is.
(February 12, 2004 issue)
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