By Amadís Ma. Guerrero
“THE Philippines is a smorgasbord of world-class dive sites, being the center of the coral triangle around 400 types of corals which highlight the most diverse and marine-rich waters on earth. We have 2,000 species of marine life. We are Asia’s dive capital.”
The rousing assessment is from Dr. Ted T. Esguerra, diver, wilderness physician, and a ranking official of the Philippine Coast Guard, in an interview with Planet Philippines. He added, “We are encouraging resorts, divers, dive shops owners and instructors to practice responsible diving protocols.”
Esguerra, Doc Ted to associates and subordinates, also spoke during a seminar on safe diving at Camp Crame. Participants were taught how to prevent decompressing illness, perforated eardrums, stings and sharp bites from poisonous marine animals, minimizing risks in diving, and organizing local search and rescue operations for missing divers.
“A sting from a jellyfish (dikya) may be harmless but it can also be extremely dangerous,” he noted.
Doc Ted also warned divers against going up rapidly, and competing with the bubbles. “The gas may induce stroke-like symptoms, signs,” he said. “The gas may go out of your blood vessels into the tissues of the body. This is life-threatening, marami ang namamatay (many have died) due to barotraumas related to diving. There is a growing incidence of this.”
He hastened to add, however, that “diving is not really that dangerous. It’s wholesome fun as long as you go by the rules.”
From Anilao, Batangas down, the Philippines is a haven for domestic as well as foreign divers.
Anilao is recommended by tourism authorities because the small marine creatures are among the most diverse in the world. Puerto Galera in Oriental Mindoro is for deeper dives and big reef fish. Another famous getaway, Boracay Island, is ideal for beginner divers, and promises to be a fun-learning experience.
Only for experienced scuba divers is Tubbataha Reef off Palawan, which is the Philippine showpiece as far as diving is concerned. Tubbataha is, in fact, a World Heritage destination, and a candidate for the new Seven Wonders of the World along with Palawan’s Underground River.
There’s also Apo Reef Natural Park off Occidental Mindoro and Apo Island near Negros Oriental. Moalboal is the best known diving destination in Cebu, and has attracted little communities of international divers. Also in Cebu is Mactan Island, a major tourist destination with many five-star hotels.
For this travel writer, there is no more attractive place in the country than Northern Palawan. There are many dive sites, along with splendid natural scenery and upscale beach resorts, in El Nido, Taytay and Coron.
In Puerto Galera, the recommended dive sites are Escareo Point (Lighthouse Point), the Canyons, and Shark Cave. The Canyons start from “the hole in the wall” at a shallow 40 feet (12 meters) and you descend to an awesome 90 feet (27 meters). Here, migrating large fish abound, divers report.
The Shark Caves consist of a series of caves which go down to 80 feet, and whose dark crevices are the homes and breeding grounds of white-tip sharks. Medio Point, on the other hand, offers a lot of flora and fauna.
The major dive sites of Balicasag (90 minutes by boat from Tagbilaran City) are the Cathedral, Black Forest, and Diver’s Haven.
The Cathedral is actually a cave with soft corals and sand formations- which look like flowers- on top. From about 20 feet down, the cave drops off to a depth of 60 feet.
The Black Forest is filled with corals which look black from a distance and has a natural garden of sea ferns almost six feet tall. Divers’ Haven has three currents which crisscross one another. When we were there, the dive master was instructing neophyte divers not to go against the current, but just to drift from one current to another, as these are not really that strong.
The island can be enjoyed even if you are not a diver (and I’m not), as it is a picturesque area in a province known for its ecotourist attractions. Within Balicasay live a local community, and they can be persuaded to perform some native dances for visitors.
Anilao in Batangas is another divers’ delight, and is very popular as it is only three hours away from Manila.
There are many resorts here, including Eagle Point and Vistamar Beach Resort. At the latter resort, the dive master was telling us anybody can be a diver as long as he or she is healthy, a good swimmer who doesn’t panic easily (some say you don’t even have to be a good swimmer), knows how to follow the rules, and is aged 13 up.
There are actually more than 50 diving sites off the Anilao-Mabini-San Jose coast, and one of these is also known as the Cathedral because many years a diving team placed a cross there. The marine life at Anilao boasts of “multitudes of fishes, thousands of them,” said Vistamar owner-diver C.B. Leobrera. “Lots of coral, shells, flowers. There is so much life, there are so many beautiful things under the sea.”
