ODLOMAN CAVE IN NEGROS ORIENTAL

        ODLOMAN CAVE

http://triptheislands.com/destinations/5-of-the-most-popular-caves-in-the-philippines/

The 8,870 meters long Odloman Cave is located at Negros Oriental and is measured to have a vertical range of 82 meters. It has large galleries, many small corridors, active streams and interesting obstacles. As per the record, it is the second longest cave system in the Philippines.  -

http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php/Odloman_Cave

http://www.choosephilippines.com/go/water-forms/2923/mabinay-cave-negros-oriental

Odloman – at 8,870 meters, went on record as the second longest cave system in the Philippines. Accessed by rappelling through a hole in the ceiling or by swimming 20 meters across an underground river, Odloman has large galleries, many narrow corridors, active streams and more than enough difficult obstacles to lure extreme cavers.


http://negrostourism.com/?p=257

http://www.cityofdumaguete.com/outdoor-sports-recreation-odloman-cave-mabinay-spelunking-caving.html

Odloman cave is located at Negros Oriental, considered as the longest cave in the Philippines that measures 8,870 meters long and has a vertical range of 82 meters. The cave can be accessed by rappelling down through a big hole or swimming about 20 meters across its underground river.

http://greedypeg.org/negros-oriental/Odloman-Cave.html

MUMMY CAVES OF TIMBAC, KABAYAN, BENGUET

Photo from:  http://www.ivanlakwatsero.com/2013/05/mt-timbac-too-fast-not-furious.html

 

 

 

 

According to our guide here who's maintaining the mummy caves, the oldest mummy
remains were placed in these caves wayback 200 years ago. Most of these mummies
belong to the wealthy people during there times. They were wrapped and placed
in carved wood then placed in burial caves. They were then preserved undisturbed
and their remains last even to these present time. The coolness of the surroundings
helped greatly in preserving them wholly. - http://www.bubblews.com/news/737220-mummy-caves-of-timbac

Photo from:  www.budgettravel.com

 

 

 

...  A second, much smaller coffin was opened revealing the mummified corpse of a baby. Some minutes passed as we looked this one over as well as the first. None of the locals were moving and I was left thinking that was it.

 

Then someone said, "look in there", and pointed to a larger coffin. A boy removed the lid for me. I had never seen anything like it. Three withered mummies. One appeared to look right at me. Perhaps because these three were propped up in a deep coffin, the impact was far greater than had been from the others. I marveled. Ears, fingernails, skin covered with tattoos. 

And there were to be more; in a second cave a few meters below the first. Three and four mummies to a coffin; wedged deep inside. Fabtastic!

Just ten cultures worldwide throughout history are known to have practiced mummification. Unlike the Egyptians, the Ibaloi people of Kabayan didn't eviscerate their mummies; the body was considered sacred so organs could not be removed.

 

The process was started before death. The dying person swallowed a salt water solution which helped to cleanse the internal organs. Following death, the eldest son blew tobacco smoke into the body through the mouth, disinfecting the tissues and thus preserving them. The body was washed and then dried over a low fire and in the sun. Any draining body fluids were considered sacred and caught in a jar. Once dry, the epidermis was peeled away. Before internment, herbs were rubbed on the body. The process took months to complete ...

 

Read More From:  http://www.madnomad.com/0302_benguet/

 

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Photo from:  www.jason-ism.com

 

 

 Photo from:  xperimenter.com

 

 

 



STA. VICTORIA CAVES IN ISABELA

 

Photo from:  mighty-maroon.blogspot.com

Photo from:  lakbaypilipinas.com

Photo from:  tumblr.com

The Santa Victoria Caves are more than 12 Philippine limestone caves – part of the Fuyot Springs National Park (FSNP) in Ilagan, Isabela.

They feature naturally formed lattices and sparkling rock formations. Visitors are given lectures and allowed to plant their own seedlings, and those enrolled at the Environmental School nearby are given certificates. Within the area is the Pinzal Falls conducive to swimming.  Other recreational facilities like carabao-drawn carts and horseback riding are also available. The park is 15 kilometers from Ilagan town proper.

How to get there:

Isabela is about 405 kilometers north of Metro Manila and can be reached by air-conditioned bus.  – wikimapia.org

Photo from: flixya.com

Photo from:  ilovetuguegarao.com

The Santa Victoria Caves are more than 12 Philippine limestone caves that are found in the foothills of the Sierra Madre Mountain Range. The caves are known for their beautiful and unusual rock formations, their sparkling rocks, and their subterranean waterfalls. They are also of archaeological significance as they are believed to have been occupied by the nomadic Agta or Dumagat people in the past. The caves are located within the Isabela Sanctuary, which is part of the Fuyot Springs National Park (FSNP) in Ilagan, Isabela. This area is included in the Palanan Wilderness Area or Northern Sierra Madre National Park in the province of Isabela in Cagayan Valley.

The Sta. Victoria Caves may be found together with a wildlife sanctuary, botanical garden, and waterfalls in the 200-hectare Isabela Sanctuary, which forms about a quarter of the 819-hectare FSNP in Fuyot, Santa Victoria. This area is located in the eastern part of Ilagan in Isabela, Cagayan Valley. Part of the municipality of Ilagan, the caves are just 15 kilometers away from the town proper of Ilagan and 19 kilometers away from the town of Tumauini.

The 2 distinctive geological features that the Sta. Victoria Caves are known for are their sparkling rocks can be found in the Sta. Victoria Caves. In addition, the caves are  their naturally-formed lattices. Underground waterfalls can also be found in the Sta. Victoria Caves. – wikipilipinas.org

Photo from:  tripwow.tripadvisor.com

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HINAGDANAN CAVE IN BOHOL

HINAGDANAN CAVE

Hinagdanan Cave is a cave on Panglao Island, in Bohol Province, in the Philippines. It is a naturally lighted cavern with a deep lagoon and many large stalactites and stalagmites.

The cave is lit by sunlight which filters through holes in the ceiling. The underground lake is a popular swimming spot, but it has been known to test for high levels of various pollutants, since it is fed by ground runoff.

Hinagdanan Cave is made of limestone. The cave is within easy reach. You'll have to walk through dense vegetation of just about one kilometer. The entrance of the cave is a hole of about 1 meter wide in diameter, visible from a limestone hill. Cemented steps lead to the interior of the cave. The cave is slippery, but there's a railing made of rope to hold on to avoid accident due to slippery stones of the cave.

Hinagdanan Cave was accidentally discovered when the owner of the area was clearing the decaying branches of the land when he found the hole. The owner throw a stone into the hole, then he heard a splash. Then he build a ladder to get into the cave. They named it Hinagdanan, means "laddered" used to get into the cave's interior.

The cave is about 100 meters long of beautiful rock formations. The stalactites and stalagmites stick out from the ceiling and floor of the cave as though trying to meet each other. Inside the cave, there's also a lagoon with a greenish surface produced by the green limestone at the bottom of the pool, where people used to bath in the lagoon, however, it has been advised to not go dip into the lagoon because of the karst pollutants present in the water.

The owner claims the above and several other drawings were found on the walls of the cave.



Source:  wikipedia.org

TABON CAVE IN PALAWAN

The Tabon Caves are a set of caves north of Quezon municipality, in the south western part of the province of Palawan on Palawan Island, in the Philippines.  The complex has 29 explored caves (only seven of which are open for public viewing), but 215 caves are known to exist on Lipuun Point.  The Tabon Man was discovered in the caves, one of the oldest remnants of human inhabitants found in the Philippines.

The skull cap remains of the Tabon Man were discovered in the Tabon Caves. The remains are approximately 22,000-24,000 years old. They were discovered by Dr. Robert B. Fox and his team from the National Museum of the Philippines in 1962. The team also found burial jars, earthenware, jade ornaments and other jewelry, stone tools, animal bones, and human fossils dating back to 47,000 years ago; the earliest human remains found in the Philippines.

The archaeological finds indicate habitation from 50,000 to 700 years ago while the limestone formation in the reservation dates back from 25 million years ago, or the Lower Middle Miocene Period, based on geological studies.

The Lipuun Point Reservation, covering a 138-hectare island connected to the Palawan mainland by a mangrove forest, was declared a Site Museum Reservation in April 1972 and was made a priority site for tourism development in 1991 for its natural and cultural heritage.

Source: wikipedia.org

AGLIPAY CAVES, QUIRINO

The Aglipay Caves and Campsite is an eco-tourism site found in Quirino province in the Cagayan Region in the Philippines. It consists of over 37 interlinked underground chambers, of which only 8 chambers have been explored, plus camping facilities and modern accommodations.

Located in the midst of rolling hills and verdant forests, the caves boast of an underground river and well preserved stalagmites and stalactites. They interlink with each other and run to a depth of 20 meters.

Being easily accessible, the caves are popular among tourists.

The cave complex is found among the hills and forests of Quirino, about 10 kilometers away from the provincial capital of Cabarroguis.

The Aglipay Caves are as much as 20 meters deep. It has both open chambers and crawl spaces, with a variety of stalactites, stalagmites, and other geological formations. The 6th cave is especially fascinating, as a subterranean river and waterfall with an unknown source can be found here. It has cool water and is suitable for swimming. Insect-eating bats make the caves their habitat.

The 8 explored chambers are all safe and easily accessible. A complete tour of all of these caves would take about 2 ½ hours.

With the entrance fee a guided tour of the caves is provided. The tour may be tailored to the visitor’s level of caving experience. Outside the caves are a butterfly sanctuary and a picnic area, where some picnic huts may be found. Accommodations consist of provisions for camping as well as modern cottages and dormitory buildings for overnight visitors. There is also a pavilion that may be used for seminars.