Sunday, June 22, 2008

St. Paul Underground River

Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, formerly St. Paul Underground River, is one of the places included in the second campaign for the new Seven Wonders of the World. See the live ranking. The Philippines' very own Underground River is on the fifth slot.

We were able to visit the place about two years ago. From Puerto Princesa, it was a two to three hours bone-jarring ride to Sabang Beach. After which there is a boat to take you to the site for about twenty to thirty minutes. More adventurous folks trek for several hours to reach the underground river. I'd take the boat anytime. :)

Traveling through the waters of Sabang is a welcome respite. The waves were quite strong as the storm was nearing Palawan already at that time. What looks like the last frontier is the entry point going to the underground river.


Heading to the river, a monitor lizard greeted us.



We were about twelve persons on the boat with our guide who also serves as the story teller. We had our orange life vests and the orange hard hat as part of the safety measures.


A little creepy going inside but it was a very exciting trip. Let's take a closer look at the cave's opening.


The following pictures are all taken inside the cave. The guide told us stories of the different rock formations. There are those shaped like fruits, like a little girl kneeling down. There was even what they call the 'First Family' - Jesus, Mary and Joseph. It was dark there of course but I managed to take a lot of pictures and here are a few shots with show distinct features.





This is my favorite photo of the cave. It was taken as we were heading back to the river.

I'm late in posting this for photo hunt's water theme. Check the others though for some more water pictures.

21 comments:

  1. Oh that looks so exciting -- some great photos there. Thanks for stopping by my blog.

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  2. That looks like it was a lot of fun. I love caves.

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  3. amazing. simply stunning. i would love to visit a place like this one day.

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  4. What a gorgeous trip! I'd love to get the chance to do something like that!

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  5. Oh I always like places with stories to tell. They make the places so attractive and imaginative. :D

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  6. Wow, what a great place to visit. I agree with you about the opening, it does look kind of creepy. I love the contrast with your favorite photo.

    Thanks for stopping by and Have a great weekend,
    Biker Betty :)

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  7. What a great adventure. Thanks for sharing about a place I will likely not get to in my life. I do know what you mean about feeling a little strange going in. I went in some underground caves in the States once and last summer we went part way in a coal mine, both a little weird feeling thinking how far underground one is. Nice photos and perfect for the theme.

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  8. What a great adventure. Thanks for sharing about a place I will likely not get to in my life. I do know what you mean about feeling a little strange going in. I went in some underground caves in the States once and last summer we went part way in a coal mine, both a little weird feeling thinking how far underground one is. Nice photos and perfect for the theme.

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  9. I would love to go and have that kind of adventure someday. Thank you for sharing the beautiful photos of your trip. The cave exploration sounds exciting.

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  10. Great shots. It is a beautiful and so different. Thanks for sharing part of your corner of the world.

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  11. WoW!!!! Absolutely amazing! I love live vicariously through other people. Beautiful pictures.

    Renee

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  12. Those are awesome, that looks like so much fun. Thanks for visiting.

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  13. Nice photos. Looks like a cool place to visit.

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  14. That was awesome! I wanna see!

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  15. Wow! Those photos look great Lynn. Hay, I wish could have a chance to visit Palawan with my family.

    Thanks for saharing your photos :)

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  16. Very nice captures of Puerto Princesa. Thanks for sharing!

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  17. What a spectacular place, thanks for sharing it with us. Have a great week Lynn.

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  18. oh i love to go to Palawan. i heard so much about this. really looks beautiful.

    thanks for the visit. :)

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