December 26, 2009. The Labellas went to the Francisco Dagohoy cave in Danao, Bohol.
We had to slide down into the cave with the use of a rope. The trek was 500 meters long, and it wasn’t smooth at all. There were areas where we had to submerge ourselves in water. We also had to climb up and down huge rocks where we used body mechanics to get through.
When we first set foot inside the cave, we were amazed by the crystallized rocks. My uncle thought that some of them had gold, because of its sparkling colour. He said it was the same kind of mineral he saw in Baguio, which was real gold (that still had to be processed). Most minerals in the cave were made out of limestone. They’re trying to preserve these minerals, which is why we weren’t allowed to hold our own cameras inside the cave. Apparently, these minerals turn dark (like they burn) when they’re exposed to flash bulbs. The guides had to take our pictures, so we just brought one point-and-shoot camera, and handed it to them. There were some chosen spots available for picture taking and these spots don’t look as good as the rest, because of its frequent flash exposure.
The cave was very dark, and we had to use waterproof flashlight-helmets in order to navigate our way through. There were albino species of crab and shrimp and they looked blind (they had no eyes). We turned all our lights off, to see how dark it was, and there was zero visibility. We waited a few minutes for our pupils to adjust, but still nothing. It was super dark.
In the dark, submerged in water
The only exit we saw was the entrance we came in through. We couldn’t find any other openings above water level, so we were wondering where we were getting our oxygen from. Seemingly, the only oxygen available was the oxygen element available in the H2O compound. Good thing we had water. Otherwise, we would've suffocated (LOL).
At the cave entrance/exit
The place was fantastic, but it was the bonding with the family that made this experience an event that will always be remembered.
---Miles Labella
