Spelunking in Sumaguing Cave not only heightened the intensity of our sojourn in Sagada, Mountain Province, but also made Day 2 the highlight of our adventure.
Sumaguing cave is an hour walk from the town center. On our way to the cavern, we passed at the viewpoint of Dokiw Hanging Coffins. Well, I still wondered about how these coffins ended up in those cliffs.
The newly harvested rice terraces edged by lush green hills is inviting all passers by to stop and take photos for a while.
Having not enough of coffins, the Lumiang Burial Cave is also a spot. It is situated at the side entrance of the cave. As I said in Day 1, their coffin will be placed according to where they wished it to be.
The entrance of the cave is huge. Using the stairway to descend, extra care is required because every step of the way is wet and very slippery. Before entering the cave, our guide handled the briefing and gave us important instructions before walking through the cave. They say spelunking is not for the faint-hearted. It is for those who wanted their heart beat faster and feel the adrenaline rushing through their veins.
Are you ready to slide your way down the abyss and take the biggest leap that you can to traverse? Get ready to get wet! The ice cold water is continually flowing, but the limestone is not slippery. It has a good grip with your soles so its best to move around barefooted.
This big cave has chambers which are categorized. Every spelunker started off at the easy stage to get themselves acquainted with what they bring themselves into. This part is barely flat and easy to move around. You can take a quick dip or you can go ahead to the difficult stage.
The difficult stage will engage you with the rocks. You will have all the chances to hold the seemingly polished, glossy- looking, gleaming rock formations.
Because of the complexity of what we have to go through, all our stuff are in the hands of our guide. Leading my team gripping on an almost-nothing-to-hold huge rock while taking my step side ward trying to follow that very narrow underwater walkway that is made of rock, I felt totally stretched. Losing your grip and a miscalculated step would mean throwing yourself into a deep waterhole.
To move down the steep, you need the help of this rope and move to the next scene.
As your reward, you will be brought at the foot of the Kings Curtain. Get the privileged of finding the King and Queen of the Cave.
We are not yet done! Be very willing to slip and crawl inside this very tiny opening to get yourself to another place of adventure.
If you succeed, well you must succeed, you will have the chance to meet the crocodile of the cave and of course, take photos! There are so much more of the rock formations that you will see when you allow your curiosity to be fed and decide to choose this adventure. In fact, your imagination skills will be used and challenged with the different rock formations that are available inside the cave.
On our way to the finished line, moving up is the next quest. In boulder climbing, rope is still useful and in case, human ladder is the last resort.
Unknowingly, we are already in the mouth of the cave and find our sleepers waiting for our return.
Hungry after the fun, we passed by a restaurant that is overlooking the relaxing green fields and took our sumptuous lunch.
Our experience is totally wrapped with fun and laughter. A thumbs up to our guide, Dalifer for being the best! We never had a dull moment and the gradual crescendo of excitement means doubled bliss. He made our way out of this cave remarkable.
