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Post by flipnidaho on Aug 2, 2007 20:56:08 GMT 8
www.sangat.com.phHello Y'all, I'm thinking of taking the girlfriend down to this resort in Palawan when I come home for Christmas. Has anyone been to this resort or have any other resort that they can recommend? She has her dive cert so wreck or coral diving would be nice. Salamat! Gary
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Post by king on Aug 2, 2007 21:46:56 GMT 8
yo gary, sangat's supposed to be a great place. wreck diving right and left.
if you're a little more adventurous i'd take a trip to Sabang, Puerto Princesa as well. it's more of a backpacker, beach bum kind of a vibe. basic accomodations & cheap. i'm not sure how you'd get there from busuanga though. it's a long land trip. otherwise you'd have to wait for the next once-a-week ferry that goes manila-coron-puerto princesa
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Post by flipnidaho on Aug 3, 2007 6:02:19 GMT 8
thanks king... i'll look into it!
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Post by dayuhan on Aug 3, 2007 6:22:59 GMT 8
I stayed in Sangat once, some time back, and liked the place. The beach isn't spectacular, but the island is very pretty and the resort is the only thing on it. Andy's a nice guy and seems very capable with the dive stuff. The nearby dives are mostly wrecks, but there is some good coral around if you're willing to take a boat ride... ask to spend a day at Calambuyan, a little-known island with some really excellent coral.
There's a lot more to see and do in that area than most people get to. Cukion is interesting, and there's a whole spread of little islands NW of Busuanga, and with a little effort you can get ot to the part of Coron island that nobody else goes to, which is pretty spectacular.
I have access to some good sea kayaks down there, let me know if you need.
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Post by flipnidaho on Aug 3, 2007 9:57:13 GMT 8
I stayed in Sangat once, some time back, and liked the place. The beach isn't spectacular, but the island is very pretty and the resort is the only thing on it. Andy's a nice guy and seems very capable with the dive stuff. The nearby dives are mostly wrecks, but there is some good coral around if you're willing to take a boat ride... ask to spend a day at Calambuyan, a little-known island with some really excellent coral. There's a lot more to see and do in that area than most people get to. Cukion is interesting, and there's a whole spread of little islands NW of Busuanga, and with a little effort you can get ot to the part of Coron island that nobody else goes to, which is pretty spectacular. I have access to some good sea kayaks down there, let me know if you need. Do you recommend any other resorts in the Coron (or general Palawan Islands) that have a nice beach with easy access to diving/snorkeling corals? Thanks!
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Post by xctofi on Aug 3, 2007 10:00:51 GMT 8
King, Dindo has a resort @ Palawan right?
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Post by kulot_salot on Aug 3, 2007 10:10:05 GMT 8
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Post by whoopi on Aug 3, 2007 10:35:49 GMT 8
hey GARY! we stayed in DiveLink once, in Uson Island. nice resort, with a pool, but the beach is small and not spectacular. google them. i've never seen good corals in Coron either diving or snorkelling, but some of the wrecks are awesome. pack a mosquito repellent . have fun!
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Post by Ben Dover on Aug 3, 2007 10:47:55 GMT 8
yup, tofi is right...please see contact info below: dindo narciso dinarciso@i-manila.com.ph www.busuangaislandparadise.com920.950.0360 2.724.3070 btw, dindo is a mountain biker too...a member of PinoyMTBiker but i believe seldoms log in now a days.
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Post by dayuhan on Aug 3, 2007 10:59:07 GMT 8
Sangat is closer to the wrecks than most of the resorts, though a little farther from Coron Island. They have some decent coral for snorkeling off the island, not great but worth a visit. There's not a lot of good coral around. One section just north of Coron, facing Busuanga. Calambuyan is by far the best in the area, first class, but takes some effort to get to. Worth it though, nice trip. The beach on Calambuyan is nice, but nowhere to stay, camping only.
There's a sand beach at Sangat, but water is very shallow for a ways out. Still fun. Lots of nice deserted beaches on the small islands around.
If you're going to be around a while, and want to ride, I'd also suggest Sagada. I'm biased, but it really is different from anywhere else in the country, and there's a lot of most excellent single track waiting.
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Post by yukon on Aug 3, 2007 12:24:33 GMT 8
Yep Dindo's the guy and he owns the resort...was able to talk to him few months back. I think he gives PinoyMTBiker discounts...we are definitely going there next Summer. BTW, his rates are reasonable and the trails around em...awesome!!!
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Post by flipnidaho on Aug 3, 2007 19:23:38 GMT 8
Thanks guys. I emailed Dindo. I also checked his website but unfortunately, the pictures did not load for me. Please keep the suggestions coming. We are also open to non-Palawan suggestions... Thanks again!
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Post by dinarciso on Aug 5, 2007 7:38:02 GMT 8
Hi Guys, Thanks for the heads up! I haven't been logging in lately but should really be doing so. The Calamianes group of islands is really a beautiful place to visit and most of the comments here are spot on. Kindly visit this link if you are using Mozilla: www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2094785409Thanks and see you guys on the trail....dindo btw, replied in private to Gary
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Post by flipnidaho on Aug 5, 2007 9:01:40 GMT 8
Thanks Dindo! Is there mountainbiking or road riding on your island?
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Post by whoopi on Aug 6, 2007 11:26:33 GMT 8
Thanks guys. I emailed Dindo. I also checked his website but unfortunately, the pictures did not load for me. Please keep the suggestions coming. We are also open to non-Palawan suggestions... Thanks again! gary, how long have you got and what are your musts in order of preference (beach bumming, underwater explo, trail riding, etc.)?
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Post by flipnidaho on Aug 6, 2007 20:27:09 GMT 8
Thanks guys. I emailed Dindo. I also checked his website but unfortunately, the pictures did not load for me. Please keep the suggestions coming. We are also open to non-Palawan suggestions... Thanks again! gary, how long have you got and what are your musts in order of preference (beach bumming, underwater explo, trail riding, etc.)? we have around 7 days and the order of preference would be: quality beach coral snorkeling wreck snorkeling (she has her drive cert but she hasn't been diving for a few years) nature (eco hikes, lakes, animals, etc...) culture (town tours) we are actually thinking of 3 days at Dindo's and 3 days at Sangat or some other beach front resort for now...
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Post by whoopi on Aug 8, 2007 15:13:12 GMT 8
wreck snorkeling might be a bit difficult because i haven't heard of many wrecks in shallow water. Coron is the only one with a shallow wreck that i know of (East Tangat gunboat wreck, tip at about 10ft). Coron also has the best wreck diving in the country (in terms of sheer number, sizes, degree of preservation and "drama"). unfortunately, corals there are either absent or of the hard kind (the ones that look like rocks), and very little of the soft colorful ones with lots of fishies.
there are a few wrecks in Subic but in deep water, and visibility there is often poor. there's one wreck i know in Anilao Batangas (Daryl Laut) but the tip is at around 40ft all the way down to about 100ft. there's another wreck in Malapascua Cebu but also in deep water.
the best combination of great beach and good corals for snorkeling that i can think of are (in this order): Apo Island (Negros Oriental), Puerto Galera (Mindoro) and Balicasag Island (Bohol). i heard El Nido (Palawan) is also the same, but i haven't been there.
Apo Island is one of the most successful marine sanctuaries in the country (if not THE most successful), with lots of sites around the island for excellent (i don't use this term loosely) snorkeling and diving. i haven't done a dive here that i didn't like very much. they limit the number of people in the water everyday though, they charge you to snorkel and dive, with extra surcharge if you bring a camera, and they have other regulations like no gloves when diving to discourage you from touching the marine life. the island itself also has no running water, only a stock of rain water for washing (which can be maddening when you have to rinse your gear). if you choose to go there, you might want to stay in one of the resorts in Dauin in the mainland, and not in Apo Island itself. you can boat to Apo Island during the day.
Puerto Galera is very touristy. if you don't like the crowd, i recommend Oceana, which is in a secluded portion of the beach, with easy backroad access to Sabang Beach if you suddenly miss noise and social life. Galera has plenty of sites with excellent corals for snorkeling and diving. the best diving sites however are in Verde Island, and of the high-voltage kind, with usually fierce current so be careful if you're planning to go during this monsoon season. oh, they also have a small wreck near Sabang beach.
Balicasag is about an hour or more by big boat from Alona Beach in Panglao Island, that's why not many people bother to go there. visibility is usually excellent, so you can see corals and fishies from the surface even when they're deep. there's a great chance of seeing schooling fishes here like Jacks, and some turtles. there's a resort in Balicasag itself, but i haven't stayed there. it's also run by the Phil Tourism Authority, and the PTA-managed joints i've tried in the past are rundown and inefficently-run so maybe you're safer to stay in Panglao and just boat to Balilcasag during the day. like Balicasag, Panglao has a lovely stretch of beach, some pockets of corals for snorkeling, and you can do other things while in Bohol like visit the Chocolate Hills and old churches, take a river cruise along Loboc, see the tarsier monkeys. you can bike or motorbike or rent a van to go around. Bohol has been consistently winning the Dept of Tourism award for being tourist-friendly, so you'll have no problems there when it comes to facilities and the like.
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Post by kulot_salot on Aug 8, 2007 15:26:54 GMT 8
OT... sorry... the wreck that i would love to dive is the Musashi... WikipediaMusashi under attack at the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea, 24 October 1944....if it's feasible to dive it... ...& if i only know how to dive... ... & that is the literal 'dive'... ;D ...i know! i'm a wreck! ;D ;D ;D
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Post by whoopi on Aug 8, 2007 15:42:39 GMT 8
JAYMZ, i googled her. no one can say at what depth she's resting--some say she's at 4,000+ft, some at 1,000+ft. either case, not a diveable depth for humans on SCUBA ;p
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Post by dayuhan on Aug 8, 2007 16:07:58 GMT 8
The East Tangat wreck is visible to snorkelers, but you really don't see all that much of it... just the bow sticking up. I think Calambuyan is as good as Apo Island... it's just that almost nobody has ever heard of it! Definitely worth a look , as is outer Coron island.
Andy @ Sangat would be an excellent choice to work with a diver who's been out of the water a while... very solid guy, good reputation for safety.
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Post by kulot_salot on Aug 8, 2007 19:30:59 GMT 8
JAYMZ, i googled her. no one can say at what depth she's resting--some say she's at 4,000+ft, some at 1,000+ft. either case, not a diveable depth for humans on SCUBA ;p thanks whoopi! knowing sibuyan sea, true it must be that deep... seen whales basking there once... not just whale sharks... oh whoopi, excuses for the..... ;D
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Post by flipnidaho on Aug 11, 2007 21:47:16 GMT 8
unfortunately, our plans have changed. we couldn't get flights for the december-jan timeframe so we are going in May 08 instead. Hopefully we're ahead of typhoon season.
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