The Photoblogger

The Sugbo Study Center Students and Young Professionals

Where was the Photoblogger last Sunday? I had the rare opportunity to go out far far away from my usual abode in the boondocks

Last Sunday I went with the Sugbo Study Center boys in their monthly excursion. For this month’s excursion we went Snorkeling in Moalboal. We took a 3 hour road trip to the beach where we had to pay a 5 peso entrance fee and then another entrance fee for 10php.. (hmmm bakit may dalawang entrance fee?)

Nice beach in Moalboal

Snorkeling in Moalboal is one of the things I’ve always wanted to do. I’ve been snorkeling in Balamban Asturias. But I’ve been craving for this ever since I saw Kuya Jayvee’s dive in Pescador Island.

In Kuya Jayvee’s Post he showed how there were millions of Sardines, a number of thresher sharks and a rare appearance of the Whale Shark.  (Who’s Kuya Jayvee? he’s this awesome tech blogger who dives a lot and has the most awesome dive videos I’ve ever seen.)

Nice beach in Moalboal, unfortunately with some impurities but pretty good for a public beach

Since I can’t afford all the awesome gear I decided to go for a more affordable approach: Snorkeling in moalboal.

The Snorkeling experience

Jong and I after the swim

I’ve been swimming since I was a kid and I guess the fact that my dad goes to waters as deep as 30-50 feet without a life vest and just a pair of fins makes me say it runs in the family I went into the waters with just a pair of fins and my snorkeling set.

The amazing thing about the Moalboal coral reefs is that it’s so near. It’s only a 1 minute swim (or 5 if you’re new to swimming) to get there. Within just 5 meters from the shore the water was already deep. (also because it was a high tide) DO BE CAREFUL WITH SEA URCHINS. When the water is deep you have a tendency to stand on the rocks with your bare feet but you may be unaware of the hidden sea urchin on the side.

When you get to the area where there are a lot of corals you can see the different fishes to show up and just a little further you can feel a suddenly fluctuation from nice clear waters to dark murky waters. You can feel the suddenly feel a sudden shift from warm water to cold water. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the deep sea. In the sudden dive of depth this is where larger fish can be seen and is the thin line between the photic zone (where light can still enter) and the non-photic zone.

Sir Tony right after his swim

This is the “scary” part where you can only see a wall of corals going deeper and deeper and you can’t even see the sea bed anymore. The water is cold and the water is a dark blue. Did I mention the fact that Moalboal is famous for their sharks? But I didn’t seem one bit worried. Why? Because before swam hundreds of fishes of different shapes, sizes, and even swimming styles. Some swam vertically, horizontally, reversed, or even in a seemingly dancing movement.

The boys are back! And they dared to swim without life vests too.

I saw Parrotfishes, Sturgeon fishes, Wrasses, butterfly fishes, Angelfishes, a sea snake, seahorses, and many other fishes I couldn’t identify. (We are still going to take up species identification in our Marine Bio Class)

I love it and I am hoping I can come back. One thing I did notice though was that the coral seemed to be young and growing (like the ones I saw in Asturias) but with a greater diversity. Maybe I’m just wrong but I’ll just check again when I take up coral reef study during Marine Bio.

Sir Tony, Jomar, Apang, Jong and Me

TIPS for snorkeling

• Sunblock won’t make you stay white, wear a board shirt with long sleeves/a shirt with long sleeves
• Wear fins to easily swim fast away from fast currents (or sharks, just being safe here )
• Wear life vests if you’re new to swimming
• BE VERY VERY CAREFUL IN SHALLOW WATERS, THERE ARE SEA URCHINS/tuyom gud
• Swim in groups or pairs to make sure no one gets lost in the water (hey it can happen)
• Ask each other ahead if anyone has a hard time swimming (come on don’t be shy, you’re life is on the line here)
• If you’re a little bit more advanced in swimming it is a wonderful thing to take a few short dives and be close up with some of the fishes. (tried and loved it!)
• don’t stay out too long. We swam for about 2 hours and then took a break and then swam for another hour
• Check the schedules for high tides
• We swam around 11am
• Best to snorkel during a hot hot day (according to our ecology, limnology and Marine Biology class, Oxygen tends to go up in the water surface so fishes tend to come out during a hot day)
• Most importantly: LOOK BUT DO NOT TOUCH

If you do have any questions do ask them here

Apang, Sir Tony, Jong, and Jomar right after the swim

Feasting before going back to the water

About Sugbo Study Center:

Sugbo Study Center has excursions every month. They are a group of university students and young professionals who practice the Catholic faith and have other activities such as recollections, talks, short courses, and these excursions. If you’re a male university student or a young professional in Cebu feel free to leave your comment here to know more.

And when our snorkeling was over God made it rain Thank you Lord for withholding the rain while we were snorkeling

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