Yup! This now father of three aged thirty-three still doesn’t know how to swim. Maybe the death of a friend who drowned two decades ago in one of our summer outing had its toll with me.
Before August of this year, what comes to my mind when I think of Bohol are the tarsiers and the Chocolate Hills. Balicasag Island now makes it three.
It’s a 45 minutes boat ride from Panglao Island, Bohol. Before going ashore of Balicasag, you may opt for dolphin watching early in the morning. I don’t have pictures of the dolphins because believe me, you will miss them if you focus in preparing for a shot. And it’s more fun seeing those wonderful creatures jump. The dolphin watching thrill set the tone for our snorkeling.
Today, there are lots of camera with underwater capabilities; otherwise, you’ll need to waterproof. The high-end waterproof casing from Dicapac range Php 1,300 for digital camera and Php 3,600 for DSLR. Of course my “Cheap Camera” goes with a cheap but reliable waterproof case from Aqua Gear for only Php 600. It is not hard to find, just google “Aqua Gear Philippines” and you’ll find it first in Sulit.com.ph. I can vouch for the great customer service of Aqua Gear’s sir Eugene.
That’s me at the left-most with my Fujifilm A170 enclosed for waterproofing by Aqua Gear.
The snorkeling equipment we used were lend to us by the boatman from our tour package provider. It’s better to have your own for a hygienic snorkel. Maybe next time! The boatman became our snorkeling guru and photographer. Unfortunately, I forgot to tell him to half-press first my digicam (for focusing) before taking shots.
Look at my first attempt to snorkel, my body was at 45° sporting a sandals instead of reef walker. Water shoes are for rent for Php 100 and I regret not having one for my feet were full of abrasions after.
I learned to use the mask & snorkel set while holding to an outrigger (katig).
Then came the moment of truth….. well a half-truth. I managed to swim aided by a mask & snorkel set and a not-so-fit vest.
I handed my bottle filled with pieces of bread to a friend who is a good swimmer. If you want to get a close-up with a school of fish, bring with you lots of bread, put it in a bottle for a control feeding.
The area where tourists can set their feet on the corals is confined to less than 1% of the Balicasag marine sanctuary. Look at the picture below and see the rope confining the tourists area. Don’t you worry nature lovers, the earnings from tourism are being used to finance the locals since they are prohibited from fishing and coral harvesting.
This is my only shot underwater when the boatman handed me my camera because unfortunately, it’s time for us to go. (Here’s the difference of HALF-PRESS first for focusing.)
Enjoy my short video.
A longer one by my swimmer friend taken using my digicam.
Cheap Camera, Priceless Memories. 