 |
| shores of Panikian Island, Pitogo, Zamboanga Del Sur |
It was such a regret that I had that 12 oz latte from Bo’s
coffee in Robinsons C3 Mall in Pagadian Town Center. It was almost 3am when I
lost consciousness, and it was past 10 in the morning when I woke up. The
initial plan was to wake up at about 7 am, so I can do a quick day trip to the
Panikian Island, and then head to Zamboanga city by night. Nevertheless, it was
too late to whine; Second, cancelling the Panikian trip is not an option. I am
already in Pagadian, and I’d rather cut from the latter plans that cancel this
where I am in at the moment.
Meantime, I have yet to find out whether it is safe indeed
to travel to Pitogo. Which made the decision making even worse; I sat on a
bakery in front of the Cerilles terminal in Pagadian, ordered a cup of coffee
and bread, while carefully analyzing my next move.
I received a text message from the Zamboanga tourism that
Solo travelling is not encouraged. Likewise, I asked Doc Wendell of
Journeysandtravels and said there might be some security risks at this time. What
I thought was, since I was already in the terminal, I can probably head to
Pitogo, and check with the Municipality.
It was already lunchtime when I left and took me an hour and
half to get to Pitogo. I asked to be dropped in the Municipality and from
there, met the Municipal Administrator Mr Roland Eta who has been so accommodating
and kind to ask JP (one of his staff) to assist me in getting a boat to the
island. I told them I just need a quick 20 minute in the island, and that I
will try to catch the last 4pm trip back to Pagadian City. They’ve explained I may
not make it, but best to get to the shore asap and try my luck, which we did.
We walked into some of his (JP’s) acquaintances, and the
first 2 fishermen said it was already late. Thing is, the skies were dark and
wind was blowing strong. Finally, the third one we approached walked us to the
shore and was kind of evaluating the weather. It was even low tide such that
his boat will not make it to sailing. I was quiet, and thinking of a good
backup plan.
All of a sudden, the boatman spoke and said, if you want,
you can sleep in the island, and then wake up early for the trip back to
Pagadian. I was going to kiss his ass had he asked. It never came to mind, and
such castaway arrangements are a delight.
JP and I walked back to the market for some goods (food,
alcohol, cigarettes) and just a little while later, we’re ready to leave. It was
almost 5pm when we reached the island. I was greeted by the security personnel
in the island whom sir Roland called up ahead to inform.
After our dinner and midway thru the liter of Emperador
light, one of the younger patroller asked me for the time; It was almost 8pm. I
was asked if I’d be joining them go around the island and see the turtles as
they lay eggs, which, of course I did. Apart from the hundreds of sparkling
fireflies that flocked on some trees, we spotted 2 seasnakes, and 5 turtles (2
of which laid eggs).
It was around 8am when we left the following day. Before
heading to mainland though, we had a quick roundabout of the island and the
nearby islet. Sadly, the reef is a coral sanctuary except much of the corals
are cracked down by dynamite fishing.
see here for post on how to go to panikian island in Pitogo, Zamboanga Del Sur
This trip is part of my 13 day Southern Mindanao Trip. I posted a few details of my schedule and expenses here
|
| shores of Panikian Island, Pitogo, Zamboanga Del Sur |
It was such a regret that I had that 12 oz latte from Bo’s
coffee in Robinsons C3 Mall in Pagadian Town Center. It was almost 3am when I
lost consciousness, and it was past 10 in the morning when I woke up. The
initial plan was to wake up at about 7 am, so I can do a quick day trip to the
Panikian Island, and then head to Zamboanga city by night. Nevertheless, it was
too late to whine; Second, cancelling the Panikian trip is not an option. I am
already in Pagadian, and I’d rather cut from the latter plans that cancel this
where I am in at the moment.
Meantime, I have yet to find out whether it is safe indeed
to travel to Pitogo. Which made the decision making even worse; I sat on a
bakery in front of the Cerilles terminal in Pagadian, ordered a cup of coffee
and bread, while carefully analyzing my next move.
I received a text message from the Zamboanga tourism that
Solo travelling is not encouraged. Likewise, I asked Doc Wendell of
Journeysandtravels and said there might be some security risks at this time. What
I thought was, since I was already in the terminal, I can probably head to
Pitogo, and check with the Municipality.
It was already lunchtime when I left and took me an hour and
half to get to Pitogo. I asked to be dropped in the Municipality and from
there, met the Municipal Administrator Mr Roland Eta who has been so accommodating
and kind to ask JP (one of his staff) to assist me in getting a boat to the
island. I told them I just need a quick 20 minute in the island, and that I
will try to catch the last 4pm trip back to Pagadian City. They’ve explained I may
not make it, but best to get to the shore asap and try my luck, which we did.
We walked into some of his (JP’s) acquaintances, and the
first 2 fishermen said it was already late. Thing is, the skies were dark and
wind was blowing strong. Finally, the third one we approached walked us to the
shore and was kind of evaluating the weather. It was even low tide such that
his boat will not make it to sailing. I was quiet, and thinking of a good
backup plan.
All of a sudden, the boatman spoke and said, if you want,
you can sleep in the island, and then wake up early for the trip back to
Pagadian. I was going to kiss his ass had he asked. It never came to mind, and
such castaway arrangements are a delight.
JP and I walked back to the market for some goods (food,
alcohol, cigarettes) and just a little while later, we’re ready to leave. It was
almost 5pm when we reached the island. I was greeted by the security personnel
in the island whom sir Roland called up ahead to inform.
After our dinner and midway thru the liter of Emperador
light, one of the younger patroller asked me for the time; It was almost 8pm. I
was asked if I’d be joining them go around the island and see the turtles as
they lay eggs, which, of course I did. Apart from the hundreds of sparkling
fireflies that flocked on some trees, we spotted 2 seasnakes, and 5 turtles (2
of which laid eggs).
It was around 8am when we left the following day. Before
heading to mainland though, we had a quick roundabout of the island and the
nearby islet. Sadly, the reef is a coral sanctuary except much of the corals
are cracked down by dynamite fishing.
see here for post on how to go to panikian island in Pitogo, Zamboanga Del Sur
This trip is part of my 13 day Southern Mindanao Trip. I posted a few details of my schedule and expenses here
