A mystical journey through Sohoton caves
The hallowed ground is believed to be the haven
of old spirits and ethereal elements. Like any
regular house, visitors are required to ask
permission before entering. But the
normality ends there. It was by no means a
regular house. It was a humongous cave that has existed
for millions of years, witness to a forlorn history of men,
nature,and spirits. Whatever lurked inside the cave's
foreboding chambers, was for the guests to find out.
This was our eco-adventure. The venue, the Sohoton
cave system, found in Samar province in the Visayas.
The journey to Sohoton wasn’t as simple as riding a bus
and presto, you’re there. We traveled from Leyte to
Samar, crossing the historical San Juanico Bridge, before
reaching Basey Wharf, where small boats to take us to
Sohoton caves, were docked.
After about 45 minutes, our boats dropped us off at the
entrance of the Sohoton Natural Bridge and National
Park. The park is a development project under the
administration of the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources (DENR)’s former Sec. Antonio Cerilles.
It was discovered by a Fr. Hoterer from Vienna, Austria,
and was opened to the public in 1968.
As we started our trek towards the cave system, we
couldn’t help but be excited, and noisy. Ulysses Sabuco,
a co-participant from Leyte and provincial correspondent
for the Philippines Star, told us to remain quiet, because
we might disturb the spiritual occupants or engkantos of
the forest where we passed by.
We didn’t know how engkantos reacted when provoked,
but just to make sure we didn’t grow red boils or an extra
nose, we refrained from making the slightest noise. We
just followed Ulysses who uttered “Paagi a kami”, which
is a request for passage in the Waray dialect, throughout
the short walk.
It seems one has to know the right words to appease the
spirits in the 840-hectare virgin forest where Sohoton is
found.
Upon reaching the cave entrance, Francisco Morales, or
“Mano Francing”, head of the local guides, told us visitors
should request permission before entering Sohoton.
Mano Francing did the knocking and the talking for us.
Actually, he has been a tour guide in Sohoton for 20
years. He knocked on a wall by the cave entrance, and
said something in the local dialect, loud enough for the
supposed occupants to hear.
There was no reply, at least, none that our “normal” ears
could hear, but Mano Francing entered anyway, so we
followed. Apparently, the spirits liked us since no
avalanche of rocks prevented our entry.
The usually dark chambers were lit for us by Petromax
lanterns. And once we were inside, our fears were
overcome with amazement.
The spectacles of Mother Nature never ceases to
astonish those who see them for the first time. We found
a visual showcase of amazing rock formations such as
stalactites and stalagmites made of limestone and calcite
minerals inside the cave.
Stalactites are rock formations hanging from the cave
ceilings, while stalagmites are found on the cave floors.
The limestone rocks are mainly brown in color, while the
calcites are a sight to behold in their glittering whiteness.
Visitors are prohibited to touch the calcite stones
because their color would radically change from white to
brown, then black, therefore losing their exquisite
uniqueness. Mano Francing informed told us that it takes
a million years for a square inch of calcite to form —
quite difficult to grasp, but scientifically true.
An expansive imagination, said Mano Francing, is the key
to appreciating the rocks molded into unbelievable
contours. We spent a few minutes inside the cave’s three
main chambers, and stared in awe at the distinct
formations mimicking tangible models such as animals,
clouds, places, and interestingly, even private parts of
the human body.
Our 300-meter, one-hour-and-a-half route was one of
the easiest, admitted Mano Francing, since other areas
would actually involve crawling through murky earth and
passing through narrow spaces. We were spared from
such extreme challenges, since majority of us were
first-time “spelunkers.”
According to our guide, they accommodate at least 20 to
30 visitors per day, and 100 per week. That number is
doubled and even tripled during peak seasons such as
Holy Week.
“During Good Friday, all kinds of people, from the religious
to cult members to barang’s (witches) come here to
‘re-energize’. They say the forces inside the caves, in
some way, rejuvenate them,” said Mano Francing.
Before being allowed to explore Sohoton, visitors must
first secure a permit from a local DENR office, and pay a
meager entrance fee of R5 for students, R8 for adults,
and $2 for the foreigners. No one is allowed inside
without the company of a local tour guide.
|
