The next day, Wednesday, we decided to go spelunking at Sumaging Cave. Holy Week was around the corner and we wanted to go there before the onrush of tourists made it a first come-first served affair. Armed with my trusty video camera and point and shoot camera, we proceeded to the municipal hall where the Sagada Environmental Guides Association (SEGA) offers detailed information and guides with ropes and Petromax lamps. They also keep the caves safe for and from tourists. We hired a Kankanai lady guide for PhP300. It is always advisable to go spelunking with an accredited guide. For one thing, they know the way to, from and around the caves and secondly, if accidents happen inside a cave they now where to go for help. Sagada sits on a limestone valley riddled with a total of 20 caves, some short, some interconnected in huge underground mazes. Eleven are burial caves, 6 of which are accessible by foot from the highway. The burial caves have hollow-log “hanging coffins” or kuongs and should be treated with respect.
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| Rice terraces along the road to the caves |
With our guide in tow, we made a 40-min. downhill hike, along Soyu Rd., to the cave. Along the way, we passed many of Sagada’s coffee shops (try Shamrock Café beside the municipal hall) and guesthouses: Country Inn (up the stairs opposite the municipal hall), Masferre’s Inn and Café (displays old Masferre prints), Olahbinan Resthouse & Restaurant and the Greenhouse. Next is the town’s first hotel, the 16-room Sagada Prime Hotel, opened in March 1997. Here, we found a large, unsightly and quite out of place satellite dish. Further out along Soyu Road, on the right, is Demang Village. This old village still holds traditional rituals at dap-ays (used by men of the village for meetings and ceremonies). On the left, we saw some hanging coffins on a rock face. Also along the way we passed some beautiful rice terraces. Further down, to the left, we entered a path leading to Sumaging Cave’s (also called Big Cave, Marcos or Latipan Cave) big yawning entrance. Entering the cave doesn’t require special training or equipment but the first 100 m. entailed a steep and slippery descent. At a certain point, we were required to take off our shoes. Our guide pointed out the cave’s many unusual and grotesque limestone formations including “Pig Pen,” “Rice Granary,” “Giant’s Foot,” “Dap-ay,” “Pregnant Woman” and the impressive “Dancing Hall” and “King’s Curtain.” We didn’t go beyond “King’s Curtain” as Jandy had difficulty going down. The guide said that beyond was a cold, knee-deep underground stream which accumulates into a large, 15-ft. diameter and 6-ft. deep vaulted pool 250 ft. down. Its waters swirl through a funnel at the side of the mountain. After about 2 hrs., we made our way back and out of the cave.
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| Jandy inside Sumaguing Cave |
The tourist route takes about 3 hrs. but a full exploration of the cave entails at least 6 hrs. and some areas at its deepest levels can only be traversed by serious spelunkers with cave climbing equipment. The cave also has other exits but most are difficult to reach by land. On our uphill trek back along Soyu Road, past the junction, is a path on the right with a fence. Here, steps going down the path leads to Lumiang Cave. We stopped just at the large cave entrance where many old and a few newer coffins were stacked. A portion of the cave’s mouth had collapsed and broken bones and coffin fragments litter the floor. We felt no need to go inside. The guide told us that this cave is connected to Sumaging Cave but reaching it would entail 6 hrs. of spelunking. There are other caves that could be explored farther out but we were just too tired to explore them. We returned to our inn for lunch and a much needed bath. I opted for a noontime bath thinking the water would be warmer. Boy was I wrong! Brrrr…..!