CAPUL ISLAND

Location: Northern Samar, Philippines Region: VIII (Eastern Visayas) Total Land Area: 35.56 km2 (13.73 sq mi) No. of Barangay: 12 Congressional District 1st District of Northern Samar Coordinates: 12°25′N 124°11′E Date Established: November 7, 1975 Time Zone PST (UTC+8) Zip Code: 6408 Dialing Code: 55 Descriptive Summary: Capul once served as the capital of Samar from 1848 to 1852 since the Acupolco-Manila galleon trade vessels used to have frequent stop-over at this point of San Bernardo Strait, thus, a watchtower (light house) was built to serve as a guidepost. Currently, it is a fifth class island municipality of the 24 municipalities of the province of Northern Samar. The name Capul came from the word Acapulco, an old trading post in Mexico.

View Municipality of Capul in a larger map

A blend of colors of the sky, far reaching seas and the sprawling landscape of Capul Lighthouse

Capul is the only town in the province of Northern Samar with a distinct language, Inabaknon, instead of Waray-Waray, the native language spoken by the locals of Samar island. Inabaknon is considered to be 8th of the rarest dialects in the Philippines.

The historical Capul lighthouse

This historic Capul Lighthouse has been erected to serve as a sentry or warning system and a refuge for indigents during Moro raids.

Ideally, one can make it to Capul for a day tour. Food can be bought from 2 or 3 eateries at a minimum of P50 per meal. Though, the two food stores in Barangay Dos near the port do not cater for dine-in services.

The refreshing cliff down the Capul Lighthouse

Touring around the island is not a problem as there are habal-habal drivers who are very much willing to drive you around. Going to the lighthouse is just P50 one way. Don’t worry as they will also wait for you if you opt stay much longer in one place. Just be generous enough to give them a tip.

Just one of the white beaches on the way back to the port coming from the lighthouse

The island of Capul is blessed to have a lot of nameless white beaches which will not charge the guests with an entrance fee. Tourists and guests can have a dip and go so that they can be relieved from the exhausting travel.

The 233-year old Saint Ignatius of Loyola Parish Church

St. Ignatius of Loyola Parish Church was built in a concrete structure in 1781 thru the initiative of a Spanish architect-priest, Fr. Mariano Valero and along with it was also built a stonewall fortress similar to that of Intramuros, Manila that would wedge it against the Moro attacks. However, the first two structures of the church was built earlier than 1781 made of hard wood and nipa roofs but were both devastated by the attacking Moro pirates in 1615 and 1768.

The stonewall of the Saint Ignatius of Loyola Church

Other than the lighthouse and the historical church, tourists can also try the popular tourist attraction, Bito Cave or Beto Cave located in Sawang and try to visit the Timon-timon Rock which is a rudder-shaped rock formation located near the southern point of the island. Habal-habal rates for these destinations will vary since it is located opposite to the direction of the lighthouse.

Capul Municipal Hall

HOW TO GET THERE

Assume that the point of origin is Manila, then these alternatives can be considered:

By Air:

Take the nearest airport to Capul, which is either Calbayog or Catarman. Calbayog airport is an hour and a half from Allen, Northern Samar. Catarman driving distance time to Allen is also approximately the same. From Allen Balwharteco Port Terminal, take a boat going to Capul island for an hour sea travel for P150 for one way. There is only one trip in a day at 11:00 A.M. from Allen to Capul Island and from Capul to Allen is at 7:00 A.M. the following day. You can have an option to charter a boat for special trip which can cost at P2,500 and above depending on the size of your group. The bigger your group is, the lower the cost sharing is.

By Land:

Take a bus trip preferably Philtranco from either Pasay or Cubao Terminals to Allen for P1,100 at an approximate travel duration of 14 hours which is inclusive of Ferry boat fare of P120 from Matnog, Sorsogon to Allen but not to include the P30 terminal fee in Matnog Port. The ferry sea travel crossing the San Bernardino Strait is to 2 hours going to Allen. The same routes will be followed if you are already in Allen’s Balwharteco Port Terminal.

BIRI ROCK FORMATIONS

BIRI ISLAND Location: Municipality of Biri, Northern Samar, Philippines Municipality Type: Class 5 Coordinates: 12°40"N, 124°23E Total Area: 24.62 Square KM (9.51 square miles) Blogger's Note: Biri is consist of several islands where other bigger islands are: Talisay, Magesang and Cagnipa. It is facing Pacific Ocean. Rock formations can be found in islets close to Biri Island, namely: Magasang, Magsapad, Macadlaw, Puhunan, Bel-at and Caranas. Geron is a surfing area of the island. Biri Island ranks 5th among the TOP TEN "TOURIST GEMS" of the Philippines as shown is this link. Electricity Supply: It is available from 12:00 Noon till 12:00 midnight only but the surrounding islands do not have electric power supply. Know more about other accommodation

View Biri Islandin a larger map

I traveled to Biri Island by Southroad (or simply by land) through Philtranco airconditioned bus for P990 which left its Pasay Terminal at 11:00 A.M. and arrived in Matnog Port of Sorsogon Province at 3:30 A.M. (dawn) the following day which sums up to 16.5 hours of bus travel from Pasay City to Matnog. It took us 75 minutes at P120 to cross the San Bernardino Strait from Matnog Port to Allen Port of Northern Samar. We took a 12-minute ride of a pedicab at P20 from Allen Port to Jeepney Terminal with a signboard of Catarman. Though, we only have to drop in Lavezares at P15 which took us for 15 minutes only.



From Lavezares Port, we chartered a boat for P150 each with a capacity of 5 persons going to Palhugan Port of Biri Island which was for 58 minutes or one hour to be exact. It was such a refreshing morning and just around 20 minutes boarding the boat, we passed through the image of the Virgin Mary as shown in the photo above.



As we continue our boat travel, we saw at a distance through the clear morning skies Mount Mayon Volcano on its majestic and imposing perfect cone. After all, Samar is just near Albay divided by the San Bernardino Strait.



Now, we are approaching Biri Island with so much excitement seeing at a distance the Palhugan Port. It’s a typical island with hospitable folks and bystander teenagers greeting us with a good morning.



Entering the gate of our Biri accommodation, the Villa Amor --- new, clean and affordable and maybe one of the best in the island.



The roofdeck of our accommodation which is just a 10-minute habal-habal (single motorcycle) ride for P20 at Villa Amor offers such a 360 degrees scenery showcasing most part of the scenic beaches.



The bridge going to Magasang rock formation which is just a 15-minute habal-habal ride from Barangay Poblacion of Biri for P60 for a maximum of 3 persons in one habal-habal or P20 per head (roundtrip).



Approaching the Magasang rock formation after crossing the concrete bridge. The trail is rocky and wet and at some point you have to walk through shallow water.



This is a part of the Magasang rock formation. Just part of the famous Biri Rock formations.



This is still a part of Magasang rock formation. You can climb the rock formation with caution as some part of it are wet and mossy.



After spending ample time at Magasang rock formation we left and at a distance I took another farewell shot as if I do not like to leave the place. So amazing.



Far from the shore, we can see another destination. However, we need to ride in a habal-habal to get there. Thus, we took a very distant shot of Bel-at rock formation while boarding habal-habal.



The long and winding boardwalk going to Bel-at rock formation. One roundtrip of habal-habal going to Bel-at is a maximum of three persons for P45 or P15 per person.



Down the long and winding boardwalk going to Bel-at rock formation is a marsh and swampy area with mangroves abound.



Approaching Bel-at rock formation after crossing the long and winding boardwalk. Bel-at is another islet with massive rock formations.



Relaxing under a massive rock formation at Bel-at rock formation. Next to his is a crystal-clear pond with fishes abound.



Climbing through the delicate part of Bel-at rock formations. It was so risky since one false move may mean piercing your skin with sharp rocks.

An aerial shot taken while at Bel-at rock formations.



After a tour in Magasang and Bel-at rock formations, I had an afternoon walk along the port in Brgy. Poblacion.



After a long afternoon walk, we returned back to our accommodation in Villa Amor and enjoyed the amazing scenery on its roofdeck with cold drinks, cakes and pastries.



The air at the roofdeck was soothingly cool and it was inviting to sleep there. While we were relaxing, we were listening to the pipe-in music until such time that we forgot everything and finally slept. It was already 6:30 P.M. when I woke up and proceed to my room.



Fresh in the morning, I stayed outside my room to savor the refreshing sea breeze just after the breakfast. All guests of Villa Amor were busy preparing for their activities for the day and that included me.



My group has no idea of what is the best destination next in our trip and activities for the day. We went to the Tourism Office in Poblacion just opposite the Catholic church and we were told to try Punta rock formations. With this, we hired a habal-habal being three only in the group and headed to the place. The photo above shows the entry to Punta rock formations.



Surprisingly, what I enjoyed in Punta rock formations are not really the rock formations but rather the big and geyser-like water formation where the seawater ejected spouts upward and down to the rocks. The waves were playful enough to give our digicam the opportunity to capture good shots with them as our background.



After having lunch in poblacion of the town of Biri, we headed to this verdant and aqua-marine blue beach coast in the island of Suliran which is just a 10-minute boat ride from Palhugan Port. This is uninhabited and undisturbed since there is no beach resort yet erected here. But mind you, being here offers a total privacy and one can even go naked if he wants. The rich background of trees is a part of Cagmanipis Island.



Part of Cagmanipis Island just across Suliran Island for around five minutes away. It has rich mangrove sanctuary. Like Suliran island, Cagmanipis is grown with coconut trees and can be a great source of buco fruit. In fact, our local guide harvested some for us for free.



Walking around Cagmanipis Island, one can see the rich biodiversity of mangrove aquatic life and various small species of fish can be seen thriving inside the roots of mangroves. The beach front of the island has strong current and may not be ideal for kids for swimming.