ROMBLON | Snorkeling Under Banton’s Malabiga Beach

Wednesday, July 06, 2011

Banton's Malabiga Beach

The hike from Poblacion to Togong definitely took its toll on us. So, after a hearty lunch and a restful afternoon siesta, we took to the beach. The said beach, being just a stone’s throw away from D’s house and was practically part of their backyard.

From a distance, Malabiga looks like a typical beach; white sand and azure blue waters surrounded by lush coconut trees. But upon closer inspection, things were not as they seemed. The fine sand from afar, upon closer inspection, were hardy pebbles and broken corals.

It was hard walking with slippers on, as the ground shifts with your every step and the pesky pebbles gets into your sandals, but it was harder to walk barefoot as the rocks, which were really grounded corals, were sharp to bare skin.

Malabiga Beach in Barangay Togong, Banton

Not the ideal beach for beach bummers really, but perfect for those interested in snorkeling like me. Though not exactly true a hundred percent of the time; sandy shores equals uninteresting underwater landscapes and rocky shores often hints of a more interesting story underneath.

The water was calm and clear and I have a new underwater camera just for the trip. We dove in.

Small School of Fishes at Romblon's Malabiga BeachIt was lowtide and the sun was on its downward slant making everything below the water shine with gold.

We need not go farther out to check Malabiga Beach’s underwater life, its marine fauna explodes immediately just a few meters from the shore. There were not as many fishes though. The schools I saw were too wary of humans and almost always swim away whenever I tried to get close. With fishing being one of the main livelihood in the area, this is quite understandable.

A School of Fish at Romblon's Malabiga BeachCorals and whatnots abound under Malabiga’s beach and D says that it gets better if we go further out. But we were too chicken to go really far so we satisfied ourselves near the shore, which was not bad at all too.

I thought to myself how lucky these people were to have their own live aquarium just within reach. And even for just two days, I too suddenly had a personal snorkeling ground. Although not as spectacular as snorkeling sites found in Coron or Puerto Galera, I am perfectly contented with Malabiga’s underwater landscapes.

Under Malabiga Beach at Banton, Romblon

 

Click to view location in Google Maps

Malabiga Beach
Address: Barangay Togong, Banton Island, Banton, Romblon
Romblon Provincial Tourism Office: (042) 567-5145 | (0920) 629-5838
Email: info.romblonislands@gmail.com

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17 comments

  1. ganda jan! sama kami sa romblon next time a :>

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  2. Ganda nman dito! :D

    I want to visit this place too :D

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  3. Romblon is one of the heavily fished areas...but there are signs of recuperation! great underwater photos!

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  4. great feature of the island's underwater beauty. nice romblon.

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  5. Lestat
    Ayaw nyo pa kasi dati eh sayan =P

    Tina
    Definitely, next year subukan ko ulit bumalik, medyo mahirap lang sya puntahan

    Ding
    Oo nga, dati daw marami isda na malalaki kahit malapit lang sa shore sabi nung friend ko na taga jan.
    Panalo Canon D10 sa pagkuha sa ilalim eh hehe

    Dong Ho
    Thanks brad!

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  6. I agree with you, usually kapag madaming corals at pebbly and shores, compensated naman ng lively underwater life. Pero kapag pino yung buhangin naman gaya ng Calaguas o Boracay madalas, halos ganun din yung ilalalim ng tubig, malinaw at walang corals masyado malapit sa beach.

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  7. Galing Christian!

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  8. Teka Christian, di sya backyard. haha. nasa harap eh, so Front yard. :D Corning Joke ba? hehe. Next year Lestat aayain ko ulit si Christian.

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  9. romblon romblon, how beautiful you are! the underwater shots are really good! makes me wanna go diving.

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  10. My wife's father is from romblon.....Have you visited the marble factories in this place? Romblom is also known of its marble deposit.:-).

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  11. Tulad ng Dati... The Best mga shots mo Christian... sarap Titigan... :)
    Ganda pala talaga ng Romblon... :)

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  12. Claire
    Haha kaya minsan mas gusto ko mabato na shore (saka mas panalo sa landscape photography pag may bato eh hehe)

    Deeyows
    Ganun ba yun? hehe

    Marjorie
    Hopefully next time ma explore ko rin yung iba pang islands ng Romblon =]

    Bonzenti
    Di masyado pre eh, sa Banton lang kasi kami the whole time, di kami nakapunta sa main island ng Romblon

    Tripper10
    Thanks po! =]

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  13. I never thought that Romblon has underwater beauty like this. This is a good reveal of Romblon. What's that on the last pic, sea snake?

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  14. wow even underwater shots are great. hehehe

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  15. Ian
    What I've seen is not even a fourth of what Romblon's underwater wealth has to offer

    Fetus
    Thanks! =]

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  16. YOU SHOULD VISIT DIVING SITES AROUND BANTON.. TIMES SQUARE IS ONE OF THEM.. AND ALSO ITS ISOLATED ISLAND TERRITORIES WHICH ARE ABUNDANT WITH BEAUTY AND MARINE LIVES

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  17. Anonymous
    Thanks for the tip! Next time I'll try checking Times Square, only problem is I don't know how to dive hehe =P

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