I was scrolling my Facebook Photos when I saw tagged photos of our Tukang Cave venture. That was three months ago.
Spelunking is a daring but fun adventure. And of course, you don’t have to worry about getting toasted by the sun.
Anyway, thanks to the invitation of a friend, again, I came to see the beauty of God’s creations.
Tukang Cave is located at Tuba, Benguet. Have you heard of Twin Peaks? Or you most probably heard Kennon Road… It’s somewhere along that road. The trip from Baguio to Tuba took us about an hour (I’m not sure). We got off the jeep and met with the caretaker of the cave, an old man. While we were waiting for some other companions, I heard the caretaker complaining about the destruction of the cave brought about by other people whose minds are so twisted. For that reason, the cave has been closed and locked for some time. Lucky for me, my companions knew the old man and the guys are frequenters so no problem. He even offered his humble home for us to wash up.
We started preparing, checking our lights, and refilling our water bottles. I didn’t know what to expect. I was even contemplating on whether I should leave my phone or not. My phone was new then. Either it will be soaked inside or it will get lost outside. I chose the latter. Result? Good luck and better choice, my phone was definitely not lost.
“Down the river…”
Crossing a fine-looking and sturdy bridge was no sweat. After which, we strolled down the river bank then climbed a bit of rocks. And tada! There’s the entrance to the cave! The guys in the group were Pro’s. They are real professional guides for caving and hiking activities. And they have crawled, slided, and maneuvered this cave a hundred times. So I was not worried if any misadventure happens to me.
In entering the cave, I had to do it facing down then carefully and blindly figuring out my next step. Rocks inside are like hardened mud. Don’t wear any light color stuff. Rocks after rocks. Some parts are really slippery too, so be careful.
I have always doubted my physical strength. There’s a part where you have to let your body slide and just keeping hold of the rope. I was like, “What? How should I do that?” I did it anyway, and I almost slipped.
“How do I do it?”
Another challenging part (especially for those who don’t wanna lose that extra baggage) is the part where you have to fit in a space between walls of rocks. No worries, all you need is a little push.
Here comes the harder part, climbing the walls of rocks. I’m no Pro, I don’t know how to carry my own weight while ascending, how should someone do that? Good thing, the girls were provided climbing gears like ropes, harness and restraints for safety reasons. And I reached the top! Yehey!
Some rocks are really sharp and are just inches above your head, extra caution is always advised.
We passed through some parts where there are bodies of water which tempted us to better swim it rather than holding onto rocks on the sides and guessing where will be your next step. The water is freezing cold. There’s not so much of a rock formations like other caves have but what is best here is the challenge it offers you. You know the questions like, “What if this rock falls on me?” or “What if I fall and get drowned?” or “What if I slip, and break a bone or two? Or hit my head?”
The jitters it will give you is the beauty of every adventure.
After four hours of mixtures of wonder, fear, and fun, I came out alive. Of course. Just a few scratches. And I came out looking like a miner but with no gold. Haha.
The outside world is so hot. We headed towards the river and climbed our way back. We washed up, and took our lunch.
After reviving some strength, the group was up for another activity. Rappelling. Oh no! I hate heights! You know I even hate bridges. Hmmm. I have turned down a lot of offers of rappelling before. First times are always shaky. But then, I thought great courage brings about great adventures so I gathered myself, and inhaled like it’s my last. My face felt hot while my hands were cold. Weird. And hell yeah, I tried, and I realized how ridiculous I was. It’s was so freakin’ easy! Cool, and nothing to be afraid of. Ha! I even did it twice. And I’ll do it again if opportunity comes.
The day is coming to an end, so we prepared to leave, and said thanks to the old man.
A double treat. Thank you for the invitation. It was again superb!
Young, and Wild and Free... 