Lunch Stop at Mausonoan Island
From one white beach to another, we hopped to the nearby island of Mausonoan (Maosonan). It’s a larger island which reminds me a lot of Pangulasian Island there’s a long stretch of white sand beach but on two sides, a nice ridge people can actually climb up and an islet people can walk to on low tide. The sands were as fine and the water clear. One side of the island has calmer seas cushioned by the ridge. There were actually fishing boats from Linapacan standing by the area as the seas were more manageable there. A small community of about 3–4 huts was there. I heard the island is owned already but no signs of development yet. That’s how I can describe this island, a raw gem of an island.
There’s a bit of confusion for me though on where Mausonoan Island belongs to as the Tourism of El Nido claims the island is still under their sovereignty. Our boatman however told me it’s already Linapacan and Google Maps agrees to as well.
Great Snorkelling off Binulbulan Island
The island name may not sound so nice in Tagalog but this last stop has the best snorkelling I had in this region. The east side of El Nido may not have the towering limestones of the west but the marine life here are miles better. It’s one of those times I wish I still had my underwater camera or casing because this is one of the best places where water visibility was excellent for underwater shooting. We stopped by a coral reef area off Binulbulan Island and despite the strong sea currents I could stay there for more than an hour exploring the coral reef. Nice variety from huge table corals, large concentration of giant clams and plenty of tropical fishes. I’m also amazed there were no jellyfish in this area since El Nido west would be teeming with jellyfish at this time. I was told because of the movement of water.
South Linapacan Island Hopping
Island hopping here in the east coast of El Nido is something different. It’s much more relaxing since we don’t have to compete with the crowds coming in and we felt like castaways having the islands to our own. There were no stunning limestones but the excellent marine life, beautiful beaches more than makes up for it. This is just the tip of the iceberg I may say. Magransing, Mausonoan and Binulbulan Islands are just part of the larger Linapacan municipality. Now I wonder what the main Linapacan Island has to offer. We’ll see soon…
This El Nido east coast Linapacan Island Hopping was arranged exclusively for the guest of Qi Palawan Resort in San Fernando, El Nido. Fee is Php 1,500 per person with a minimum of 4 persons (Php 3,000 per person if only 2 people). This is also exclusive Php 3000 fuel charge per boat for a group.
Ferdz Decena is an award-winning travel photographer, writer and blogger. His works has found print in publications such as Singapore Airlines’s Silver Kris, Philippine Airlines’ Mabuhay, Cebu Pacific’s Smile and Seair InFlight. He has also lent his expertise to various organizations like the Oceana Philippines, Lopez Group Foundation, Save the Children and World Vision, contributing quality images for their marketing materials.
