Kalanggaman Island is one of the most precious treasure of Palompon, Leyte. By far it's my most favorite island in the Philippines. In this blog, hopefully you will all see what makes this island so special.
I've been there for a couple of times last 2015 and 2016. The first time I went with my friends was one of the craziest trip I ever had. Supposedly we should take a ferry from Polambato Port in Bogo, Cebu to the main land of Palompon Leyte for tourist registration then get on another boat going to the island but for some reason we agreed to just get on a regular boat to take us directly to Kalanggaman island and sailed on for almost 4 hours with all the rough waves along the way, though luckily the weather was fine that time. That was very exciting trip really ever! The boatman was also very kind to provide us life jackets before the departure. Of course I had to get mine first Lol!
Why it was named Kalanggaman?
Mainly because of it's bird-shaped aerial view with the most stunning sandbar stretching across the crystal blue waters of Leyte. There are also some birds that would drop by the island for some food before heading to their destination, leaving only footprints in the sand.
The island is not so big, you can even just walk around it for few minutes. One side of the island is the powdery white sand beach and on the other side is the rocky shoreline with coconuts and various plants.
This is the edge of the rocky side of the island, the sunset there is really amazing!
The sea surrounding it is also ideal for diving and snorkelling. You can also do kayaking and enjoy watching the coral reefs below since the water is so crystal clear.
In this picture I was in the shallow part of the beach, but you can already see school of small fishes and sea urchins.
My most favorite time there is the sunrise and sunset , it's really magical . Photos aren't enough really to describe the enchanting beauty of this paradise island.
The island was not yet very well known before, so only very few travelers go there. Most travelers stay there just for a day tour and leave before the night. But me and my friends did stayed on the island for 1 night. There are coastguards staying overnight for emergency, so it's safe there. There's no electricity on the island, no fresh water, there are a couple of decent toilets but you have to use sea water from the water containers for cleaning, there's a couple of little cottage you can rent, but you can't sleep there at all. So before going there, make sure to bring all that you need and also be responsible to take them back when you leave; waste management is strictly observed. There's bottled water for sale on the island by some locals during the day but it's very limited and just good for drinking. We had to use our power banks to get our phones and electronic gadgets charged. It's quite warm to sleep in the tent so what we did is sleep with our blankets in the sand with our frizzy salty hair. You hear nothing but the relaxing sound of the waves and the crickets while your eyes gazing on the starry night sky. In the morning before we left, we never missed out getting on the edge of the sand bar and meet the beautiful smile of sunrise. It's really soul uplifting view! Though this is the area of the island where swimming is not allowed due to strong dangerous current.
If you're passionate about back packing adventure and feel the castaway like experience in an isolated island, then this is really the best place. I hope the community of Leyte will continue to protect and preserve this wonderful island for the future generation to enjoy. I would like to go back there again oneday in the near future. My heart and soul is deeply connected with this enchanting island.
She remained beautiful even after the typhoon Haiyan or Yolanda hit Leyte last 2013.
I hope you enjoyed this post. Thank you all for reading, I really, really, really appreciate it. Until my next post! Warm greetings from Cebu Philippines! @island-girl
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