Many friends ask me, "Jenny, why caves?" and most times, I feel like I have to answer them the shortest possible way (so as not to bore them), but this time, I want to enumerate on why I have so much fascination with caves and spelunking and I hope that some will want to try this activity in a responsible way! Partly wishing though, that this don't become a trend like that of 'mountaineering' where some of the climbers are just apt to photo ops just to be 'in' leaving trash in the mountains, creating new trails that slices the mountains. NOT IN MY CAVES you people! No vandalism, no groupie spelunking that can result to ugly caverns!
Opps sorry, got carried away... Going back, below are the reasons why I love caves and spelunking:
1. It’s our first home!
Caves were our first home! Our ancestors found comfort and safety inside the caves and our civilizations first thrive inside these caverns. Our dwelling places right now, be it your apartment or condo unit are in fact modern caves!. Caves with cable TVs, microwave ovens, doors and windows and PCs. Maybe I’m just an old soul.
You get to be intimate with nature while trekking on your way to the cave, rock climb a little, trek long stretches of mountain side, dip in a sea, pass by the falls and just the simple joy of breathing fresh and highly oxygenated air. The scenery and the experience elevates your sense of well-being in general.
3. I love ST - “Space-Time”
Going inside a cave tells you lots of history. It literally acts a time machine taking you back in the past!. Suddenly your environment changes to prehistoric times when you’re inside these chambers. The sight of stalagmites and stalactites tells you that they were there as a result of hundreds of years of geological changes! Some caves are even older than some civilizations that we know and most of them are still on-going changes (solution caves) and is very much alive.
4. I love Geology
I love rocks and its formations, soils and terrains. Caves forms so slowly. Some caves resulted from the passing of lava from previous volcanic eruptions, creating an underground highway (primary cave or lava tubes), then there are caves 'created' by the sea (sea caves), caves from melting glacier (ice caves) but the most of the common caves are found in the terrestial/mountains that feature beautiful speleotherms that forms slowly. There are karsts cave that resulted from the the rain hitting and slightly melting the limestone rocks creating holes on and under it (karst caves). Caves are places of art for me and people should give respect by practicing LNT Leave No trace as they go!
Caves gives me a different kind of feeling and weird as they may say, comfort. Caves are dark;some are cramped and very quiet. Some people may not find comfort with this and may feel the other way around- claustrophobic! But being in a cave gives me serenity, maybe justifying the very introverted old self that I am.
6. Curiosity
No caves will ever be the same! I get pretty excited every time I’m arranging a trip to another cave.There are different interiors inside and I almost always cannot wait to discover what’s inside of them.
Check out the facebook group I had created – Pinoy Spelunker (https://www.facebook.com/groups/PinoySpelunker/) and see the caves I've been through, you can email me for guides, directions, what to expect, and rates- of the guides, transpo, environmental fees if there is any on the particular area.
I advocate responsible caving or spelunking as well as with proper conservation of caves ;-).
When caving, be sure to leave no trace on the site, don’t vandalize and destroy the cavern formations and most of all carry back your trash when you go, as much as possible, clean and pick up the trash left by others on the trail.
We have to love our nature and nature does not stop from the mountains and oceans alone, it should also include our home, our first homes).
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| sheer happiness, inside Paniki Cave Biak na Bato National Park, San Miguel, Bulacan |
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