EXTREME ADVENTURES IN THE SAMAR ISLAND PHILIPPINES

Going on a Trexplore adventure is like falling down a rabbit hole. A rush of adrenaline and sensation takes you to worlds you could not have even imagined - Tree-surfing in the clouds on an island’s summit, standing in a perfect black void surrounded by an orchestra of drips. Confusing bumbling fireflies with shooting stars, crouching in a rocky enclave behind a veil of tumbling water, seeing a spider’s eyes flash like jewels, bathing in mounds of bubbles in an underground river, relishing the squelch of knee-deep mud, assuming your royal chamber that glitters like gold. And even the characters you can meet along the way are equally wonderful.

A fearless explorer understands the cavernous depths of the earth so well that he has almost become a cave creature himself—a playful apprentice who sings love songs and laughs quickly and loudly. A ponytailed man with a beautiful round belly can tell an epic tale with his body but no words. But this isn’t a world of Alice’s imagination, this wonderland is a real place, and the characters are real people. Trexplore, a small company on Samar Island in the Philippines, takes ordinary people on extraordinary ad ventures. In 2000, cave master Joni Bonifacio created it, a young family man with an unusual hobby. Although Trexplore offers all types of adventures, including trekking, canyoning, and mountain-biking, its primary focus and Joni’s real passion is caving.

As he fondly calls, Joni Bonifacio’s ‘romance with the rocks’ began as a teenager. Joni’s interest started with the discovery of Langun-Gobingob cave in Samar, the biggest cave in the Philippines and, at the time, the second-biggest known cave in South-East Asia. He wondered why international spelunkers were exploring Sa mar’s caves while Filipinos were afraid of the spirits and caves snakes are said to hold. His first caving expedition took place when he was only sixteen years old. He went with friends and a local guide into Langun-Gobingob for two nights and three days. From then on, he got hooked. Sometimes, he would memorize a cave map and explore it himself, remaining in the cave overnight. It takes a brave man to do what Joni has done. When entering a deep cave, the complete darkness and the maze of tunnels and chambers going in all directions instills the sense that caving is serious business. The average person experiences apprehension even when accompanied by an expert with equipment, as for most, the chance of being lost in the dark underground is terrifying. To enter a cave alone, especially one with the magnitude of Langun-Gobingob certainly takes a resilient and curious mind. Joni’s caving skills were entirely self-taught in the early days, but he learned advanced caving techniques after joining international expeditions. Today with twenty years of caving experience, he annually joins international speleologists to undertake tours to discover and map new caves in Samar.

To an adventure lover, Samar Island is a bountiful playground. The rugged landscape dares mountain bikers to accept its challenge. Waterfalls and rivers spill down mountains, tempting thrill-seekers with the more dangerous sport of canyoning. The topography is also ideal for the formation of caves. Fewer than 10% of the thousand or so caves that populate Samar’s terrain have been explored. Aside from being home to the biggest cave in the Philippines, Samar delivers an exquisite variety of underground environments. Subterranean rivers, lakes, waterfalls, earthen chandeliers, and twinkling candlesticks, craggy stalactites and mammoth stalagmites, giant gill-shaped sparkling crystals, gardens of coral-shaped calcite, fields of mud, massive spaces and tiny tunnels, natural bath-tubs, and bubbling flowstones. You probably won’t come across any talking rabbits or pipe-toting caterpillars, but these environments are still inhabited ed by some bizarre creatures, including the blind fish, crabs, bats, birds, eels, snakes, and spiders. Some are harmless, some will kill you, and some are yet to be identified.

Trexplore is the only company suitably qualified to take tourists caving in Samar. It is popular with Filipino and international travellers looking for an adventure holiday or just passing through. It caters to beginners who may need someone to hold their hand as they face their fears and can equally impress seasoned explorers with authentic expeditions. Every tour is different. No robotic tour guides are repeating the same tired lines. These adventures are unpredictable, which is part of what Joni loves about his job. His new sense of humour keeps the mood light and his clients’ nerves calm, ensuring an enjoyable experience. And if you want to follow in the footsteps of the great explorers and spelunkers, he may even take you on your expedition into the wilderness. Who knows, you could discover the next Langun-Gobingob.

These trips are not for the faint-hearted, and like all adventure sports, they carry with them certain risks. Joni knows the terrain, how to use his equipment, how cave fauna behaves, and how to look after his clients. But there are unavoidable dangers, and help is usually a long way off. You rely on each other, potentially for survival. Being underground is an entirely different experience from any other. It’s a real-life fairy tale!