OU T BACK
TR AVEL & DESTINATIONS, YOUR SOCIETY, YOUR AG
KAYANGAN LAKE: ELSP ETH CALLENDER; OTHERS: GETTY IMAGES
130
REWIND
In 2002 Eric Philips and Jon Muir
skied their way to the North Pole.129
FROM THE FIELD
Go behind the scenes on assignment
with our photographers and writers.110
LAT/LONG
We head to Coolatai in northern NSW
for an unusual vintage tractor pull event.A world of islands
A dramatic volcanic landscape of bountiful biodiversity
makes for an island hop experience like no other.DESTINATION HIGHLIGHT: PHILIPPINE ISLANDSVolcanic crater lake.
Mt Pinatubo on Luzon,
the largest island of
the Philippines.5 OF THE BEST
PHILIPPINE
ISLAND
WONDERS
1 KAYANGAN LAKE
Coron Island lies 310km
south-west of Manila. The
dramatic vertical crags of its
limestone karst are visible below
the surface of this crystal clear
freshwater swimming lake.(^2) MAQUINIT HOT SPRINGS
Soaking is encouraged in the 41°C
mineral-rich waters of the nation’s
only known saltwater hot springs.
Also on Coron, the springs flow into
seaside pools bounded by mangroves.
3 PUERTO PRINCESA RIVER
Palawan has one of the world’s
longest underground rivers. A
section of the Cabayugan River
stretches for 8.2km in the St Pauls
Underground River Cave. From the
cavern’s mouth, visitors are paddled
upstream in canoes.
4 CHOCOLATE HILLS
Spread mainly over 5000ha of Bohol
Island are 30–120m tall mounds,
the result of eroded coral
deposits. The vegetation
browns in the dry
season, hence the name.
5 MOUNT APO
The country’s tallest
peak is a 2954m-high
volcano on Mindanao
Island. A summit hike exposes
walkers to a diversity of forest types
and a chance of sighting the endan-
gered Philippine eagle.
November–December 2015 101
M
ORE THAN 7000 islands,
making up the Republic of the
Philippines lie between the
South China Sea and Philippine Sea,
arranged in a shape that resembles a baby
sun bear with its head thrown back,
sneezing at Taiwan, its outstretched
claws nearly touching Borneo.
This archipelago is a series of island
arcs formed by various incidents of
subduction, when the Earth’s tectonic
plates collide and one slides under
another into the mantle. The mythical
explanation is a foot-stomping fight
over pearls between a couple of
ancient giants, Angalo and Angarab.
The Philippine Islands’ collective
coastline of 36,289km is virtually the
same as that of mainland Australia and
Tasmania, with the exception of a
few hundred kilometres, yet their
total land area is just 3.9 per cent
of Australia’s.
Due to the extent of its tropical
rainforests, rich volcanic soil,
physically isolated ecosystems, and
the fact that only about 2000 islands
are inhabited, the Philippines is one
of the world’s top 10 most biologi-
cally megadiverse countries, with
more than 270 endemic species of
birds and mammals.
Its 2.2 million square kilometres
of maritime waters are part of the
Coral Triangle, and in 1993 marine
and bird sanctuary Tubbataha Reefs
Natural Park was declared a World
Heritage Site.