Puerto Princesa Subterranean River

UNESCO World Heritage Site Inscribed 1999; A Navigable Underground River Running Some Eight Kilometres Through Limestone Directly Into The Sea · Sabang, Palawan

A RIVER RUNS UNDERGROUND FOR SOMETHING LIKE EIGHT KILOMETRES THROUGH A LIMESTONE MOUNTAIN AND COMES OUT DIRECTLY INTO THE SOUTH CHINA SEA, which makes it one of the longest navigable underground rivers in the world and is why UNESCO inscribed it in 1999. YOU GO IN BY PADDLED BOAT from a beach at Sabang, roughly a kilometre and a half into the dark, with a single lamp sweeping the walls. THE CHAMBERS ARE ENORMOUS - the cave holds domes that a boat feels absurd inside - AND THE ROOF IS FULL OF BATS AND SWIFTLETS, so the air is thick and the smell is considerable and nobody mentions that in the brochures. THE LOWER RIVER IS TIDAL AND BRACKISH FOR SOME DISTANCE IN. PERMITS ARE CAPPED DAILY AND MUST BE ARRANGED IN ADVANCE. The macaques at the landing beach are organised and will take anything you are holding. The standard trip covers a kilometre and a half of it; longer sections need special arrangement, and the coastal transfer from Sabang is cancelled whenever the sea gets up.

Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, Palawan, Sabang, Palawan, Philippines

THE PARK IS REACHED FROM SABANG, roughly TWO HOURS BY ROAD FROM PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, and then by a SHORT OUTRIGGER BOAT TRANSFER along the coast to the cave landing - there is also a jungle trail. A PERMIT IS REQUIRED, DAILY NUMBERS ARE CAPPED AND PERMITS MUST BE ARRANGED IN ADVANCE, either through the city office or as part of a tour; TURNING UP AT SABANG WITHOUT ONE USUALLY MEANS BEING TURNED AWAY. THE STANDARD TRIP IS A PADDLED BOAT ABOUT A KILOMETRE AND A HALF IN AND BACK, with helmets and an audio guide; longer sections need special arrangement. BOAT TRANSFERS ARE CANCELLED IN ROUGH SEAS, which happens. DO NOT LOOK UP WITH YOUR MOUTH OPEN. Macaques and monitor lizards work the landing beach; carry nothing loose.

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