May 10 2008
Donsol whale shark update
We took a trip to Donsol to see if there were any late season whale sharks still in the bay.
My friends and I spent 8 days there and had some great sightings even though the weather was not cooperating because it is the beginning of the typhoon season.
Whalesharks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGaDv2NFRIo
We shared the boat with other enthusiasts - Andy, Holly. Siobahn (above), Andy2, Andrew, Peter, Brian, Arleene, and others to make for a full boat of seven every day that we went out.
From Cebu the easiest way to get there is to take a Trans Asia overnight ferry to Masbate (economy 480 pesos)
Trans Asia ticket booths are located on the sidewalk outside the shops on Colon Street.
The boat leaves at 6pm on Mon, Wed, and Fridays.
Take a cab to pier 4 about an hour before departure time.
You can get a good night’s sleep on the overnight ferry and save a on a night’s lodging in the process.
Some people bring along water and snacks but there is a shop on the boat where you can by coffee and instant noodles. The selection is limited and the prices are inflated.
The ferry arrives in Masbate around 8am. There is a row of Filipino restaurants where you can get a good breakfast cheap and still have plenty of time to catch the 10:30 pumpboat to Pilar in Bicol.
It’s a great trip around the northern tip of Ticao Island and Bagababoy and San Miguel Islands.
Heavy rains had flooded the port of Pilar and the pier was no longer there. It had either been destroyed or was being rebuilt for some other reason. We tied to the stern of another pump boat and everyone clamored over it to what was left of the dock.
We then waded to high ground to a dry place where we could wait for a jeepney to Donsol for 15 pesos.
Tricycle drivers want 150 pesos for the same trip but there is no need to rush because a jeepney will arrive shortly.
Be sure to get one to Donsol rather than Putiao, which is a small town on the highway on the way to Legazpi.
The jeepney will stop across the street from the “Santiago” lodging house, the best place to stay in Donsol that I know of.
Rooms are 300 - 400 pesos, the staff is friendly, and you can cook in the kitchen.
Another good choice in the budget range is the “Hernandez” guest house just across the street.
The location is convenient to the public market and it is just a 15 peso ride to the tourist center located on the beach a few kilometers past the bridge.
Many of the resorts start at 1500 to 1700 pesos for a room.
The whale shark spotting boats cost 3,500 pesos for the day but the expense can be shared by 7 people. It makes for an incredibly cheap day costing only 500 pesos to see a most amazing animal.
The 300 peso park fee good for one week.
If you don’t have your own snorkel gear it will set you back another 300 pesos to rent gear.
We went with some Filipinas that don’t like to use fins so they only had to pay 150 for the mask and snorkel.
It is a little high for what you get but it is too much of a nuisance for most people to pack fins in with their gear.
The tourist center is a bit unorganized in the morning but just set back and don’t get into too big a hurry while they match up groups to the different boats.
If you are a smaller group and want to swim with less people there is no problem. Just divide the 3,500 pesos by the amount of swimmers and you will have the whole boat to yourself.
On Sundays in particular, there is a lot of competition out there between the crowds of swimmers all trying to keep up with the whale sharks.
It can be a bit much if you’re not at the head of the pack.
In theory there is only supposed to be one tourist barge per shark but the spotters are under a lot of pressure to perform for the visitors. When the fish are scarce they will converge on the ones that are available.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
It was flat calm but there had been heavy rains lately so the visibility was not good.
The BIO (Butanding Interaction Officer) mentioned that with good conditions, the guidelines request the swimmers stay 3 to 4 meters away from the fish. Today, because of the low visibility, it was ok to approach within a meter but not to touch the sharks because that causes them to descend.
From 4 meters distant, it might not be possible to see the fish at all.
Our guide was a powerful swimmer and took the weaker swimmers one at a time with him. This guy could really move and flew to the lead dragging along all that dead weight.
It was great that everyone got a chance to see at least two whale sharks.
It takes a while to get the hang of swimming ahead of these fish. My girl, Beth, loved the encounter but came back saying “I drink many water!”
I was very happy that she saw one with the help of the guide, who had positioned her right in the path of its massive feeding mouth.
She didn’t wear fins but was able, with the guides strong swimming, to get way ahead of the pack and she didn’t do half bad with her bare feet.
She also wouldn’t use a snorkel but was able to have 2 great encounters and then decided to spend the rest of the day on deck listening to her ipod.
She almost got slapped in the face by the tail and had enough. She claims the whale sharks stink.
We landed up swimming with 8 whale sharks that day and saw the shadows of several others but didn’t get close to them.
The key to seeing as many as possible is to watch the direction the fish is heading and don’t stop swimming because it’s hard to catch up once you start falling behind.
It can be a bit much if you get behind the pack but sometimes the whale shark will shift directions and you might be at the head of the crowd if the fish turns.
It is an unforgettable experience!
dp
Monday May 12 2008
We decided to give the whale sharks another look but the conditions were poor because we had a lot of rain last night.
There was one time when we all jumped in but there was only a vague shadow passing by underneath because they were running deep. (These pictures are from yesterday)
It was a disappointment to all of us on the boat but that’s the breaks sometimes.
One new development is that the burger shop next door to the Santiago Lodging House in Donsol, has turned into an internet cafe with very good speed and 3 new terminals - 35 pesos an hour.
(Pardon my sloppy first draft, I will tidy this page up a bit later.)
Another discovery to me was that the Hernandez Lodging House has good food.
There are a few bbq places in the market that stay open till 7 or 8 pm too. You can cook in the common kitchen if staying at the Santiago.
We plan to give it another shot tomorrow just to see if it’s a fluke that there were no sharks today or it they all started their migration. May is considered to be the tail end of the season.
The park fee of 300 pesos is good for a week.
I have my mask and fins so there is only a 500 peso boat charge which makes an inexpensive chance to see more whale sharks.
Some of my best times in the Philippines have been in Donsol because you meet so many interesting people in addition to seeing the sharks.
Tuesday May 13 2008
My companions decided to give the whale shark watching a pass today because it rained for a good part of the night.
That decreases visibility and the rivers pour a lot of debris into the bay. It seems that the sharks stay deeper with these conditions so they decided to give it a go tomorrow instead.
I went down to see if there was an empty spot on one of the boats but there were only small groups so the cost would be quite high.The 3,500 peso boat fee is split by the number of passengers.
A German guy and his girl offered to lat me share their boat which was gracious but I didn’t want to spring for the 1,200 pesos considering the weather conditions.
I also only brought 1,100 pesos along to the tourist center so I took it as a sign to take the day off.
We had a pub crawl last night so it might not be a bad idea to get a little sleep today.
Wed May 14 2008
Wind and rain make poor whale shark watching conditions.
We got plenty of both today. It rained most of the night and the wind started up this morning as well but we decided to take the 15 peso tricycle ride down to the tourist center and have a look anyway.
There were a few tourists down there but it was obviously not a day for shark watching.
We went down the beach to help some guys slide their boats to high ground because they were taking a good pounding from the surf.
All the other boat men had already taken their boats home yesterday.
It was a bit of a job sliding the boats up the beach but there were long slabs of driftwood that were set under the keel that acted like a big ramp.
Filipino people seem to have a good time no matter what they are doing.
After that some of us tourists decided to have a swim in the surf. Fun loving Siobahn dancing in the waves.
We picked up Peter, a Kiwi that came up the trail and had him join us on the trip back to the Santiago Lodging House back in town.
I had bought some gigantic shrimp from a fisherman that was walking along. It’s turning out to be a great day!
It does appear that the prime season for whale shark watching is winding down. The weather patterns seem to be changing and the sharks might be spending their holidays elsewhere.
There have been very few sightings in the past few days.
Feb, Mar, and April are probably the best 3 months for regular sightings but I’ve seen a few in November as well.
Tuesday May 15 2008
The tour center made the decision not to send out any boats today because there were heavy rains all night so a lot more debris was washed into the bay. There was no chance that the whale sharks would be feeding in the bay today.
5 of us staying at the Santiago Lodging house decided to not waste the day just sitting around and headed to Mount Mayon, the volcano near Legazpi.
A shuttle bus makes the trip to Legazpi from Donsol for 60 pesos and we organized a private van to the lookout for 2000 pesos. 2 others had joined up with us so the cost was to be split 7 ways.
The visibility on the mountain was poor but we had a good time.
Cagsawa ruins near Mt Mayon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9tX8K2wFJQ&feature=channel
The weather was cool and windy on the volcano and we stopped at the Cagsawa ruins on the way back to Legazpi.
We are hoping that the weather clears up a bit and we have another chance at the whale sharks tomorrow.
update - I snapped this picture on my way up to Manila from Samar last week.
Friday May 16 2008
Today was windy and cloudy but there was a group of tourists at the center that wanted to get out on the water and look for the whale sharks.
Andy Siobahn
No boats were on the beach but tied up in the river where thy would be protected from the weather. After much jockeying around at the tourist office we finally got out 7 tourists organized and took a 2 tricycles to the bridge on the river.
All the BIO’s ( Butanding Interaction Officers) had already gone home because they figured that it would be a bust as far as whale shark watching went today. Some of the waves were over a meter and it was very cloudy. We waited around on the boat untill they rounded up a guide and some life jackets.
We spent all morning zig zagging quite some distance from shore and happened across a beauty skimming the surface! We really lucked out. Even the guide was surprised!
This was a beautiful dark colored fish in perfect condition. Most of us were able to stay with it for a long time. We only saw one fish that day but it was a very nice encounter.
Your 300 peso park entrance fee is good for a week so it only costs 500 pesos to go if you have a boat full of 7 swimmers. Try to bring your own snorkel and fins because you will have a better fit on the mask and the fins will be your size.
The rental kiosks seem to have a very small size flipper that doesn’t give you enough get up and go.
The season kind of winds down in May. Today 3 boats went out and only two saw whale shark. The other one was skunked.
Donsol itself is growing rapidly so try not to wait too many seasons before you get down there for a look!
Peter and Siobahn
Saturday May 17 whale shark update
The weather has let up a bit but there is still a good wind, however the rain stopped after pouring down most of the night. There is a typhoon passing through northern Luzon and we are on the southern edge of the low pressure system.
We teamed up with 4 others but got a very late start. It is best to have things organized the day before at the tourist center if you can but we were undecided because of the unpredictable weather.
There were 12 boats out in the bay and we got word that 2 sharks had already been sighted before we got out there.
There was another sighting and all 12 boats converged into one big traffic jam. It was nuts with swimmers pulling, pushing and dunking each other but the whale shark didn’t seem to notice and hung around for 5 to 7 minutes.
It is getting late in the season and the whale sharks will start getting scarce as many migrate to areas with better weather. It is also a bit more difficult to swim in choppy waters.
If you are not comfortable in the water just wear one of the life jackets that are available on all the boats. You will not be able to dive down but you can still get a good view of the ones skimming the surface.
The pump boat takes a long time to turn around if someone runs into trouble. One of the guys on our boat didn’t quite have have a handle on it and the boat men jumped in to rescue him.
Donsol is a great place to spend a week on a budget and have a lot of fun at the same time.
Hi Arleene, easy on the Red Horse! The boys are still talking about how you drank them under the table. They are such amatures!
dp
Hi there! i want to know when is the celebration of whale shark Festival in Donsol Sorsogon.
Thank you look forward for ur kind reply
Hi Dutchpickle,
After reading your article on May whale shark update, I wonder if I go to Donsol by end of May, how would be the weather? Will it be very rainy and stormy?
I am supposed to leave for Donsol next Thursday; however, as I am planning my research there and it seems a bit rush. So, I am having a dilemma to go there next week or delay til end of May when I will have more time to prepare and could stay longer as well.
Any ideas to share with me? By the way, how was your visit to Donsol recently?
Best wishes,
clara
Hello Chie,
I believe that the whale shark festival is held in April but I have not yet attended it.
Take care,
dp
Hi Clara,
The later it gets in May, the worse the weather will be, so it’s your call.
I got sidetracked with a run down to Sogod Bay in Leyte, to look for whalesharks there. They are less concentrated there so sightings are more unusual, but the water is so clear that should you see them you will be in for a big treat. In Donsol the water is often, but not always, somewhat murkey.
I did spend a week in Donsol in May last year and had some great sightings but we also ran into some very rough weather. I was in Donsol a few months ago and we swam with 23 whalesharks in two days. It really was great!
Good luck!
dp
Hi can you tell me do they take pictures of you swiming with the whale sharks to take home?.
Hi Nathan,
The best bet would be to find out if one of the other snorkelers could click off a few shots for you - assuming you have a camera that can go underwater.
Sometimes you have to be alert when swimming, to keep in view of the sharks, so make sure that the one taking the picture is a good swimmer.
The water is often cloudy, so getting good pictures is fairly difficult.
dp
hi
im not suppose to dive onder the zee but is that possible to see the shark when im on the boat were going on december some tips please
thank you
Hi Jay,
Sometimes you can see the fins of the whale sharks if they are skimming the surface, but usually they are just a shadow as they pass by in the murky water.
Maybe it would be a good idea to use some polarizing sunglasses :)
dp