burial caves

Well, my review will include a bit more about Itbayat in general, since it's all interconnected.You can see 7 burial markers there, all boat-shaped facing the sea, which ancients believe will take them to the afterlife. Although most of them have been damaged, although you see the stone markers, you can't make out the shape for most. Torongan hills where the burial caves is a great place for sceneries. You can see the hills, the Eastern coast of Itbayat and the island of Dinem from afar. It is just simply breathtaking! No words can describe it. I went there on a photo tour, so you can imagine our excitement with the photo opportunities.Nearby is Torongan Cave, one of the bigger caves I've visited, just below the Burial Grounds. In Torongan Cave, there is a big hole that looks out to the sea. Evidences of ancient settlement is seen here.To get to Torongan Cave from the jump off point where our truck drops us off, it is about 1.5Km hike. The trail we took which is a short cut according to our guide is not paved, but it is an easy hike. There were several wooden gates, which made us think we were somehow trespassing, haha. But we were with our local guide. From the trail to the entrance of the cave, you will have to hike down large boulders, but again, not too difficult. On our way back, we passed by the Burial Caves instead so we were afforded another view. The hike to the Torongan Hills and Burial Caves was easy as it was just plains of green land, a little steep but gradual. We then cut through back to the original trail which was a single vehicle lane wide. We stopped to have fresh buco juice which our guide got from us from one of the coconut trees along the way. Overall, I think we took about 3 hours here.If you prefer to go off the beaten track, then this is the place to go. Itbayat is a 3-4 hour boat ride away, and the waves could be treacherous so be ready with barf bags and a brave heart :-) Our journey coming to Itbayat was just that, but we were rerouted to the southmost tip of the island which is called Mauyen Port where the waters were calmer and the ride took us only a little more than 2 hours. But to get to the road from the port was a steep hike up the mountain, via 14 zigzag narrow trails. This was a challenge for me as I am not a hardcore backpacker but a city slicker haha. And aside from that, I had a heavier backpack than usual because we had to stay overnight, so it was harder to hike up since it was really steep. Nothing much to hold on on the sides. Luckily our facilitator had helped me with my bag, and the hike up was much easier as I focused on getting myself up the trail. Our transport was a open truck where we rode at the back, so be ready for another roller coaster ride across the bumpy roads, which was mostly what it had in Itbayat. We stayed overnight was well, since the boats only run once a day, and sometimes, not even. Accommodations in Itbayat are homestays, but the people are friendly and the places are quite clean. Electricity runs from 6am to 12 midnight every day in the island.Overall, it's worth it, as aside from Torongan Cave, the Hills and Burial Caves, there's a lot more to explore in the island, plus of course the overall experience is unmeasurable :-)