One of the most memorable places I went to during my backpacking trip to West Visayas is Yato Island off the coast of Guimaras Province.
 |
| An edible seashell |
Three words to describe this Island:
Captivating. Simple. Unexplored.
 |
| Yato Island (an island off the coast south of Guimaras mainland). Original picture from designofmine |
Sadly, this island is just recovering from a major Oil Spill that happened last August 11, 2006. When I roamed around the island, the oil sludge are still preventing the mangroves to grow and thrive in their natural habitat. It was a big loss to the locals and the nearby towns.
This small island can be roamed around for 2 hours. Only 11 families inhabit this place, the men are fisher folks and the younger ones are taught of their trade. The kids go to Cabalagnan for education (elementary).
I’m just captivated by the simple beauty of this island- virgin white beach, mangroves, stunning rock formations, beautiful sunrise and sunset, marine life, the locals are accommodating and friendly.
I will just let the pictures tell my story:
 |
| Entrance to a foreigner’s private resort |
 |
| Cabalagnan port, with the view of Yato island |
 |
| Yellow Rocks |
 |
| John Robert (10yrs.old) shows a shell |
 |
| Sigay shells used for sungka |
 |
| Virgin island, unexplored, captivating |
 |
| Cicada |
 |
| Joven (15yrs.old), my guide |
 |
| The dead mangroves bec of the oil spill |
 |
| Starfishes are replete in the island |
 |
| Back portion of the island, among the mangroves |
 |
| Yato Island during low tide |
 |
| Its a regular thing for them to find shells |
 |
| Kids get seashells for food |
 |
| Hunting for dinner |
 |
| Long stretch of unspoiled white sand |
 |
| What is this? some sea creature? soft corals? |
 |
| Another soft corals |
 |
| Sunset view |
 |
| Yato Island in the morning |
 |
| Kids playing |
 |
| Copras (coconut meat to be made oil) |
 |
| this is the island life: chill and relax after the evening’s successful catch |
Important Infos:
Accommodation: None. You have ask the locals if you can stay in there kubo. Or you can set up a tent, just ask permission
Cellphone signal strength:Globe: None; Smart: Low; Sun: None
Food Supply: No available food in the island, bring something from Cabalagnan.
Electricity: None which makes it more exciting.
Water Supply: Water Pump
How to get there:
From Jordan, you ride the jeepney to Cabalagnan, Nueva Valencia. From Cabalagnan, ask the locals of how to get there (pray that they would bring you to Yato Island). Tell them, you just want to spend a night or two. Befriend them first. I was able to go there because I befriended the boatman from Cabalagnan.
Or you can rent the boat, you can bargain, maybe P200-300 is acceptable as its is very near the coast of Cabalagnan.
Look for Joven and tell him, I told you about it. Use your charisma. So, this is not for the faint-hearted or the tourist but for adventure-seekers and backpackers- those who want to try the off-the beaten path.
Travel Time: From Jordan to Cabalagnan (about 2 hours); Cabalagnan to Yato Island (about 15 mins). Patience is a virtue, it would also take you to places you never dreamed of.
——————————————————————————
Ending this with a fitting verse from the Bible:
“Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who live in them… Let them give glory to the LORD and proclaim his praise in the islands.”
(Isaiah 42:10,12 NIV)
I think I want to do this more! Going to places that you can’t find in the internet and telling something about it. Exciting and cool! What’s next
thanks for reading journeyingjames- my running stories and travel discoveries–
let’s walk, run, climb, ride, swim and fly.
great feature. i believe you're one of the first to post about this island. i like the yellow rocks area and the beautiful corals that you took over some stones. at least what's good is the place is already recovering from the oil spill.
thanks dong! yes, the island is recovering already. but there's a lot to be done on the bcak side of the island. there is nothing about this island yet. more unexplored islands!
whoa, kakaibang creatures in a virgin island. good find!in the future, parang masarap jan magretire no? Ü
masarap nga tumira dito sa isla na ito. but i think i will retire in palawan parin..haha
nice one james! never heard of this island before! thxn for sharing! congrats on ur new domain, i like the lay out too, minimalist. and thnx for the link! i hve yet to finish my blogroll, will link back.
thanks thanks! i want to go back there mas matagal and explore the nearby islands. di ko pa masyado alam, nasanay na ako sa blogspot.
Wow, I didn't even know this place. Guimaras really holds a lot of natural treasures. Thanks for this post. I'll try to visit this Island one of these days. Abalone is a very expensive shellfish but I guess you can have it for free if you befriend the locals. Guimarasnons are very nice people.
really? i think there are more islands to be discovered and explored in the PH (people are stuck on Boracay). nice blog btw way!
super nice!..i love the yellow rocks..hmmm,how about organizing an outreach that will teach the locals,maximizing their natural resources and give additional knowledge to the children,lahat basta its for their advantage, im sure they will be grateful.
and i will support you and sana sama mo rin ako, hehe :).
tara jhuvy! go go go.
You should take part in a contest for one of the best blogs on the web. I will recommend this site!
thanks!
Congrats james for conquering this unexplored island. Another off-the-beaten path adventure.:-).
salamat bosing bon! marami pang unexplored sa guimaras. gusto ko nga bumalik to see more of the islands.
tama ka james..maraming isla na magaganda dito sa guimaras..like our own islet in nueva valencia. just add me sa facebookmakikita mo ung mga pics sa isla..vincent legayada.
i wish i can go back to guimaras and nueva valencia to explore more of the islands. thanks vincent!
very inspiring! Thanking the Lord for the natural wonders around us: the people, the seas, the simplicity of life.. everything. thanks for having the heart to share all these things.. we hope to travel the same path some time in the future…
reflections during travels are a must if you want your journeys memorable. yes of course, hope to travel with you too sometime! keep you posted
earlier i was surfing through your site kung paano makakasulit sa puerto princesa at el nido kasi pupunta ako dun sa february and then i suddenly remembered may pinapagawa sakin feasibility study ng yato island so i turned to google and who would have guessed ibabalik ako sa blog mo. ikaw na ang bagong google earth james. 😀 im sure going to look for joven when i get there.
ahahaha! kahit i-nexit mo na yung journeyingjames.com, dun karin pala dadalhin. ayos!
im quite surprised too that i still get the top 3 posts when googled. haha
please say my regards to his family. i hope to visit them come last week of april. please update me about their situation, okay carm? thanks!
yeah sure. i was supposed to go yesterday but my trip was cancelled. darn. sobrang excited pa naman ako. hahaha. i wanna write about yato. people should write more about these kind of places.
sayang! anyway, i know you will finally visit that beautiful island.
we were in Guimaras last June 11, 2012. and we really intended to go to Yato island, to see for ourselves the yellow rocks that you featured here. yellow rocks, it rocks!!! thanks for blogging places like this …
thank you james for opening yato to the world…
boss james, this will be my next 🙂
hi james i’ve been to this island before during my university year we went there for educational trip as part of our Anatomy subject, looking and studying sea creatures like starfish , sea snakes, etc, we stayed for like 2 nights (year 1985 and after that i was so in love with the place, its tranquility and simplicity! And i’ve been longing to come back to yato island since then, but wasnt able to, then i came to UK year 2000. And everytime i go home for holiday in iloilo i keep on planning yet time is so hectic for me and my family. im hopeful that i will be able to do it next time we go home and use your route because my sister lives in Sagay which im going to visit this december! Thanks for all the infos you have posted, its brilliant!!!
Cool! I admire your journey James! giving us glimpse of nature and its exotic beauty . Not kind of classy and fancy but to its purest form. Keep it up! thumbs up! 🙂
AMAZING, im planning to revisit YATO and i came across this site… actually its not that im amazed because its going to be my 1st time but I came to YATO island last APRIL 2007 with a close buddy of mine, actually he’s the one who endorsed this island to me, also the island YATO’s common family are the Suelos’s i think, and this friend of mine is one of them, so i think its his ancestral home… we came there to relax and may I say it was one of the best island ive been, will thats for me… BORACAY may have all the night life and party2x but YATO? this is totally a different story, everything ive experienced there are still here in my heart… and now the real reason i posted here because this coming APRIL or MAY 2016 I’m going back there, to relive my experience…
hi james! im really excited to go to this island and may be able to look and find a place for retirement.