After we got stuck in tropical storm Basyang for 3 days, we only had ONE day left on Siargao, and we were praying the sun would come out. As I mentioned in my previous post, Siargao's famous Sugba Lagoon was closed for maintenance, however there is another lagoon on the island of Bucas Grande, and I really really wanted to go visit it instead. It's called Sohoton Cove. In order for the excursion to happen, we needed good weather conditions because the place is a 1.25-hour speed boat ride from General Luna. This excursion is more expensive than the Island Hopping one, mostly because of the fuel needed to get to the island, but also because there is a national park entrance fee (approx. PHP1,500 for 2 people) when you get there.

We woke up early on our last day, and the weather wasn't great. It was still pretty cloudy, but it was supposed to clear out around 10AM. Our fisherman said we were good to go!!! Yay! Honestly, if you have the budget, I really think it is worth going there. And if you have a drone, and would like some amazing shots... then you should really go.

When we got to Sohoton Cove, our guides dropped us on some kind of floating complex with two wooden cabanas on the water. That's where the entrance to the park is. First you need to pay for everything you want to visit, and then you wait to start the tour.

Here's what's included:

Tiktikan Lagoon

A local guide will come pick you up at the entrance of Sohoton Cove, and you will then embark on a small traditional boat. You will navigate on Tiktikan Lagoon, and will admire the different shades of blue: gorgeous!

Horseshoe Rock

Sohoton Cove is a mix of different lagoons and lakes, grottos and little islands. At some point during the ride, your guides will tell you to be careful with your head as you navigate underneath a rock formation. Right after, you'll the famous horseshoe rock.

Hagukan Cave

The first cave you will stop at actually doesn't look like a cave from the outside. The entrance is super tiny (approx. 30cm), and you almost have to dive to get in the cave. This might not be a good idea if you are claustrophobic, but I thought it wasn't that bad. Also you can definitely ask for a life jacket.

Magkukuob Cave

*Warning: Do not go there if you are claustrophobic, if you're scared in the dark, if you don't like hiking, and if you do not want to jump off a 5-meter high cliff.*

The entrance of this cave is a bit more apparent than Hagukan Cave. You first need to get deep into the cave, and then you'll eventually get to some sort of "stairway". You'll have to climb on top of the cliff which can take up to 10-15 minutes as you need to be very careful. It's very slippery since the rocks are completely wet. This adventure ends with you jumping off a cliff ;)

Jellyfish Sanctuary

Our guides brought us back to the main entrance of the park, and we patiently waited for another boat to pick us up. The reason why we needed to change boat is because the sanctuary is accessible via very shallow waters. You should have seen my face when I saw the boat haha it was SO small! I think I was actually wider than the boat lol. The boat is so small that it can only accommodate two people: you + the guide.

What an experience!! This boat has no engine, you need to paddle to get to the sanctuary. This was by far the best experience that day. There was absolutely no noise, it was very peaceful and soothing. Once we got to the jellyfish sanctuary, we had to get off the boats, and our guides carried them out of the water to cross to the sanctuary. We spent about 10-15 minutes all alone with these cuties. We touched them as they are non-stinging jellyfish. We saw hundreds of babies than were fully transparent, and the size of a coin.

Lunch

We paddled back to the main entrance and had lunch there. They serve fresh fish, and veggies :)

sohoton bay

Our two initial guides (the ones from our hotel) picked us up with the speed boat after lunch and we cruised on Tiktikan Lagoon and Sohoton Bay looking for spots to fly the drone. We were able to capture some great shots even though we had quite a moment when we thought we were going to crash the drone directly into the water!

gilligan island

The name of this island isn't Gilligan, however I forgot to take a picture of the sign, and I cannot find it anywhere online. It was super small, and we came across the island spontaneously when we were looking for some sort of beach to swim at. We kindly asked our guides if we could stop, which we did. We swam, tanned, took photos, and just relaxed by the beach for a while.

Back to general luna

We then left Bucas Grande to go back to Siargao. We arrived when the sun had just started going down, preparing for sunset. We stopped along Siargao's coast to watch surfers in action. We also ran out of gas haha! Another local boat came to our rescue, and took us to our resort.

This day-trip was truly the perfect way to end our time on Siargao, see for yourself!