"CAMIGUIN is very small, you can roam the whole island in a day," said my friend Mavic Hilario, when she learned that I was planning a trip to the island.Camiguin is second only to Batanes as the smallest province in the Philippines. "You'll enjoy the place, it's a little paradise," Mavic added. Other friends who've been to Camiguin have one common thing to say about my planned getaway: "Do it now before it's too late." However, my travel buddy Noel Miņoza and I still arrived late-at least for the ferry. We just assumed that the last trip for the Camiguin-bound ferry from Balingoan in Misamis Oriental would be at around 6 p.m. What a mistake! It turned out that the last trip leaves daily at 4 p.m. We were just leaving Cagayan De Oro around that time. (It takes two hours to go to the Balingoan Port from Cagayan De Oro City.) From the port in Guinsilaban, we took a habal-habal (9-seater tricyle) and spent 30 minutes on the road to Mambajao, the town capital of Camiguin, where we'd reserved a tree house at the Enigmata Ecolodge. Our driver said our trip would cover more than 30 kilometers, which is already nearly half of the entire Camiguin stretch. It was just getting close to 9 p.m. but the whole island seemed to have gone to slumber. At 6 the next morning, we met Kuya Jess, our motorcycle rider-slash-tourist guide who would bring us to different stopovers in Camiguin. The goal was just to look around and see as many tourist points, because Noel was going back to Cagayan De Oro in the afternoon, and I would have to leave at 5 a.m. the next day. We had only one day. I would later find out that such a short time was not enough to fully experience Camiguin's wonders. White Island The first stop was White Island. Breathtaking! I could see the entire island from the boat we boarded from Paras Beach. The sand was white, soft and really soothing to the skin. There were few people on the beach, plus some quaint lunch booths for quick seafood meals, so a huge part of the 2-km stretch of White Island was clear for my eyes to feast on. That was the sweetest space and freedom I've ever experienced. Mantigue Island There are two islands off Camiguin for tourists to enjoy. The first is White Island, for quiet nature trippers and conventional swimmers; the other is Mantigue Island, which is a bit longer by about 1 km. Unlike White Island, there are trees and shade in Mantigue, which has been declared a marine sanctuary. It's perfect for snorkeling and diving. For group tours, Roger Saturos, a teacher at Mantigue Island on weekdays and a tourist guide in Camiguin on weekends, can help make arrangements for lodging, boats, etc. You may text him at 0920-2306407. Churches and giant clams Our guide also brought me to the Sto. Niņo Cold Springs, Moro Watchtower, the ruins of the old Church and a convent in the old Catarman, which was buried by an earthquake followed by a deadly eruption of Mt. Vulcan in 1871; the very old Sto. Rosario Church (built in 1882), and the preservation site of giant clams at the Kebela White Beach in Barangay Cantaan. The live giant clams on display included species like the Tridacna crocea, T. maxima, T. squamosa, T. derasa, T. gigas, and Hippopus hippopus. Camiguin is still pretty much pristine and unspoiled by man. From its seven massive peaks (including Mt. Hibok-Hibok) to its waterfalls and cold and hot springs, plus its beautiful dive sites, Camiguin should be a prime destination for nature enthusiasts and passionate adventurers alike. E-mail the author at lhenparedes@gmail.com. | 
