Palawan: Puerto Princesa City - Spelunking & Ziplining at UgongRock rocks!

It was my first time hearing this SPELUNKING word, I thought it’s an exhausting and tough sports activity, from the sound of it.  Something similar to rock climbing, after all we’re in Ugong Rock.  Spelunking, however is the activity of exploring caves, not really exhausting though a bit demanding. 

Ugong Rock is a stop on the way to the UndergroundRiver.  Since there’s enough time to spare, the tour (shared van) stops at Ugong Rock for those who wanted to do spelunking - explore the caves – which is interesting.  The whole tour at the Rock starts with an english orientation about the place and safety measures before getting inside the dark cave along with the designated guide who gives stories and the different shapes of rocks and stalagmites.

There are small crevices between rocks that we have to squeeze ourselves to get pass onto  wooden stairs leading again to a dark cave where one by one, we have to climb up with a harness and through a rope, not really that high, some couple of meters up.  And when you get to the top, we have to navigate a the way up there on the top through wooden stairs and sharp edged rocks.

No worries though, as there are staff in every levels  to assist, it’s well organized, they ensure safety at every step of the way up.  Reaching the top, I was sweating, I lost those energies already, I used to do a lot of hiking and trekking during travels but I haven’t been into a real long hike since mid of this year.

The view on top of Ugong Rock is amazing, there’s a platform viewdeck with a view of the green plains below and mountains on the backdrop, beautiful indeed.  The worst part is – either you take the zipline going back, down to the ground level or taking the same route through the wooden stairs, the rope, hopping on sharp rocks and finally through the dark caves – with the assistance of those friendly and helpful staff of course.

 

Well, my group decided to take the zipline and so must I.  It’s their first time, excited, thrilled and terrified at the same time.  They put my harness and I stepped onto the platform ready to be pushed onto the rope, I looked down the ground below, it’s steep.

Suddenly then I stepped down, my stomach churned, my knees shaking, with all the busy and exciting activities, I forgot that I have an occasional vertigo attack, and it acted at this particular occasion.

So NO to zipline, and I immediately went down the same route that we took going up.  I never tried a zipline before and I don’t think I’ll be attempting any in the future.

So off we go to Sabang for PPUR.

Transports	Group van, PPUR tour package	P 1,500.00
Others	Spelunking Fee	P 200

How to get there:

Single traveler or groups can book with any tour operators in Puerto Princesa City or the hotel/accommodation where you’re staying at, they basically offer all Palawan tours and packages, almost all of them offers the same rate or may slightly vary.

Address: Ugong Rock, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, Philippines

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