The Philippines’ Chocolate Hills: Too Perfect To Be Real

[Medic Mike]

 

Looking out upon the Chocolate Hills of Bohol, I knew that I was seeing a true wonder. The enormousness of the dimensions, the extraordinary remoteness, the fantastical oddness – it all did not seem real.

Fresh off a trip to the Banaue Rice Terraces, I saw a photo of the hills in the window of a Manila tourism office.

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Making a spur of the moment decision, I booked a plane ticket to Tagbilaran, the capital of Bohol province, on an island about a little more than an hour flight away.

From there it was a matter of finding a bus to Carmen, a town of about 45,000 located almost exactly in the centre of the island.

As the road climbed upward, I found myself deep in the heart of a broad plateau, where rolling limestone hills competed with flat rice paddies for my attention.

Then, rather suddenly, there they were: huge conical hills rising up from the edge of a wet, green landscape.

I had first viewed the hills from the window of my airplane. From above, it appeared the Earth had broken out in tiny goosebumps. It was impressive, but nothing compared with seeing them up close.

My first thought was how unbelievably alien the hills looked. They were both massive and compact; towering, yet perfectly round. Their near-vertical sides rise up into the sky only to taper into perfect cones and domes.

Each was different, but they all seemed to share the same charming proportions and uncanny symmetry. They looked almost artificial, too perfect to be the product of erosion and time.

The bus let me off near the government-run Chocolate Hills Complex. Perched atop one of the larger hills, it housed a restaurant and a well-placed observation deck.

I spent the next few hours in silent awe, watching as the tropical sun and rolling white clouds conspired to bathe the gumdrop hills in waves of light and shadow. (The name Chocolate Hills comes from the brown colour the sun-burnt cogon grass takes in summer.) Below me, a village of thatched Nipa huts clustered by the feet of one colossal mound, the houses looking cheerful and oblivious in its massive shadow.

In my opinion, a wonder is a place so unique that a traveller can search for the rest of his life and never find another like it.

It is a place that makes you doubt that what you are seeing is real: Never in my wildest imaginations had I thought it geologically possible for a landscape to look so strange as this one. As I stood there, looking out upon that impossible panorama of stark and beautiful contrasts, I found myself pondering whether these might be the only such hills in all the universe – and contemplating what other wonders lay unknown to us still.

IF YOU GO

What it is: The Chocolate Hills are thought to have been formed as uplifted marine limestone was cracked by tectonic movements and then weathered away by water and wind. More than 1,300 individual hills cover more than 50 square kilometres and range from 30 to 90 metres in height.

Where it is: In the centre of Bohol province in the Philippines, on one of the major islands of the Visayas.

How to get there: From Manila, fly to Tagbilaran Airport. Philippine Airlines or Cebu Pacific Airlines offer direct flights (around 70 minutes). If you are travelling through the Visayas, ferries running between Cebu City and Tagbilaran are frequent. Once in Tagbilaran, buses or taxis can take you to the interior of the island in a few hours depending on the route.

Where to stay: For a resort-style hotel, try the Chocolate Hills Adventure Park or the Sagbayan Peak mountaintop resort. The government-run Chocolate Hills Complex was severely damaged by the earthquake and is closed. For cheaper accommodations, small hotels and guest houses can be found in and around Carmen and Sagbayan ($10 to $50). For more info visit experiencephilippines.org.

 

Note: The 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck the central Visayas in October, centred on the island of Bohol, caused widespread casualties and damages in an area where the economy is largely dependent on tourism. Though the Philippine Department of Tourism has declared the Chocolate Hills open for visitors, it is advisable to research and book ahead, and consider the plight of the people as they continue their efforts to rebuild and care for the displaced.

 

[JJReyes]

Maybe I am a cynic rather than a romantic, but after looking at the Chocolate Hills, the question in my mind is, "Is it worth the journey and expense?" I feel the same way with the Grand Canyon, which is just a big hole in the ground. Yet the visit is worthwhile because of other activities such as descending down the rim in mules; visiting Indian ruins; river rafting (from the North Rim); etc. A new attraction is the Skywalker that extends over the canyon rim. Scary.

 

Going back to the Chocolate Hills, some believe they could be ancient burial mounds. The UFO enthusiasts think the mounds were built by aliens.  

[sjp52]

When I went there i stayed at a nice resort with a beautiful white sand beach and travelled around by motor bike and went on a river cruise which supplied a meal and drinks and went to a butterfly sanctuary. The trip was well worth it.

[lonewolf]

well i can say i enjoyed my 4 day stay in bohol, but the pictures of hills after earthquake weren t pretty at all, hope their recovering there

[JJReyes]

When I went there i stayed at a nice resort with a beautiful white sand beach and travelled around by motor bike and went on a river cruise which supplied a meal and drinks and went to a butterfly sanctuary. The trip was well worth it.

 

well i can say i enjoyed my 4 day stay in bohol, but the pictures of hills after earthquake weren t pretty at all, hope their recovering there

 

You may both be right since the last time we did extensive traveling throughout the Philippines was more than 30 years ago. At the time Boracay was a European hippie colony with lots of women walking around practically naked. The place we stayed had nipa huts. To shower, you had to call an attendant to hand-crank the water from the artesian well. Lighting came from a Coleman lamp. 

 

The situation was similar for the Chocolate Hills. You took the obligatory pictures, turned around and asked what time was the next Philippine Airline flight. For some of the more remote airfields, PAL was still using DC-3 aircraft from WWII. They flew under 8000 feet. If the cabin became hot, the pilot opened a small window in the cockpit. The cool air would flow through the passenger compartment.

[paulus]

For some of the more remote airfields, PAL was still using DC-3 aircraft from WWII. They flew under 8000 feet. If the cabin became hot, the pilot opened a small window in the cockpit. The cool air would flow through the passenger compartment.

 

Yep, a great aircraft. When I expressed concern about the wings flapping, the pilot assured me time to worry is when they stop flapping.

 

Only had two experiences in DC3- shudder and shake- quite enough thanks   oooops sorry off topic. Too easy to stray.

[Papa Carl]

I envy you all as it is definitely one of the places that Ellie and I hope to go one day when we have the money.

 

The very first time I saw them on the internet, I remember thinking, "that can't be natural, they must be man made for some reason or another"

 

In regards to the DC-3, in a previous life, one of my patients bought an airline called "Great Lakes Airlines", which we all affectionately called "Great Shakes" as most of it's planes were old DC-3's to start with.

 

Also the first time I flew into Dumaguete airport, I remember seeing some old DC-3's on the side of the runway, and wanted more than anything to go and look at them and find out what kind of shape they were in and who owned them etc. There are also a few at the Legazpi Airport.

 

Those planes flew well beyond their life cycle, and were the work horse not just of WWII but of many countries air forces.

 

Beautiful bird.

 

Papa Carl

[i am bob]

If not pressed for time? Find me a DC-3 anytime!

Note to get this back on track to under original subject... What were we talking about? Hehe!

Seriously, I really want to see the Chocolate Hills but I might wait a bit... Just to give them time to get back in shape a bit.

Sent by Gaseous Monkeys using tin cans, a very long string and Tapatalk...

Edited November 3, 2013 by I am bob

[Dougbert]

They really are interesting.  I took my then GF (now fiancee) and her family on a tour of Bohol last year on my first visit.  We hired a van and driver in Tubigon and went inland from Clarin through Sagbayan, Carmen, down through Bilar, Loboc, Loay, and around through Baclayon to Tagbilaran.  Many of the places we saw were heavily damaged or destroyed in the quake.  Anyway, back to the Chocolate Hills...

 

When you see them in person it is difficult to get a sense of scale because they have such a smooth and unusual shape.  At the somewhat commercialized place at Sagbayan (beside the water park) you can see one modern house right at the base of one of the isolated bumps.  It looks so wrong, because the hill is only about 100 feet (30m) high!  But most of them seem to be about the same.  In that area they poke up out of very flat land covered with rice paddies which also contributes to the alien appearance.  If I can figure out how to upload pics here I will post something.

 

City folks might not enjoy the scenery of Bohol, but being a country boy at heart I really enjoyed seeing all of the places there.

[OnMyWay]

They really are interesting.  I took my then GF (now fiancee) and her family on a tour of Bohol last year on my first visit.  We hired a van and driver in Tubigon and went inland from Clarin through Sagbayan, Carmen, down through Bilar, Loboc, Loay, and around through Baclayon to Tagbilaran.  Many of the places we saw were heavily damaged or destroyed in the quake.  Anyway, back to the Chocolate Hills...

 

When you see them in person it is difficult to get a sense of scale because they have such a smooth and unusual shape.  At the somewhat commercialized place at Sagbayan (beside the water park) you can see one modern house right at the base of one of the isolated bumps.  It looks so wrong, because the hill is only about 100 feet (30m) high!  But most of them seem to be about the same.  In that area they poke up out of very flat land covered with rice paddies which also contributes to the alien appearance.  If I can figure out how to upload pics here I will post something.

 

City folks might not enjoy the scenery of Bohol, but being a country boy at heart I really enjoyed seeing all of the places there.

 

I also really enjoyed Bohol and will go back again.  We rented a car and driver, but next time I think I will rent a car and see some other areas of the island.  I think the Chocolate Hills are wonderful but JJR is right in that you only need a short visit there.  However, I would like to take some pictures there at different times of the year to see the differences.  I hope they get the facilities restored ASAP so the tourists can get back there and provide some much needed cash to the area.