Torongan Cave: Not To Miss in Itbayat

When asked about the places I have liked the most in my travels, high up there with Africa, my answer would always include Batanes. When I look back at the adventures I had in this northernmost province of the Philippines,

our trek to Torongan cave in Itbayat was a highlight for sure… the state of wonderment, unforgettable.

It was a 20-30 minute hike from a gate to the cave entrance, passing through a forest.

And from this spectacular cave entrance is a relatively easy walk down the large cavern leading to a wall that opens to the sea.

This opening is believed to be the entry point of the Austronesians from Taiwan to the island some 4000 years ago. An excavation done on Torongan cave in 2004 uncovered the oldest artifacts so far found in Batanes.

But it isn’t the cave per se that impressed me.  We exited the cave where we entered,

we walked further and found ourselves climbing up some boulders to a rocky pasture land,

revealing the coast, and Dinem Island in the distance, a view so jaw-dropping beautiful.

The dramatic change in scenery atop the cave was an experience stuck in my memory to this day.

We wandered around in awe.

The view majestic at every turn.

Walking back, we passed through several ancient burial grounds shaped like a boat, albeit hard to discern.

If you have limited time in Itbayat, make Torongan cave your first stop and be awed.

10 thoughts on “Torongan Cave: Not To Miss in Itbayat”

  1. My friends went there too, I am envious but it is the long hours by boat which fights my interest. Just the boat to Sabtang, which is only 40 min already scares me. So i just content myself in reading travelogues like yours. I noticed some foreigners are with you in the group.

    Like

    Reply

    1. Hi Andrea, you can now fly to Itbayat and it only takes 12 minutes to get there.
      Yes, I am traveling with French guy who has made his home in the Philippines for over a decade so he considers himself Filipino and has actually travelled to more provinces than I have.

      Like

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.