Coron Part 2: Mount Tapyas and Maquinit Hot Spring

On our first day in Coron, we arranged to go to Mount Tapyas and Maquinit Hot Spring. Our resort got tricycles to bring us to these places and where ever else we wanted for around Php100 per person. A maximum of 4 persons can ride in one tricycle. Although more people can actually fit in it, that would make it a difficult climb to the foot of Mount Tapyas.

Our first stop is Mount Tapyas. It takes 700+ steps to climb to the top. What's there? Well, according to our pseudo tour guides (they're really just kids selling bottled water), you can see a good view of the Coron islands and Culion islands, the historical leper colony. I would just have to take their word for it because I wasn't able to climb all the way to the top.

I got at least more than half way, around 420 steps up. You see, I'm not sporty, at all. Before we started, I thought, "I can do 700 steps. I'm not gonna be here to see this everyday."

Somewhere between the 100th and 200th step, I was thinking "is this gonna be worth it?"

The top of Mount Tapyas; seems so
near, yet so far.

Past the 300th step, my thoughts were "this is NOT my idea of a vacation!!! Why the hell are we climbing this mountain???". Somewhere here, we bought a huge bottle of water. Our tour guide's right, we're gonna need it.

Nearing the 400th step, while I was already feeling my legs shaking, I thought, "the view here looks AWESOME to me, I don't need to go all the way up!".

I'm pretty sure I went through the different emotional stages of grief and acceptance just climbing Mount Tapyas! I've finally accepted I wouldn't be able to climb all the 700+ steps when I didn't want to get up from resting in one of the steps. I don't exercise and I didn't get any sleep the night before, so I think 420 steps is already quite an achievement for me.

I thought going down was going to be easy. But no, when your legs are shaking and already feeling sore, each step is grueling. It seemed like we didn't climb so high, but why is the ground seem soooo far away.

One of the numerous sheds where one can rest and enjoy the view
(or rest tired soles).

Anyway, we finally got to our ride and quite perfectly, going to the hot spring. I can't help but think if they built the steps to Mount Tapyas so more people will go to the hot spring? Or maybe they built the hot spring because it's so tiring to climb Mount Tapyas? Chicken or egg?

The ride to the Maquinit Hot Springs took around 30 minutes from Mount Tapyas. There is an entrance fee of Php150 for adults.

The pool is surrounded by trees and mangroves.

I don't really have any expectations coming to the hot springs, so I was pleasantly surprised to see the beautiful setting. The backdrop of sea and sky behind the pool made of rocks was almost breath-taking. There's also a couple of man-made falls so the water can mildly massage your back.

Restroom and changing area.

The water is all natural, around 31 to 40 degrees Celsius. There's a restroom and changing area but don't think you can take a shower here after your dip. Most people just go back to their hotels to shower and change.

It was a very nice dip. The water was very relaxing. It helped to soothe and calm my aching muscles. What I didn't know then was there was more climbing to come...

The tricycle service turned out to be a great deal. For a little more than Php100 per person, we got to go around the town. Our tricycle driver was not particularly chatty, but he answered politely when we asked him questions. After the hot spring, we decided to have dinner before going back to our resort and although it wasn't initially part of the deal, not one of the three drivers objected or asked more money. Our driver even suggested a restaurant that he thought was good. At one point when we asked our driver how much we should pay him, he just said whatever the resort said. It would have been easy for him to say whatever outrageous number if he wanted to take advantage, but he didn't. The whole tour including our dinner took around 6 hours.

Most of the people we encountered in Coron were pleasant, but of course, I can't generalize and say that everyone here is a saint. As a traveler, we're always cautious of locals taking advantage. Based on my experience, you don't need to worry so much about that here. Coron boasts of its beautiful natural resources, throughout our trip I realized that equally worth boasting is their helpful, friendly and gentle people.