Balincaguin Conservancy Grotto

On my usual daily routine I’m always looking for photo opportunities, then Ron informed me about a complaint made by Punong Barangay Leonido Nacional of Brgy. De Guzman to the Mayor about water supply often becoming cloudy. So on 7 January 2009, members of Balincaguin Conservancy (BC) organized a team to inspect the cave that contains the water source.

The BC team was accompanied by Capt. Nacional, the landowner, Brgy. Councilor Manuel Donato, and two members of BAWASA maintenance team. Both Capt. Nacional and Kagawad Donato suspected that gatherers of bird’s nest enter the cave and cause the stream to become silty and cloudy. From the concrete holding tank, we took the trail leading to the cave and found a small entrance that is just big enough for a person to crawl through. The team agreed that a bat/bird friendly gate should be installed to keep out unauthorized individuals. The BC member took GPS reading and measurements of the cave opening. With modification from the recommended specification of bat friendly gates (from the internet) Ron and Mateo fabricated a 2’ by 1’ steel gate with 5¾” spacing using recycled 16mm reinforcement bars.

After a slight delay because of the Town Fiesta, the Sangguniang Bayan passed Resolution No. 01-09-06, dated January 21, 2009, recommending to the Local Government Unit that the installation of steel gate at the entrance of Bawasa Water Source Cave in Barangay De Guzman is necessary.

On 23 January 2009, the gate was installed by a mason from the LGU and the concrete was allowed to cure before doing an actual in-cave inspection to check the status of the water pipes. Two days later we equipped ourselves with caving gear and crawled into the cave for the initial exploration; the team consisted of two BC members, Capt. Nacional and a member of his CVO’s.

Immediately upon entering we found that the concreted impounding dam supplying the holding tank was completely silted. It is located just 2.6 meters from the gated opening and 1.8 meter above the actual stream. According to Capt. Nacional, the stream has a branch further upstream and the main stream just below this branch is often blocked so the waters flow towards the branch eventually denying a supply to the impounding dam. Several residents have also laid plastic pipes upstream as their individual water supply.

We then agreed to look for a more appropriate location for the holding tank’s supply tube and to plan a complete cave survey to determine the location.  We continued to delicately explore the cave further until we were blocked by a sump where the stream continues but the cave (airspace) ends.  I tried diving into the sump hoping to push further but without luck.

On our way out of the cave, I unfortunately forgot to check the lid of my water proof tub and water entered it completely soaking my new Canon G9 camera, three cellphones and other valuables including our usual cave food “putok.” I think cellophane from the “putok” may have prevented the lid’s o-ring from properly sealing. Finally, water has taken its toll on me after all the years of taking the risk of bringing my documenting equipment underground.

On 1 February 2009, six BC members performed the actual survey/mapping and documentation.  The total length of the cave is 108.2 meters with an average ceiling height of just two meters and vertical breadth of less than a meter. Several passages were as small as the cave entrance with less than a foot of airspace. Some of us had to remove our helmets to wade through. One of us opted not to try the last passage.

It is our consensus that the cave almost lay flat with not enough slope for the water flow to supply the whole barangay and during the dry season the water flow may cease.

Source: By Rawen Balmaña
www.BalincaguinConservancy.org