Karst cave.
| Location: | Saint Paul Mountain Range, Palawan. Sitio Sabang, Barangay Cabayugan. Northwest of Puerto Princesa, the capital of Palawan province. (10° 10'N, 118° 55'E) |
| Open: | |
| Fee: | |
| Classification: |
Karst cave.
|
| Light: | |
| Dimension: | |
| Guided tours: | V=50,000/a [2006] |
| Bibliography: | |
| Address: | City Government of Puerto Princesa (Palawan), Protected Areas Management Board, 146 Manalo Street, Puerto Princesa, Palawan |
| Last update: | $Date: 2008/07/01 20:29:00 $ |
| 26-MAR-1971 | National Park established under Presidential Proclamation No. 835. | |
| 1992 | won an award of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) in the Environmental Enhancement Category. | |
| 1999 | inscribed into the UNESCO World Heritage List. |
The St Paul Mountain Range consists of limestone, and is a typical tropic karst area with sharp ridges, and rounded peaks called towers. It shows pinnacles, shafts, dolines and limestone cliffs. The principal feature of the park is an underground river, more than 8km long and known as the Subterranean River or St Paul Cave. The river flows underground for almost its entire length. Its spring is at an altitude of 100m asl, 2km southwest of Mount St. Paul. Soon it is swallowed by the cave and reappears at St. Paul's Bay, where it flows directly into the sea.
The fact that the underground river flows directly into the sea is rather special. It is called a submarine karst spring. The lower portion of the river is brackish and subject to tidal influences and thus a unique habitat. The biodiversity in the park is very high as it shows both, a full mountain to the sea ecosystem and a sweetwater to saltwater ecosystem, plus the troglobitic ecosystem of the underground river. Most submarine springs are only accessible by divers, this is one of the few such rivers which the general public can easily visit.
St Paul Cave is very impressive, with huge passages and enormous chambers. The biggest chamber is 120m wide and 60m high, the length is hard to define, as it is just a very wide section of the passage. St Paul Cave was known to local Batak people since ancient times. According to legend it was inhabited by a spirit that prevented anybody from entering the cave. Today only 200-250 Batak survived, the surrounding area is inhabited by Tagbanua communities, who are christianized.
Babuyan River is another hydrological feature, stretching along the eastern side of the Park.
Today the Park has become the major tourist attraction of the country. More than 50,000 people vist it every year. About 20% of the visitors are from foreign countries.
| Main Index | Misc Coutries | Western Visayas |
| Last updated Terms of Use, © Jochen Duckeck. |
 |
Clickable Maps Alphabetical Index |
|
Contact showcaves.com: |
|
General Information |