Beaching!

Beaching, hmmm, what a term! There is no such a word, but i am creating it here.

One morning a few months ago when our temperatures are still colder, i nudged my nephew and niece to try early sunrise shots. They are not into photography yet, but i am trying to somehow get it to their consciousness. My nephew has already been trying the camera lent by a cousin. so we all have one camera each to use for the sunrise shots. The beach is only 7 minutes tricyle ride from our house on the hill, so we woke up early. My two companions are excited because that was only their first time for this activity. We were ready by 5:00am and were at the beach when it is still dark. But that was nice, as we can prepare our tripods and i can give them a few suggestions. But as a whole they were left on their own, let them learn by themselves.

Our beach is not really very conducive to swimming. It has bigger stones and the shore is not wide enough. Our town is actually known for scuba-diving and there are famous diving sites most especially at the back of the hill. Mabini is almost like a peninsula or a long piece of land protruding into the sea. This part facing east is Batangas Bay, while at the other side of the hill facing west is Balayan Bay. The map below shows Mabini town with its diving sites and the Maricaban Island at the south portion. Our Malimatoc Beach, facing east is labeled in purple, is not listed to have diving sites. However, it was known to be the site for the endangered species called rare golden scorpion fish (Rhinopias frondosa) found near Red Rock or what we locally call Pulang Bato.  I actually blogged about it earlier.

For photos of the golden scorpion fish and more information about it please read Jayvee Hernandez post. 

 Some fishermen are early with their boats too

 They are already in action even before the sun rises at that twin peaks.

 sun is now rising from the mountain at our horizon

 other small boats are still parked on the shores

 Small boats in this area are improving in designs, now they have those rising-curved ends

 This is Pulang Bato or Red Rock, the home of the golden scorpion fish

 the shore leading to Pulang Bato; the island at the back is Maricaban Island

 my niece trying to use a tripod with my Olympus E-620

 my nephew learning his borrowed Cannon camera

 Allen and Eriel, on their way to be photo hobbyists

 the sun is already high up there at 7:30 am

 i realized this boat is too small for fishing, maybe this is just for fun boating

That was my niece's photo of me without my knowing it. I guess she has the eye for nice shots, i hope it gets even better with time, and they don't stop shooting.

Nature Notes

Our World Tuesday

Outdoor Wednesday
Wednesday Waters

Seashore Finds

I hope you remember the sunrise shots i showed you last week, from the beach only 3km from our house, yet i have just seen the sunrise for the first time. When the sun was already a bit up there, at 7:00am our time, the heat was already a bit intense driving me to seek refuge from the shadows of some vegetation. There i found a lot of interesting subjects too. Last time i showed the morning moon at the west. Here i will show you some unusual finds as well.

Pulang Bato (Red Rock) at the distance

  

This tree gave a formidable presence being alone at the shoreline giving a bizarre thrunk as shown above. I intensely looked at it thinking it experienced stresses in the past, to have those very unusual convolutions and contours at the base. I suppose it was not the waves that pounded it through time, but perhaps men inflicted harm on it. It was able to heal itself very well despite its difficult past! 

A trunk that experienced decades of unusual circumstance! At this age, we say it is a trunk with character! And it can produce long paragraphs of descriptions or discussions. 

 I looked up and these wonderful flowers amazed me. They are thoroughly inviting with those loud colors.

 There is a lot of inflorescence borne at the stem tips devoid of leaves. And the stems fully exposed to the sun borne the leaves in palmate arrangement.

 Some blackish brown pods bearing black seeds arise on bigger stems. I wonder if birds pollinated them too, as i didn't see any bird that time. If those seeds are fertile, then this tree could probably be brought by the waters here.

I posted this in Facebook asking for identification, which eventually surfaced as Sterculia foetida, or calumpang in the vernacular. Some search in the net showed medicinal values that even can be useful for diabetis.

  Another unusual find i had that morning are these pods, obviously dried fruits of some vines. They are also hanging from the Sterculia foetida tree posted above. However, i don't know the identity of this vine.

A lot of these dried pods are scattered on the trunks, but they are totally wilted that didn't allow me to know how the vegetative plant looks like.

I cannot touch them as they are high up on the tree. But they look hollow which might render them float on the sea after falling on the ground. Those sepals as wings will also allow them to reach distant places, where they can eventually germinate and continue the species.

Nature Notes

Our World Tuesday

Our Own Beach Drama

One Saturday, I was at home in the province, i decided to be at the beach to document our sunrise.  Somehow it gets shameful that i have been going to other far places just for the sunrise and sunsets. Sometimes it takes long hours, many transport vehicles and much more funds just to see them. I truly wonder why i haven't been to our own beach to be familiar with it, and the beauty it shows to those who are willing to see.

I really admit, it was indeed a shame I watched this only for the first time! A mere 3km separate us from this shore. We are facing the east coast. When you are in your own bed, to take a bath and changing your house clothes seem very difficult tasks. It took many sunrises and sunsets from many places before I fully decided to be familiar with our own place. At least it is not yet too late.

 I arrived here at around 5:30 a.m., just in time for the sunrise. There are still some electric lights in the horizon.

In a few minutes, the sun peeped through near the mountain on the left. During the dry season the sun is normally at that position. At some point throught the year the sun can be at the extreme right of the mountain at the right. 

The sun rises fast and i have to be quick, left and right, far and near i clicked. I have two cameras and they come really handy. However, i didn't have time for a long exposure shot. I am tempted to just sit in there and absorb all the moments without looking at the viewfinder. 

You will never ran out of subjects and frames even if you remain at your position. Just look right and left and keep on clicking. This is to the right showing Maricaban Island at the horizon. You wont believe me, i haven't been there, a mere 40 minutes away. Two small rock promontories at the distance provide the name of the place, Pulang Bato meaning Red Rock. 

Up close the colorfull stones are very interesting. The reds and browns reveal the iron deposits under our areas, maybe even under our houses and farms. They come in different concentrations showing as different degree of colors on the stones. This might not be a very good beach for swimming because of the rocky shore, but the colors suffice for the inconvenience. Other stone colors reveal the previous volcano activities throughout our history, and others are coral fossils. No stones are alike in this shore.

 A broken rock shows the iron filling as reddish brown pattern. I have to find a geologist to explain to me these findings.

Pulang Bato, we call this place. Those two rocks on the water are previously colored just like that on the right cliff, but oxidation and exposure to the elements got them black. The cliff remains fresh as erosion goes on continuously. When we were kids, those are still close together near the cliff and we can still pass to the other side of the cove during low tide. These days, water could really have risen, nobody can go through that way anymore.

A few minutes later it is already hot, and motorized boats begin to pass by.  Heat starts to get through the skin so i started to prepare for home.

 But then, looking up at the west sky there among the weeds is the moon. Oh My God, can i resist that! I cannot even change for a longer lens, it is already very hot at 7:00am.

I guess, a continuation of this will be done for the other shoots i made with the details. Part II here i come. Please bear with me.

Nature Notes

Watery Wednesday