Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro
Posted On Tuesday, September 2, 2008 at at 3:17 AM by AdminPuerto Galera is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Oriental Mindoro, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 21,925 people in 4,424 households. It is the northwesternmost municipality in Oriental Mindoro.
Puerto Galera is only three and a half hours away from Manila first by bus to the port at Batangas City and then by boat. Tourists can also take the tourist service called the Sikat, from the City State Tower Hotel in Manila from the Batangas City port to Puerto Galera or Sabang Beach, Mindoro.
Sabang beach is the main destination for foreign tourists, while White Beach remains popular with local travelers. Since 2001 White beach has seen uncontrolled development. New restaurants and places to stay are rapidly encroaching on the beach itself and little remains of the once charming beach. Puerto Galera town is a pleasant but sleepy Philippine town with few attractions. It has a large central catholic church and a Pier area, with a selection of bistros and cafes.
Behind the beaches are the huge and generally unexplored mountain ranges of central Mindoro. A particular local attraction is the nine hole golf course perched on the hillside above White Beach which commands spectacular views over Puerto Galera's natural harbor and the Verde Island Passage. Mangyan tribes are scattered over the mountains sides - some of the more remote tribes have no contact with the outside world. Of the eight tribes on Mindoro, the Iraya are the largest. They are based in the Puerto Galera area.
Puerto Galera is also one of the main [technical diving]destinations in Asia. Technical Diving International - [TDI] has many dive centers in the area, offering the full range of TDI courses from Basic [nitrox] to advanced [trimix].
ENVIRONMENT
In the summer of 1998 there was some extensive coral bleaching around Medio Island and a large section of shallow reef ('Coral Gardens') was virtually destroyed. Recent evidence has shown it have almost recovered with a larger diversity of coral species, replacing the prolific table corals.
In 2006 two large super-typhoons damaged the shallow areas around Escarceo Point. Many of the faster growing coral species were destroyed to a depth of 6m. This represents about 5% of the coral reef in the area.
By 2008 the density of COTs had greatly reduced, down to a 'normal' range of 30 per hectare. This seems to have been a natural reduction, rather than due to any collection program.
A study by the University of the Philippines in the 1980s, found that the Batangas, Puerto Galera area has the highest diversity of marine species in the world. It forms the centre of the golden triangle - The Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia - renowned for their coral and fish species.
Puerto Galera is politically subdivided into 13 barangays.
Aninuan
Balatero
Dulangan
Palangan
Sabang
San Antonio
San Isidro
Sto. Niño
Sinandigan
Tabinay
Villaflor
Poblacion
Baclayan
I've been here so many times at Puerto galera!
It's really awesome!