Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Candaba Wetlands and Bird Sanctuary

I am not a bird photographer. I don't even have the lens for it. But given a choice between spending the day walking outdoors in a nearby province in the company of my best travel buddies or battling it out with Dr. Zomboss in the rooftop of my zombie-infested house, the choice was definitely easy.

So, I, together with Ironwulf, Lagalog, Lantaw and Noise Ninja headed to the plains of Pampanga to spend the day shooting birds with our camera on their natural habitat and to shoot the sunset at Candaba Wetlands and Bird Sanctuary.

We left the Baliwag Terminal in Cubao at about 10 in the morning and arrived at Baliwag, Bulacan around noon. A 30-minute tricycle ride lead us to the paved streets of Barangay Donya Simang in Candaba, Pampanga. And from there, it was another thirty minute walk on the dirt-road leading to the Wetlands.

I was half-expecting a scenario of mud, swamps and foresty-feel of the area but most of what I have seen are rice-fields. I have learned that most of the wetlands have to give way to rice fields because people here keep on reclaiming them. In fact, I have learned that the area is all titled property so the owners may drain the swamp and turn it to a more commercially-viable rice fields.

What remains of the wetlands are basically land owned by the mayor of Candaba. At present, developments are on-going to make the place more tourist-friendly and more accessible. I have even seen a car passing through the dirt-roads there which was impossible to do a couple of years back.

Pardon me if I could not post the name of the birds I have seen in the wetlands but I do remember seeing herons, egrets and turns. And yes, I have seen a thousand wild ducks flying in the sky. Seeing them up there is a sight to behold. You have to be patient thou, because if you expect to see them abundantly in the area, then you will definitely be disappointed.

We spent most of the afternoon waiting to get lucky on one of the swamps or walking behind bird hides but only few birds decided to show up until we heard a gun-shot followed by the sound of cracking bamboos. We have learned that staff in the area do that to disturb the birds so that they will go out of their resting place and fly around the area. Although that was the time when we saw lots of birds, I don't know if that method of calling birds was a good idea.

As for the planned sunset shoot, the sun hid early on darkening clouds and the anticipated colors of the sky did not materialize so the sunset shoot turned into a lakwatsa photo shoot by the water-tank. But then again, cheery as we were, that did not dampen our spirits and just walk our way back amidst the darkness of the place while singing our hearts out from tunes that only us can understand.

Well, I am not against development but it has to be sustainable. After all, birds flock the sanctuary because for them, it is a habitat where they feel they are protected. But, if these developments stress them in one way or the other, then, I won't be surprised if the efforts of the Mayor to turn the place into a tourist attraction will fail to prosper because there will no longer be birds to see and observe in their natural habitat.

To date, there is a Php 150fee paid for the upkeep of the facilities. But since there are no store or canteen in the area, you have to bring your own food and drinks if you plan to spend the day there. And if you plan to spend the night, there is a house there that can be rented. Just walk past the bird's hide and it will lead you to the house owned by the mayor.

24 comments:

  1. What a great place! And as usual you've captured it so beautifully. Amazing the number of birds in your 8th photo! I do agree with you that that might not be the best way to call the birds, but it is an amazing shot. Hope your week is going well!

    Sylvia

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  2. Another amazing photo collection of a fun travel. Have a great day ahead.

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  3. a relaxing place away from the city.. the 1st photo is perfect! galing! turuan mo ko nyan! ^_^

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  4. ganda ng mga shot kahit wala kang lens for bird shots, aus na lang...gusto ko yung kuha mo sa bintanang kawayan...

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  5. Birds that many and only few hours away from Manila? Byahe na!!!

    Like all the photos esp the 8th image - parang great migration of National Geographic ang kuha.

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  6. We have relatives in Candaba (from my father's side) and now I have an added reason to visit their place. :)

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  7. Wow there's a whole lot of birds. Very beautiful scenery.

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  8. I love your landscape shots with birds on it. I think if I were in your shoes I would have composed my shots the same way, since I have insecurities with my bird shooting.

    Would you consider taking more practice in bird photography.

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  9. dami ngang ibon. sayang di ako nakasama dami kasing gagawin sa bahay.

    astig ang third shot!

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  10. great landscape pics, curious lang ako sa first picture yung merong sun, ang ganda ng effect

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  11. Totoo po ba yung 1st pic? Parang di naman hehe. Anyways, awesome collections po.

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  12. love that first pic! perfect.

    hello to you.

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  13. ang ganda!
    =)

    btw, dalaw ka naman ke raft3r
    3 years old na blog nya

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  14. Nice taking the trip with you bai. At least, me naabutan pa tayo. Next year, baka ibang-iba na 'to.

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  15. i'm lucky i live in bataan. parang ganiyan din anytime. :)

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  16. Taga diyan kami! :) Dati pa madaming ibon ang nagpupunta sa lugar na yan dahil migration something pero few years ago lang naging "tourist spot".

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  17. wow! ito ata yung sianbe ni Allan dati noh? galeng! gusto ko din pumunta jan pero saka na, pag me maganda ng lente.

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  18. This is a great place for birders! Just hope the owners won't completely destroy the wetlands.

    Like you, I'm also limited by the focal length of my lens. Still saving for some good lens!

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  19. beautiful pic.. really nice attorney..

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  20. wow, ganda ng mga shots.. i like.. :P

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  21. Thanks for the tips on getting there. Will definitely visit the place before everybody else will. Great photos. As always. =)

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  22. Uy kakapunta ko lang jan a week ago dahil nabasa ko travels nyo nila ferdz.

    Medyo mali nga lang diskarte namin and we were not able to see the multitude of birds. Ayon sa aming guide lumalabas lang pala sila early in the morning around 6am and around 4 to 5pm to feed.

    In between those hours nagtatago lang daw sila.

    Christian | Lakad Pilipinas
    http://lakad-pilipinas.blogspot.com

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  23. lots of birds ! Good to know that there are sanctuaries like these sa Pinas. Great for our ecosystem :)

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