Leyte's Secret: The Digyo Island

Around Leyte, a collection of local favourite destinations has emerged and most of these are off-the-beaten-track known only to locals. Being away from the usual “tourist trail”, it keeps the place from being overrun by hordes of tourists, because ironically people who troop to see a tourist-destination end up contributing to its destruction. So it is a boon for this little local secrets that they are yet to be listed on every travel brochure, or that the only way to get there is to endure long hours of bumpy bus rides, and boat rides, and that there are no amenities at all to provide urban comforts for visitors.

Of these local secrets, a hands-down favourite is the palm fringed coral sand island of Digyo which composes the Cuatro Islas together with the islands of Apid, Mahaba, and Himokilan. The islands of Apid, Digyo, and Mahaba makes up one barangay belonging to the municipality of Inopacan . Himokilan, the largest of the four, belongs to Hindang municipality. Of the four ,only the islands of Mahaba and Himokilan are inhabited .

The island of Digyo ( pronounced as Di-jo) measures 3.5 hectares, and one can explore the island from end to end in fifteen minutes. Digyo stands out from the other isles in the Cuatro Islas group because it is a tropical island on its own. Shimmering fine white sand wraps a lovely loop around the islet while clear aquamarine waters lap gently on the shores. Digyo’s sandy shore is a nesting ground for Green and Hawksbill turtle. A few years ago some men came and collected Digyo’s sand to camouflage the shores of a big hotel in Cebu. Even to these days, the shifting sand bars are still collected for whatever purpose.

The island is solace and silence personified in nature. On the island, one feels fragile, naked, and even humbled, facing a vast expanse of cerulean waters. To the sides are the neighbouring Apid, Himokilan, and Mahaba islands dotting the horizon, and a few bent coconut trees stand sentinel on the shores. Digyo paints your personal Robinson Crusoe dreams of being cast-away in some islands far away.

Snorkelling is a marvellous experience, the island’s shallow waters teem with vibrant marine life. The waters around Digyo contains a total of 287 species of reef building corals which comprise 55% percent of the total reef building species in the Philippines. Diving is ideal on the neighbouring islands of Apid and Mahaba. It is best to dive always on the western side of the islands which features abundant coral growth. The eastern sides of the islands faces the usual typhoon patterns resulting to poor coral life. There are only four nipa huts on the island, home to fishermen and the island’s caretaker. Digyo is privately owned, currently it is listed on the market for a hefty sum of P20 M. On the island is a lone kiosk with a tattered thatch roof, a table, and benches on opposite sides. The caretaker charges visitors ten pesos per head and the kiosk is for a hundred pesos. There is a basic restroom for visitors. There is no source of freshwater on the island, water for drinking and bathing comes from the collected rainwater in the reservoir water tanks installed by the DUCARE Project of the Durham University in U.K.

The waters around Digyo and neighbouring islands is an important fishing ground, for years it has been the source of livelihood for the islanders. These waters supports subsistence fishing, and small-scale fishing industry. Because of its proximity to Leyte, bigger fishing boats and trawlers have also fished in these waters, posing an unfair competition for the local fishermen who fish for food and a small living. The competition for more catch on a dwindling resources coupled with hazardous fishing practice destroyed the coral reefs years back. Since then the local government has passed several laws to protect Digyo as well as the other islands of Cuatro Islas. Digyo is a declared Marine Park and Sanctuary. It is forbidden to fish in the nearby waters of the islands. However this is not always implemented. There has been continuous efforts spearheaded by the local government, the environment office, NGO’s , the academe, and research societies to preserve the area. Institutions like the GTZ, and EURONATURE have implemented livelihood projects to provide alternative sources of income for the residents . DUCARE (Durham University Coral Awareness and Research Expedition ) conducts a series of studies, and monitoring activities on the flora and fauna of the Cuatro Islas. Stakeholders have been actively engaging the locals in “participatory observation” to make them an active participant in the drive to save the Cuatro Islas from ruins. These numerous efforts on all fronts continue to boost small victories.

These days, it is hard to keep Digyo a secret from the rest of the world. Visitors to the islands blog about their trips, and post pictures for everyone to see. The local tourism office has picked the word on the streets and has started featuring and promoting Digyo in the national tourism circuit. Though, Digyo is still far from being a crowd drawer, there is a steady trickle of travellers who brave the way to the islands. Perhaps in the not too far future, that day will come. Some people wait for that with glee, others with trepidation. If time cant keep Digyo from the world, perhaps the best thing to do is to prepare for it, lest we forget that visitors should only take back memories with them , not the corals and the sand; and that they should leave footprints and not garbage and degradation. How to get there: Secret!