Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs Immersion

Location : Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs, Nabas (municipality), Aklan (province), Philippines

No Bus Service
From Libertad, I was to continue my northbound journey to Buruanga, but surprise! Even though there is a wide concrete road connecting Libertad to Buruanga, Malay up to Caticlan for Boracay (the logical route), there is no bus service. I would have to pay a more expensive motorcycle trip. That killed Buruanga for me.

Iloilo or Aklan?
Hmmm, where do I go now? Go south instead to Barbaza and continue a southbound journey until Iloilo to meet up with Leslie (a friend with an open invite for Iloilo)? But locals told me Malumpati has a sister spring in Nabas, Aklan - Hurom Hurom Spring. Since I was close to the Antique-Aklan boundary, I made the trip for Aklan instead.

Nabas Business Center (NBC) Inn
Alighting in Nabas, I stumbled into NBC Inn where the owner saw value in what I can do for the hotel on the internet. I needed a place to stay, and I ended up having a comfortable place to stay. The universe has always been kind, always looking after my well-being. My room is unpretentious but it's big enough to squeeze 5 beds with ample windows for cross-ventillation - I love the natural air-flow.

Taking a Dip
It was a fairly long tricycle ride for just P20! We passed by 3 spring resorts before coming upon Hurom-Hurom. It was the last one where the road ended, just at the base of the mountain. Hurom-Hurom is the original and the biggest spring source. There were many pools sourced from the same spring. Some go deep to 7 feet while some are essentially wading pools. The water is refreshingly cold, but not super cold. I went where water was coming out of the rocks and drank as much as I could - I even bottled 1.5 liters of it!

at the source of Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs

Amenities
Hurom-Hurom is privately owned and run by a family. They have a small convenience store in the resort for drinks, snacks and barbeque. There are also picnic huts scattered around the pools which can be rented. Despite its increasing popularity, it remains spartan and simple for the locals to afford and appreciate. I enjoyed having a brief talk with sisters Pamela and Nina who gave me a candid backgrounder on the history of the spring and the current tourism issues.

Hurom-Hurom vs Malumpati
Unlike Malumpati where the source itself is left pristine with limited access, here at Hurom-Hurom, resort development was done on the spring itself. Water could be seen coming out of the rocks unlike Malumpati where you see the actual big hole the size of a basketball court that goes down 160 feet with so much water coming out of it, it spawned a river. In Malumpati, you swim on the river spawned by the spring (not on the spring itself). Hurom-Hurom has no hole in the ground but you can swim where water comes out of the rocks.

Ending Thoughts
I don't know what's with natural springs but they get me stoked. From Hinatuan's Enchanted River to Pandan's Malumpati Spring, I get my fix drinking from it - and bottling some to-go. In this day and age of bottled water and all these technological buzzwords that go with it - carbon filtering, distillation, reverse osmosis, etc., at the end of the day, what I'm looking for is good old fashioned mineral water coming out of a spring packed with all of nature's goodness.

On the esoteric side, water is a very interesting phenomenon - the only matter present in 3 states (solid ice, liquid water and gaseous water vapor). It's the only thing in nature that expands when frozen with a tremendous pressure that can burst steal pipes (everything else contracts). By the time we drink water from a bottle or from a tap, it would have gone through a nightmarish ordeal, going through dirty pipes, contamination, filtration systems, etc. It is a rare occassion to drink water directly coming out of rocks or spring in all its vitality and purity. We are 80% water. If we are what we eat, we are also what we drink.

--- Gigit (TheLoneRider)
YOGA by Gigit | Learn English | Travel like a Nomad | Donation Bank

How to Get to Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs

• from Boracay - go back to Caticlan and take the Ceres bus bound for Iloilo. It will pass through Nabas. But you have to get off at the 'crossing' before Nabas. Ask the driver to drop you off at the highway crossing to Hurom-Hurom (take a look at the map to find where). Take a tricycle toward the mountain all the way to Hurom-Hurom (P15, 10 mins)
• from Iloilo - take the Ceres bus bound for Caticlan. It doen't matter if it's via Pandan or Capiz, it will pass through Nabas. After passing Nabas town center, get off at the highway crossing for Hurom-Hurom (ask the driver). Take a tricycle toward the mountain all the way to Hurom-Hurom (P15, 10 mins)
• from NBC Inn - take a northbound tricycle along the main highway and tell the driver to take you to Hurom-Hurom Spring. It will take you along the highway, turn left on the junction and drop you off in front of the resort (P20, 20 mins)

Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs Cost Index

• PHP 20 tricycle ride from Nabas center to Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs
• PHP 30 entrance fee at Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs (and other spring resorts)
• PHP 40 one San Mig Light beer at Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs
• PHP 300 use of picnic hut

Next Traveling story:


Revisiting Caticlan
(Dec 12, 2016) Caticlan has always been known as the gateway to the world-famous Boracay Beach. But a closer look at its municipality, Malay, brings the spotlight on the many ignored attractions overshadowed by Boracay. As a traveler, in search of new and exciting destinations, it's ironic that such a place is just under our noses.....more »»

Nabas, Philippines

tourist attractions

• Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs - natural spring with cold clean water in a private resort, P30 entrance | 11°50'32.7"N 122°01'49.3"E
• Wind Turbines - 18 wind turbines towering up to 78 meters high, lined-up on a mountain ridge | 11°52'43.55"N, 121°59'10.33"E

hotel

• Nabas Business Center INN - free wifi, 45 mins from Boracay
  Poblacion, Nabas Aklan

How to Get to Nabas

• from Boracay - take the Ceres bus bound for Iloilo. Next town is already Nabas, 45 mins.
• from Iloilo - take the Ceres bus bound for Caticlan. It doen't matter if it's via Pandan or Capiz, it will pass through Nabas.

Nabas Blogs by TheLoneRider

• Visiting the Wind Turbines of Nabas Dec 16, 2016
• Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs Immersion Dec 11, 2016

Suggested itinerary on the WEST coast of Panay Island from Boracay going south

1. Boracay - most popular beach in the Philippines
2. Malay - Nabaoy River, Pangihan Cave, Nagata Falls, Agnaga Falls, Naasug Point, Malay Ecological Park, Motag Living Museum
3. Nabas - wind tubines, Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs
4. Pandan - Malumpati Spring
5. Libertad - Maanghit Cave, Ati Cave and Bungan-Bungan Spring
6. Sebaste - Igpasungaw Waterfall
7. Culasi - Malalison Island
8. Tibiao - hot kawa-bath, white water river rafting, Bugtong Bato Waterfall, rice terraces, Tibiao Bakery, pottery, fish spa
9. Anini-y - Nogas Island, scuba diving

Suggested itinerary on the EAST coast of Panay Island from Boracay going south

1. Boracay - most popular beach in the Philippines
2. Malay - Nabaoy River, Pangihan Cave, Nagata Falls, Agnaga Falls, Naasug Point, Malay Ecological Park, Motag Living Museum
3. Nabas - wind tubines, Hurom-Hurom Cold Springs
4. Kalibo - Bakhawan Eco-Park, Tigayon Hill
5. Tambak - oysters
6. Capiz - Roxas City
7. Carles | Estancia - Gigantes Island Boat Tour, Lighthouse of Gigantes Island and Bakwitan Cave of Gigantes Island
8. Iloilo - Batchoy Indulgence

»» next Traveling story: Revisiting Caticlan
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