Dahican Beach – a seven-kilometer stretch of white sand facing the Pacific Ocean – is about 15 minutes from the heart of Mati City in Davao Oriental. In the past, you had to pass over rough roads before reaching the beach. But since it has been identified as one of the city’s come-ons, the road is now being fixed.
There are few resorts you can find near the beach. Although there are no regular vehicles going there, you can always hire a motor cab if you want to go there. But the good thing about Dahican is that there is no entrance fee (except for some areas). It is open to anyone who comes – whether locals or foreigners.
Swimming is not the only thing you can do while you are at Dahican Beach. If you like water adventures like skimboarding, this is the best place to be in Davao region. In fact, several skimboarding competitions have been held in the place; it is being touted as the Skimboarding Capital of Mindanao.
“There are several reasons why it should be called such,” explained Dashiel Indelible, Jr., the city tourism officer. “For one, our sand here is white unlike others which are dark or black. For another, the water is pristine and crystal blue. But most important, the waves are what skimboarders are looking for – not so high and not too low but something in-between.”
Skimboarders who come to the place said that the waves of Dahican are great. On good days, the waves go up to as high as 6-8 feet. On other days, the waves may only be 3-5 feet, which are still good for skimboarding.
But Dahican is not only known for its white sand beach or skimboarding activities, but also for its marine wildlife species that thrive under its waters.
Dahican is a local term which means “to come in from the sea.” And it is because of pawikan, the local term for marine turtles. Green Sea, Hawksbill, and Olive Ridley are the turtle species that have made Dahican’s shoreline their nesting site.
Unfortunately, these three species are listed in the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources as endangered. What this means is that “they are in danger of extinction and whose survival is unlikely if causal factors continue operating.”
Studies have shown that every time the female marine turtle nest, she always returns to the place even if she is thousands of miles away from the area.
The two marine turtle species trudge ashore to dig holes in the sand and lay their eggs there. “If you’re lucky, you can swim along with the pawikan in the waters,” said Winston Plaza, who is connected with the Amihan sa Dahican-Save Our Seas Project.
Amihan sa Dahican – named after the northeasterly winds that blow through the area from November to March – was established in 2004 with three-fold purpose: conserve marine wildlife species in the bay, take care of young kids, and share surfing and skimboarding skills with visitors.
“Our motto is: If you love nature, nature will love you back,” said George “Jun” Plaza, the elder brother of Winston and founder of Amihan sa Dahican.
In the beginning, Amihan sa Dahican was known as a good training camp for skimboarding and surfing. Some of its members have earned awards in national and international competitions.
Many children from the city and nearby areas came to Amihan to learn skimboarding and surfing. “Many of them have dropped out of school and some walked away from their homes because of poverty,” said its website. “We serve as a second family to them and safeguard their value formation, encourage them to get education, thus offering them a chance to improve their lives.”
Jun, whose initiative was featured in Reader’s Digest’s “Heroes,” imposed strict rules and training for those who come. Skimboard and surf lessons are held after school and on weekends. They are also forbidden to smoke, drink or take drugs. Anyone breaking the rules is either barred from practice or kicked out of the team.
As Dahican Beach is a marine sanctuary, the team sees to it that the marine wildlife species teeming the waters are well protected. They manage to do it through conservation activities. They participate in different group exposure and share their experiences on how they protect and conserve the marine wildlife species of Mayo Bay.
Aside from marine turtles, the entire Mayo Bay – of which Dahican Beach is a part – is home to dugongs, dolphins, stingrays, and whale sharks.
“We patrol the beaches at night to protect turtle eggs from poachers and predators,” the website stated. It has set up two hatcheries, with help from some government agencies and private entities.
A female pawikan, it is said, would drag her bulky frame into the sand and build a nest and to eventually lay eggs. The nests are flask-shaped cavities dug in the sand by the shoveling motions of the nesting turtle’s hind limbs. One nest may contain as many as 100 eggs.
From time to time, the Amihan team discovers turtle eggs being laid in various sites of the beach. They recover them and bring them to the pawikan hatchery for safety and protection from predators. They monitor the eggs and wait for approximately 60 days for the eggs to hatch.
In the wild, the period after hatching is a fight for survival. After they are hatched, it’s a race from their nests in the sand to the water. Once they are in the waters, it’s survival of the fittest as some of them may be eaten by other marine creatures, including fish.
Since the Save Our Seas Project was established, they have already released thousands of pawikan hatchlings. For instance, from July 2021 to August this year, the project has released more than 6,000 pawikan hatchlings.
“For every 100 pawikan hatchlings we release into the waters, only one of them will survive in the open waters,” said Winston.
They have also released adult marine turtles. Last July, a Green Sea turtle caught accidentally by hook fishing was surrendered by a local fisherman to them. After successfully removing the hook, they released it back to the sea.
“Amihan sa Dahican is all about teaching people about skimboarding and surfing and conservation and protection of marine wildlife species teeming our waters,” Plaza said. “We are not seeking money for what we are doing.”
Right now, there are 35 members of the team, who conduct training on skimboarding and surfing to people who come to Dahican Beach and are interested in those water activities. The money they receive for these training is used for the education of its 40 beneficiaries, mostly children.
“Even if the budget is not enough, gina-insakto lang gyud namo,” Plaza said.
Amihan sa Dahican is barely surviving but the members are doing it so that “the organization will still stay so that the next generation could benefit from it.” – ###
