Chocolate Hills
The Chocolate Hills ( German " Chocolate Hills " ) are an unusual geological formation that is one of the main sights of the Philippine island of Bohol. Overall belong to the formation in 1268 almost perfectly hemispherical or conical shaped hills of about the same height and size, spread over an area of more than 50 km ². You all are just overgrown with green grass that turns brown during the dry season and the hills gives its name.
As the most famous tourist attraction of Bohol are the Chocolate Hills displayed on both the flag and on the seal of the island province and are generally for the natural attractions that Bohol has to offer. They find themselves on the one hand in the official list of tourist destinations in the Philippines, the Philippine Tourism Authority 's list, and were also the third National Geological Monument ( dt: national geological monument ) of the country appointed. Moreover, they are proposed for inclusion in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Description
Generally speaking, the Chocolate Hills are an uneven terrain of grassy knolls, which are characterized by a uniform conical or dome-shaped and mostly symmetrical appearance. Overall, their number is specified with at least 1268, where one starts from a total of up to 1776 individual mounds of limestone grasüberdecktem. The surveys vary in their heights between 30 and 50 m, with the largest dome reaches a height of about 120 m. Although they are scattered like molehills on the central plain of the island, they accumulate in the territories of the municipalities Sagbayan and Batuan, however, with the greatest accumulation occurs near the town of Carmen.
During the dry period when the rainfall for the vegetation is not sufficient to dry the grass-covered hill, change their color and take on a chocolate brown tone. Because they remember in these dry periods to oversized chocolate kisses, they were given the name Chocolate Hills.
A particularly apt description of this attraction provides the photographer Andre Salvador:
He continues:
Topography and vegetation
The area around the Chocolate Hills around is characterized by a relatively flat to uneven topology, which is characterized by various hikes which extend no further than 100 to 500 m above sea level. Overall, the landscape of the interior of a series of high karst -like hill is dominated that present themselves integrally formed mainly near the village of Carmen by nature.
The vegetation of the Chocolate Hills, is determined by resistant grasses such as Imperata cylindrica and Saccharum spontaneum also, a sugarcane. Further on them grow different Korbblütlerarten and ferns, where nowadays the natural vegetation of the hills is threatened by quarrying. Between the hills, flat land is cultivated with rice and other crops.
Origin
Geologists have long been debate about the origin of the hills, with different assumptions about the origin of the Chocolate Hills were expressed. Therefore, there are a variety of hypotheses that attempt to explain the origin of the hills. The simplest explanations are based on weathering of limestone, submarine volcanism and geological uplift of the sea bottom. A more recent theory suggests that an active volcano ages ago giant stone blocks gazed at his outburst, which were then covered with limestone and have risen up from the ocean bed later. Some arguments supplement their explanation to the origin of the hills as the influence of tidal movements.
Another theory assumes that the hill had its origins in prehistoric coral reefs of limestone, which were eventually formed over thousands of years by erosion by both water and wind. Geologists also believe that the specific form of the hills is due to the influence of weather conditions over millions of years. The upper layers of the limestone formations were canceled before erosion processes followed and created the visible today conical hill.
The bronze plaque was placed on the observation deck in Carmen, is modeled on the theory that they are eroded formations, which consist of a kind of marine limestone and sit on the hardened clay.
On the plaque reads:
It also states:
The conical karst hills, which are the Chocolate Hills, have similarities with the limestone regions of Slovenia and Croatia, but they have, in contrast to this, no major caves. The karst theory is generally assumed that by " the sea was raised and changes under the influence of air from a biogenic reef area hilly landscape formations are formed together with terrestrial erosion, which are often riddled with sinkholes and small caves. " The Chocolate Hills would thus be a powerful example of such karst topology.
A quite similar, largely unknown and much smaller region exists, moreover, in San Carlos City, on the island of Negros, and the Osmeña Peak on the island of Cebu. In addition, a similar sediment formation in the Purnululu National Park is in Western Australia, which bears the name Bungle Bungle massif.
Legends
A total of four legends tell of the origin of this attraction:
Tourism Development
Long before the sandy beaches of Panglao island was known as a major tourist destination of Bohol as well as the entire Philippines, Chocolate Hills. For this reason ( the flagship tourist destinations ), the Chocolate Hills of the Philippine government to the " flagship tourist destinations " chosen.
Of the 1268 two hills were transformed into a tourist resort. The first is located in the municipality of Carmen, is the Barangay Buenos Aires only a few minutes from the village center to. The younger of the two is called Sagbayan Peak and is part of the town of Sagbayan.
The view station in Carmen, about 55 km from Tagbilaran City and approximately 5 km from the town of Carmen, is reported as government property and houses a cultivated plant called Chocolate Hills Complex.
The Chocolate Hills Complex has a restaurant, a hostel with a swimming pool and an observation deck that allows a view of the covered with hills surrounded area at an altitude of 210 m. A total of 214 steps lead to the observation area, built itself on one of the conical hill and allows a 360 ° panoramic view of the environment. The entire Chocolate Hills Complex has been embedded in a total of two of the hills.
The second way to take a look at the Chocolate Hills offers on the Sagbayan Peak, a mountainous resort in the town of Sagbayan about 75 km northwest of Tagbilaran City and 18 km from Carmen. This allowed a platform on an elevated ridge of an unobstructed view of the Chocolate Hills. In clear weather you can see it from here even over the sea to Cebu City.
Protection measures
The National Committee for Geology declared the Chocolate Hills of Bohol on June 18, 1988 a National Geological Monument and as tribute to the special characteristics, scientific importance, the uniqueness and the high scientific value of the landscape formation. As such, the Chocolate Hills are also designated as a conservation area in the country. With the Proclamation No. 1037, signed by President Fidel V. Ramos on 1 July 1997, the hills and she explains surrounding area in the municipalities Carmen, Batuan and Sagbayan, Bilar, Valencia and Sierra Bullones at a national monument, that it were as to protect natural beauty and to obtain valid. Order to be covered under the National Integrated Protected Areas System ( NIPAS ) ( order for national integrated protected areas). On the territory of the Rajah Sikatuna National Park Protected Landscape of the original vegetation has been preserved on the limestone cone.
On 16 May 2006 handed the Department of Environment and Natural Resources ( DENR ) (Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources ), the Chocolate Hills one to UNESCO for inclusion in the list of world natural heritage. Because of their outstanding universal value, they would fall under the seventh criterion which " contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance " is worthy.
In this context, all mining activities and quarry work within the three villages Sagbayan, Batuan and Carmen were forbidden by the provincial governor of Bohol in order to ensure in this way the protection of the area in a sustainable way.
Photo Gallery
The submerged in fog hills