Layaan Burial Cave in Poblacion, Bauko, Mt. Province

Bauko takes pride of its Layaan Burial Cave, one of the cultural sites of the community, which gives a glimpse of how locals were entombed in the olden days.

Location
Business hours
Fees
Contact details
Layaan Cave in Poblacion, Bauko, Mt. Province
How to get to Layaan Cave
Helpful local phrases
References

Disclaimer: The content of this article is based on personal and/or vicarious experiences as well as references to the date of publication. Changes may occur on contact details, transportation, fees, etc. With this, please do comment at the end of the article any updates as well as corrections on the content, anything amiss, or any information that you think is crucial to the readers. Thank you!

Location

Address: Poblacion, Bauko, Mt. Province, Philippines

Map:

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Business Hours

Usually at 0900AM-0500PM

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Fees

Contact the Municipal Tourism Office for updates and specifics. Mostly, they charge Php600.00/pax for 2 days and 1 night trekking and camping (includes different tourist spots in the municipality).

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Contact Details

Mobile phone: +63 909 744 1855 / +63 910 728 0900 (Bauko Tourism Office)
Email: bauko_tourism@yahoo.com
Social media: Bauko Tourism Office FB Page, Bauko Municipal Tourism FB Page

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Layaan Cave in Poblacion, Bauko, Mt. Province

Bauko, like the rest of the Cordillera region, has retained most of its cultural practices and unaffected by the hundreds of years of Spanish occupation in the lowlands. However, modernization slowly crept as well as the American occupation made an impact on these traditions.

One of the indigenous practices that has died is related to death. Specifically, how the body of a dead community member is treated and put to its final resting place has much changed. Fortunately, knowledge of the indigenous practices are still known to the locals and few places still exist as evidence of such olden traditions. Layaan Burial Cave, one of the cultural sites of the community, gives a glimpse of how locals were entombed before.

According to legends, the first known descendant in Bauko named Opeg, a warrior and defender of the people, was the first to be entombed in the cave [1].

So far, there are three jars and 39 wooden coffins found in the burial cave [2]. Numerous skulls and skeletal remains are also found inside.

The burial cave is an uphil 30-45 minute hike from the road. Thus, you need to bring water especially if you will go there during the dry season. Moreover, you need to practice the leave-no-trace principles.

The following are Facebook posts about the cave:

Other notable activities of interest in Bauko includes a tour of the indigenous pottery-making, Cotcot Aso, Nentingli, Spanish Trails, Toktok Allan, Pangayapang Falls, and Mount Polis.

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How to Get There

Please contact the Municipal Tourism Office (as listed above) and look for Ms. Arsenia Addon before planning to go there for a smoother itinerary and prevent delays as well as for them to be prepared.
Get to Baguio City if you are coming from the lowlands. There are a lot of options of buses and vans going to Baguio from the lowlands. Another option is to take a Codas Lines Bus bound to Bontoc. From Bontoc, take a van bound for Bauko.
From Baguio City
- GL Trans Bus (5:00AM-3:00PM) in Dangwa Station (behind Baguio Centermall) via Bauko [temporarily while the road slide in Sabangan is not yet fixed; once fixed, their buses will not ply through this route].
- Rising Sun Trans Bus (5:30AM-3:30PM) and Lizardo Trans Bus (3:00AM-2:00PM) in Slaughter Compound via Abatan-Poblacion, Bauko. Inform the conductor to drop you off in Bauko.
- Van (3:00AM-3:30PM) bound to Abatan, Bauko (take note IT IS NOT Abatan, Buguias). Their terminal is at ENCLEAN Gas Station near D’ Rising Sun in Baguio.

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Helpful Local Phrases

Good morning: Gawis ay agsapa. Good afternoon: Gawis ay masdem. Good night: Gawis ay labi.
How are you? Kumusta?
What is you name?: Hinu han nagan mo?
My name is…: Hak-en hi…
How much is this?: Kaat na na?
How can I/we go there? Ikkak ay umey hidi? (for I) / Ikkan mi ay umey hidi? (for we).
Thank you: Iyaman.
Help!: Tulong!
Sorry: Pasensya.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten: Eha, duwa, tulo, upat, lima, enem, pito, wa-o, hiyam, himpu.
I don’t understand. Adiak maawatan.

If you notice, most of the ‘s’ words are changed to ‘h’ except for those non-Kankanaey words.

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Acknowledgement

The author wants to acknowledge Nomadic Highlander, both Mt. Province locals, for the images used in the article. You can find him on Twitter (@igorotforlife [Nomadic Highlander]) and YouTube (Nomadic Highlander) for more of his content.

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