white beach malamawi island basilan

i have never been to any beach as many times as i did in Malamawi island's White Beach. there was not one summer that i missed going to this beach years back. we would usually go there twice a month during summer.
the best thing is it only takes about 10minutes boat trip and less than an hour road trip to this beach from the city. isolation on weekdays but one busy beach during weekends. on this year's trip, since we arrived in Basilan on a Friday, immediately we went to White Beach as i knew how people would flock to this beach on weekends.
while doing this post i'm holding one of the old pictures taken there. in the photo, my father, uncle Noli Hizon, uncle Amado Lim, uncle Danny Lim, Danny Tan and uncle Joy Eisma and the rest of the family. my father's usual companions who were there for one thing. snorkeling.
growing up going to the beaches with our father was the major reason why i love the beach. why i love snorkeling, shell picking, sand forming, jumping on waves, picnic, swimming.photo above shows erick taking photo of the beach coast. photo below shows lawstude checking the sand quality.but like most part of Basilan, safety remains to be the most important consideration. one needs to check the situation before going there. when one books a ride from the island dock site to the beach, some armed security are usually provided.
this was different from my trip years back. i remember that we would bring motorcycle to the island and drove our way to the beach. at once we even tried walking from the dock site to the beach. after my high school graduation, our whole class actually went by boat directly from the city. it took about an hour.
the beach has not changed much after years. clean water, fine white sand and the sea breeze of the Basilan strait. only some new cottages, new road route, some beach flags. still one of my favorite beach in the country.
how to get there:
from Isabela city:
option 1: take a boat trip from Isabela city's boat dock site for Malamawi bound trips. it is just a short walk away from the main dock site of ferries coming from Zamboanga. Isabela dock site to Malamawi pier (10minutes or less). from the pier, if you've arranged in advance for a pick-up, they will pick you up from here for an hour or less trip to White beach.
option 2: rent a boat from Isabela city pier Malamawi bound that will bring you directly to White beach. warning: this can be risky as waves are most of the time big for this route. this less recommended.

important note:
it is advisable to check first the situation in the island before setting a visit. i also recommend that you know of someone from the island who can guide you around.

location:
island: Malamawi
province: Basilan
take off point: Isabela city

GPS location:
6^ 44" 45' N
121^ 57" 54' E