Libtec Crystal Cave

Quilling Crystal Cave

Useful Information

Location:	Brgy. Libtec, Dolores, Abra. (17.64496, 120.77459)
Open:	no restrictions. [2026]
Fee:	free. [2026]
Classification:	Karst Cave
Light:	bring torch
Dimension:
Guided tours:	self guided, D=1 h.
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Libtec Crystal Cave, Brgy. Libtec, Dolores, Abra. Mayor’s Office, Tel: +63-74-752-9278, Tel: +63-74-752-8081. Barangay Chairman, Tel: +63-926-403-4485.
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History

Description

Libtec Crystal Cave, also known as Quilling Crystal Cave, is a semi-wild cave which is not difficult but requires a little effort. First it’s a 30 minutes walk through rainforest to the cave, then the cave, while mostly level, has some rather low parts. Als there are bats in the cave and so a mask might be a good idea. We generally recommend old clothes, at least two good lamps, if possible a headlamp, and good walking shoes. The cave has some fame because it was published on various spelunking webbsites.

The cave is named after Libtec, the barangay where it is located, although it is actually closer to Dolores municipality. The "Crystal" part of the name is a little misunderstanding, the cave has nice speleothems, but actually no special wealth of crystals of any kind. The spelunkers explain it with "microcrystals on the surface of the mineral deposits that shines when light is focused into it". That’s quite nonsensical, as actually all speleothems like stalactites and stalagmites consist of calcite crystals, and of course there are reflections. In other words they sell an absolutely common and basic thing which you can find in 99.9% of all caves, as an exceptional feature. We can only guess it is some kind of joke, the only other explanation would be, they have absolutely no understanding for caves.

Despite being published on YouTube, there is no organisation offering guided tours. So visitors can visit either self guided or contact the Mayor’s Office or the Barangay Chairman who will help to find a local guide. The guides do not rent equipment but at least they have lamps.