Chocolate Hills across Bohol

Chocolate Hills across Bohol is an original illustration set in Chocolate Hills, Bohol, Philippines. It lies in equatorial latitudes, where the climate is tropical monsoon — a short drier season inside a wet year.

Hundreds of smooth, nearly symmetrical cone-shaped hills repeat across Bohol in overlapping rows, their dry-season grass turning warm chocolate brown. Narrow green rice plots, coconut palms and a small village occupy the flat spaces between mounds, while the repeating domes shrink toward a humid blue horizon.

Why are hundreds of nearly matching cone-shaped hills packed across this island?

The hills developed in uplifted limestone that was fractured and dissolved by tropical rainwater over long periods. Drainage removed rock along joints and low corridors, leaving rounded remnants with similar steep slopes and resistant cores. Seasonal drying changes the grass from green to brown and gives the landscape its familiar name, while farms and settlements concentrate on the flatter alluvial floors where deeper soil and easier access separate the cones.

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