Pagudpud beach is really nice. When I arrived on Thursday it was totally deserted. On Friday it filled up with Filipino tourists.
Being alone, I was bored after my first day. What exactly is one supposed to do at a beach? Sunsets and sunrises are nice. Between those times they are hot, sweaty places. And this beach had nowhere to sit in the shade.
Luckily, the countryside is said to be particularly scenic. Since I didn’t have my own transport, I arranged for the trike guy who took me to my homestay to take me on a tour the next day.
Tricycle Tour
He had a laminated sheet advertising a North and a South tour. He wasn’t clear that he would take me on both, which doubled the price. Most of the sites were on the South tour. The North tour was just the windmills, which were very far away. Still, it was a good way to kill the day away from the hot beach.
It’s always good to do these sorts of things early, when the sun is low. That was particularly true for our first stop, a waterfall. Now I’m not that fond of waterfalls. I’ve seen so many that I’m pretty burned out on them. But I like to think of waterfalls as an excuse to go for a walk in the countryside.
An Idyllic Walk To The Waterfall
Filipinos are very organized, and so it was at the start of the waterfall walk. There was a queue of local guides waiting to take the mostly Filipino tourist groups. The prices were set and clearly posted. No worries about being ripped off here!
The morning walk was extremely beautiful. We walked past carabao and rice fields full of farmers planting rice. A river roared nearby. There were small village churches. I stopped for some tasty fried bananas. The last portion was through forest. As expected, the waterfall was nothing special. But the walk more than made up for it.
And The Rest Of The Tour
In fact, the rest of the tour paled in comparison to the waterfall walk. My driver took me to a big rock arch, the overdeveloped and over ziplined Blue Lagoon, the viaduct along the cliffs, and finally the windmills. I’d suggest not visiting the windmills, which would cut the price in half.
Pagudpud is worth the Amazing Race effort required to get there. It’s a good place to spend a day at the beach, and another day touring the countryside. To make travel easier, there’s an airport in Laoang. Also, there’s a long direct overnight bus connection to Manila.
