A Calm After a Storm: A Weekend in Baler After a Typhoon



Baler is the provincial capital and the oldest municipality of the province of Aurora. It is one of the most famous surfing paradise in Luzon. Many local and foreign gadabouts are visiting Baler to test the waves it serves, and see the wonders it has to offer. But one day of October 2015, everything seemed to stop in Baler as nonstop intense winds and torrential rains lashes Baler due to typhoon Lando. Typhoon Lando, internationally known as Typhoon Koppu made a landfall at the province of Aurora. Public storm warning signal no.4 was raised over the province, the strongest public storm warning signal category in the Philippines.

Less than a month after Tyhoon Lando struck Aurora, we decided to visit Baler. I was with my office batchmates, and it was our first out of town destination after we got hired. It was on the night of Novermber 6 when we depart our office, just after we finished our work on that day. Going to Baler, we opted to rent a private van so we could sleep while we are on our way there. It was an 18 seater Isuzu I-Van, and we were 15 in our group so there were enough space for us to rest during the trip. However, I am the kind of person who could not easily sleep while riding a moving vehicle, especially when I am not so tired, that's why I am still awake until our first stopover at Nueva Vizcaya. It was just after that stopover where I finally got to sleep on the trip.

DAY 1
We arrived at the Balete Park at around 6:40 in the morning of November 7, just perfect sunrise lighting for the Balete Tree photos. Contrary to what we are expecting, since "ber" months are the peak months of Baler, there was only one group in the Balete Park, which were departing the place when we arrived, so we got the whole place for us.

Inside the Balete Park, you will see the Millennium Balete Tree. Though it was believed that it doesn't reached the age of 1000 years yet, its name still came from its very old age. The Millennium Balete Tree is considered as the largest Balete Tree in Asia, it was very huge that visitors (visitors - plural form) can actually go inside of it.

Millennium Balete Tree

After we visit the Balete Park, we went directly to Museo de Baler, in the street of San Luis, not to visit the museum, but to find for a place to eat. You can find a lot of eatery near Museo de Baler, and there we ate our first meal for that day, our brunch. After eating and resting for a while, we walked around the street of San Luis and found the marker of Baler. We took some group photos on the Baler Signage before going to our next destination for that day.

At around 9:30 in the morning, we arrived at the drop off point (for four-wheeled vehicles) of Ditumabo Mother Falls. You can find a lot of tricycle drivers waiting there for passengers who wants to visit the Mother Falls. One tricycle can carry at most 4 to 5 passengers, and will take around 20 minutes to the jump off point of the falls. Since we are 15 in our group, we decided to rent four tricycles to bring us there, so those who will take the backseat can have enough space and will not have a hard time holding on to their seat, since the way going there is a rough road. From the jump off point, you should trek for approximately 1 hour to get into the Mother Falls. The trail to Ditumabo Mother Falls can be compared to the trail of Badian, Cebu's Kawasan Falls Canyoneering, but a much easier because of the absence of the slides and jumps, since you have to cross the raging waters of
the Ditumabo river. While we are crossing the Ditumabo River, there were some groups who were also going to the falls at the same time, a good sign that Aurora's tourism is still alive despite after the storm. There were also some groups which were already descending that time, they told us that the falls is amazingly beautiful and the trek is definitely worth it, which made us more excited to reach the falls.

Before we went to Baler, we read that Ditumabo Mother Falls got its name because it is the grandest of all the falls in the province, and when we reached the falls, we understand why it is named as Mother Falls, the visitors we saw descending while we are on our way there were not lying, the falls is really simply amazing, the most beautiful I saw so far that time. Ditumabo Mother Falls is towering at 140 feet and showering a very cold water from the mountain range of Sierra Madre. The very cold water hinders me to stay in the water for a long time. You will still get wet even if you're not close to falls anyway if your still around that place, since the water from the falls is sprinkling all over there that time due to the windy weather which made us feel cold more. It is also the reason why we didn't had a good picture from the place, our camera always got droplets which destroys our photos haha.

Ditumabo Mother Falls

We went straight to Bayler View Hotel right after we visited the Ditumabo Mother Falls. It is a beach front hotel located just in front of the Baler's famous Sabang Surfing Beach, and few blocks away from the famous Costa Pacifica Resort. The footprints of the storm that struck the province is still quite evident going to the Sabang Surfing Beach, there were still some trees that were cut, and destroyed structures along the way. But life goes on for the locals of Baler, as hotels and restaurants workers, surfing instructors, and tour guides were still working hard for their living.

Bayler View Hotel served as our home for 3 days and 2 nights. They had everything we need while we are on Sabang's Surfing beach, from their own restaurant, the Bayler View Restaurant, up to their surfing board rentals and surfing lessons, they have it all. We occupied 5 rooms in the hotel, as their biggest room only has a maximum capacity of 3 persons. However, I noticed that the rooms we occupied have different conditions, one of the rooms occupied by my colleagues has a not so cold air-conditioning unit, however it has a much better television reception than the room I occupy where you could barely watch television. Our room however, has the coldest air-conditioning unit among the five rooms, you might not need a refrigerator to have a cold water when you stay at our room. One of the rooms occupied by my cronies has the best of both worlds, just right temperature and a good signal reception for the television, that's why it became our "tambayan" or the place we stay for most of the time when we were at the hotel.

Since I didn't have a descent sleep for that day yet, I immediately took a nap when we got into the hotel. The sun is almost setting down when I woke up, and going to the beach side is the first thing I've done. Looking at the beach, you will notice the calmness in there, a real calm after the storm, because despite the good waves and weather that Baler has to offer that time, it is quite evident that the number of people surfing in the beach is quite fewer than expected, as I said before, 'ber' months are the peak months for surfing destinations in the Philippines, and afternoon is one of the best time to surf as the waves are becoming bigger at night.

Sabang Surfing Beach View From Bayler View Hotel

I went back inside the hotel to join my friends who were playing cards at the lobby that time. It became our recreation to pass the time while waiting for the right time to eat our dinner. On dinner time, we walked around the baywalk of the Sabang beach to check for a place to eat, we saw different restaurants/eatery while walking in the baywalk, but one restaurant caught our attention which became our deciding factor to eat there, it has a Volkswagen Beetle which serves as their grill, it is the Baler Surfer Grill. Baler Surfer Grill is serving two types of surfer meals to choose from their simple yet classy menu board, the Pro which costs P200.00, and the Beginner which costs P89.00. After you put your order, you will get a number then you can wait for your freshly car grilled food (as they said) to be served in your seat. Baler Surfer Grill is an open restaurant that is quite near to the beach so you can enjoy your food while having a great beach view and a feel of sea breeze at the same time.

Baler Surfer Grill's Volkswagen Beetle Grill

After we ate our dinner, we went to our tambayan room to have our bonding session for that night. We had some chips, which were bought way back from Manila before our trip starts, and drinks which were bought from the sari-sari stores near the vicinity, but when the night got deeper and those stores became closed, we had to buy our drinks, ice, juice mix, or other things we need on the hotel's restaurant, or even on the local bars which were still open that night. It was full of stories, games, and laughter which sums up our night.

DAY 2
Because of our bonding at our tambayan room prior to day 2, we all woke up late on our 2nd day at Baler. We immediately took our free hotel breakfast when we gathered at the restaurant. The restaurant, named Bayler View Restuarant, is close to the beach that's why we had a calming view of the beach while eating our breakfast. After eating our free meal for that day, we just brushed our teeth, and none of us were able to take a bath before we went to our first destination, since we all woke up late and our driver is already waiting for us, good thing I was able to take a bath before I sleep on that night.

At around 11:00 in the morning, we arrived at our first destination for that day, the Ermita Hill. Ermita Hill is one of the most significant place in Baler, it has a very rich history which you can have a glimpse of when you visit the place. One of the most striking history that happened to that place is that it served as an escape area for the locals of Baler during the year of 1735, when the town was hit by a Tsunami and it was almost wiped out. Up to now, you can still see a signboard saying "Pansamantalang Bahay - Kanlungan na Ligtas sa Tsunami" (Temporary Evacuation Center that is Safe from Tsunami) when you visit the place. Aside from that signboard, there are Tromba Marina statues in the area which reminds the locals of Baler about the havoc the tsunami has brought and that the place serves as a safe haven during that time.

Our van was parked near the viewing deck of the Ermita Hill. The viewing deck is surrounded by cottages and pavilions where you can have a panoramic view of the Baler's Coastline since the place is elevated. You can see the whole baywalk of the Sabang Beach from the area. You can even see the Diguisit Bay and some of the Rock Formations of Aniao, which was our next destination, from the place. There is a more elevated area from the viewing deck, which can reached by climbing the 250+ steps stairs. At the mid of our climb we felt the exhaustion, we had several take 5s or 5 minute breaks, and along those breaks we saw a different kind of insect, which can be seen in several places along the climb, it is an ant-like creature which can caught your attention because of its distinct color, it is color blue. When we reached the peak of the stairs, we immediately took a rest to relief ourselves from the very tiring climb. Up there you can see a large white cross which has the following message written below it:

Vision of a Cross and Messages

What is greater than a cross for people to see and be reminded of its meaning:

The passion and death of our Lord Jesus Christ for our salvation.
The true meaning of forgiveness.
The suffering of a mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, seeing the pains and death of her son on the cross.
In our time of darkness, disillusionment, doubts, trivialities and pains.

Remember You Are Not Alone.

This message and the serenity of the place up there reminds us that despite the struggles we had in our life, including that very tiring climb we had, we never did it alone, God is always with us. It is the reason why going back to the viewing there where our van was parked seemed to be a lot easier for us.

Not far away from the Ermita Hill, which we reached within 10 minutes, is the Diguisit Bay. The marks that Typhoon Lando leaves in the province of Aurora was more evident on the way going to Diguisit Bay, as it seemed that there were no people living along the area as of that moment despite the homes, which seemed to be quite destroyed, that was present there. It may be the reason why a large number of trees destroyed by the typhoon was still in the area, as no one was there to remove and clean it. The number of people visiting both the Ermita Hill and the Diguisit Bay that time seemed to be affected also by the previous storm as there were no other visitors on these places when we got there. Maybe the persons who was supposed to visit there that time decided to reschedule their visit to a later date because they might be thinking that the situation of those places that time has not yet returned to its normal form, which might be what differs us from them, as the previous storm doesn't hinder us from visiting because we know that it is the time when we need us, the visitors, the most, plus we had a privilege to get the whole place of Ermita Hill and Diguisit Bay for us.

Diguisit Bay

When I saw the Diguisit Bay, I must say that for me, it was the most beautiful place in the province that I had ever been, in terms of its appearance, mainly because I love beaches. My love for that place increases when I realized that the place is so quiet, you can only hear the sounds of the waves hitting the rock formations on the bay. Opposite to the sands of Sabang Beach which is dark gray in color, Diguisit Beach has white sands and clear waters which will urge you to swim there. However, we did not have the chance to swim its beach because we haven't brought extra clothes that time, our van will get wet if we did. Also, despite its white sands, urging clear waters, and calling voices of its waves, the beach is full of rocks that might not be too ideal for swimming. Swimming there is not the main reason why we visit Diguisit Bay anyway, as for us, the Aniao Rock Formations is the main attraction of the place. Although we haven't had the chance to get close to all of the rock formations, as you have to cross the water to get into some of the rock islets, we had the chance to rock climb one of the rock formations, and we had an amazing view on top of it. I always had the pleasure of climbing, that's why having the beach and a place to climb at the same time made me love the place even more. My climb there became more memorable when I was able to assist some of my first time climber colleagues to climb there, plus the cool sea breeze brought by the winds when we were on the top of the rock made it one of the coolest, yet the shortest climb I ever had.

For the second straight day, we had our lunch at the eateries near Museo de Baler after we had our Diguisit Bay adventure. Then, we went back to our hotel after we had our lunch to have some rest time before we test the waves of Baler's Sabang Beach.

After having enough rest, we went on the beach side of our hotel to avail the surfing lessons our hotel has to offer. Their surfing lessons costs PHP 300.00, this includes instructor led surfing lesson and  surfboard rental for one hour, but if you're already comfortable with your surfing skills, or you just want to try it yourself, you can just rent their surfboard, without surfing lessons, in a lower price. Since that was my first time, I chose the one with instructor. There will be a short briefing with your instructor before the actual surfing begin. You must listen to your instructors carefully because what you will do in the actual surfing will depend on what you will learn from them. You should also trust them as they will be your partner for an hour or so, besides, all of the things they say and do will be for you to learn how to surf. Just like on our 1st day at Baler, there were only few visitors that were enjoying the Sabang Beach. That thing made us feel more free to move around the beach because there were not that much people which might block your way while you were surfing. I was very excited back then because that was going to be my first time to try surfing, and I really love water sports. I had actually tried wakeboarding before, which I guess is the closest sport to surfing that I had already tried. However, I was thinking that time that surfing was going to be quite harder as no strings will support and pull you, and the waves are the only thing that you will depend on to move your board. But when the actual surfing begun, I was able to complete one surf ride on my first try, unlike in wakeboarding where I fell many times before I learned how to balance the board properly.   Being able to balance myself on the surfboard on my first try gave me an incomparable feeling of pride (hehe) and happiness. I was able to do it by just listening, following, and applying all the things that my instructor told me. But there was one thing I did which my instructor did not tell me - don't rush! Take your time, do not force yourself to stand immediately when the waves started to bring your board, make sure that you can balance yourself before you get up from your board. I guess it was my secret or technique that time, and one of the most significant thing I did why I was able to balance my board on my first try. I was yelling "woohoo" all throughout the surfing lessons because I feel like a professional surfer who surfed on a wave barrel, even though I was just surfing on the small waves. I was very hyperactive that time because I really enjoyed that activity. I ended the surfing lessons with a high five from my instructor.

Sabang Surfing Beach
The sun was setting, it was already starting to be dark when we finished surfing. Everyone went back to the hotel to wash off, but I stayed on the beach since there were only limited bathrooms in the hotel and there were 15 of us who will share those limited resources. While on the beach, I was just staring on the sea, my eyes were mesmerized by the waves, and my mind seemed to be floating somewhere else, until one of my friend came to me to say that there was already a vacant bathroom. It seems that my consciousness just came back to me, it was already dark, I was not aware of the time, I was sitting by the beach for more than an hour. I head back to the hotel right away to take a bath and had a walk outside the hotel afterwards to find a place for dinner. This time, we find a place to eat not on the baywalk side, but on the streetside of our hotel, where we found Yellow Fin Bar & Grill. Yellow Fin Bar & Grill is a two story restaurant which was just few blocks away from our hotel. We decided to have meals that are for sharing so we can enjoy different foods from their menu without paying too much. We will surely won't pay too much since the price of each meal only ranges from P100.00 to P250.00 when we went there. We ordered foods such as grilled liempo, sisig, pork barbecue, and  grilled seafoods which was very delighting after a very tiring day especially after surfing.

Same on our first night, we head back to the hotel, straight to our tambayan. We again had various stories, played different games, accompanied with a little drinks, and snacks. Our trip to Baler really made us know each other more, and built our friendship stronger, not only because of our bonding sessions at night where we heard different stories of each one of us, because when we were at work, we took our breaks on the same time, we also had lunch and dinner outs where we were able to talk to each other and know each others stories. This trip to Baler, made us know each other more in the way that we are with each other for three whole days, and we see what are the things each of us normally do. Even this was just our first out of town, I guess travelling with your friends really builds your bond to each other. It was just for months before this trip when we are completely strangers, and got hired on the same company, now we have each others back.

Unlike on our first night, we decided to go outside for the rest of the night instead of just staying on our tambayan. Holy mother of stars! Baler's sky is very clear. It gets even clearer when you stare at it longer. I will say that it was not the clearest sky that I ever seen, but we were lucky enough as there was a meteor activity during that time, and we saw a lot of shooting stars. It was the only time I saw a shooting star more than once in just one night. From then, we decided to wait for the sunrise. However, not all of us decided to do this, some of us decided to rest instead. While waiting, we decided to walk on the baywalk, and explore what other things can be seen in there. It was already around 2:00 in the morning, and Hungry Surfer by Bay's Inn was still open. I decided to stay there since I want to buy a fruit shake from them, while some of my friends decided to walk further. Hungry Surfer by Bay's Inn was one of the few establishments that closes late at night back then. Their fruit shake is a must try, you will really taste the fruit it was made of since it was really made from a real fruit and not from powder. It was a go to place incase alcohol got in to you since it is also just infront of Yellow Fin Bar and Grill which was also still open around that time serving their customers who were drinking alcoholic drinks. My friends who walk further made it until Costa Pacifica, a luxurious resort around the area. We were able to see each other again when we came back infront of our hotel to wait for the sunrise. We made it until sunrise, but we were already exhausted due to sleep deprivation haha, so we immediately went to each of our rooms to rest. However, three of my friends was not so lucky that time as their day was not over yet. One of our friends who decided to sleep before us, who happens to be their roommate locked the door of their room with the key inside the room. Uh oh! We tried to wake her up but there was no way that she will be able to wake up without disturbing other guests in the hotel, the hotel staffs were also nowhere to be found, that is when the three of them decided to sleep on the lobby of the hotel.

DAY 3
After very few hours of sleep, we were forced to wake up since we need to check out from the hotel. For our last meal near the baywalk, our breakfast, we decided to eat on our own hotel's restaurant, the Bayler View Restaurant, they offered us different types of Silog (sinangag at itlog) (fried rice and egg)  for our breakfast. Eating there at breakfast was a good decision because aside from their tasty breakfast meals, their location is very scenic for a morning meal, having the best view of the beach while eating and feeling the cool breeze from the sea.

We finished our meal quickly on purpose so we could fix our things and prepare ourselves before the time of our checkout from the hotel. Once again, all the bathrooms were occupied that time, so I decided to try surfing by myself, without the help of an instructor while waiting for the bathrooms to free up. Surfboard rental without instructor was priced for only P200.00 in an hour. At first, I thought that I would easily ride the waves even without the help of the surfing instructors, since I was able to learn easily with an instructor, but I didn't. It was just by then that I realized that the surfing instructors were pushing our boards in sync with the waves to help us ride the waves, and my instructor does not taught me how to really surf. Maybe next time, I should I ask my instructor to teach me how to do it alone. Anyway, even though I don't really know how to do it alone, I have an idea how to do it, I must paddle my hands before standing on the surfboard and ride the waves, but I don't know the timing, so I just tried again and again until I got tired. I was able to ride a wave once, I don't know how I did it, I just did. However, I was not able to follow it up that or do it again that time. While surfing, one of my friend joined me, but we only shared the surfboard that I rented. I tried to be a "surfing instructor" for him, but it doesn't end really well. Just like what I did, he was also able to stand on the surfboard just once, and it was just a short one also. I guess, I was also not really a surfing instructor (hahaha), and there were still a lot of things that I could learn in surfing.

Sabang Beach Baywalk. Bayler View Hotel's Surfing Lessons booth can be seen on the leftmost part of the picture.

After surfing, we immediately took a bath, and quickly fixed our things, especially our wet clothes which we used in the beach. Surfing that morning was not the best decision I have made because of the wet clothes I have to put on my bag, but that decision is definitely worth the try. I have no regrets trying to surf alone that time, and I will never ever regret doing the things I want to do, whatever the result will be. We were quite late on leaving our rooms with regards to our checkout time, good thing the hotel staffs were very accommodating, and good enough to give us enough time to prepare to leave.

When we got in to the van, one of my friend turned on the music to bring the mood up inside the van, but it seems that it was still too quiet inside the van even with the music on, our activity last night which ended up on the morning really made us all tired. Before finally leaving Baler, we went first to Aurora Pasalubong Center which was located in the Baler Public Market compound. We bought some delicacies made in Aurora which we will brought to our homes, and in the office. We also bought souvenirs such as key chains, and ref magnets which were miniatures of surfboards with the name of Baler to remind us whenever we see those souvenirs that we once went to Baler. And hopefully, we will be able to come back anytime soon. When we went back to the van, everyone seemed to have no energy, we all slept on our way to Manila like a lifeless body. It was already around 6:00 PM when we woke up because we were hungry. Breakfast was the only meal we had that day yet, so when we saw a fastfood restaurant, we immediately had a stopover for our lunch and dinner combined. It was the last thing we've done before heading to Manila, and to each of our own homes.

This trip to Baler of ours was just the first adventure I had with my friends on my first work. Watch out for more of our adventures soon!



Estimated Overall Budget: Less than PHP 5000.00 per person.

Here's our complete itinerary last November 6 - 9, 2015:

DAY 0
11:00 PM
Depart Manila

DAY 1
6:30 AM
Millenium Balete Tree
7:30 AM
Brunch
10:00 AM
Mother Falls
2:00 PM
Check in Bayler View Hotel
2:15 PM
Rest
7:00 PM
Dinner
8:30 PM
Free Time

DAY 2
9:00 AM
Hotel Breakfast
11:00 AM
Ermita Hill
12:30 PM
Diguisit Beach + Aniao Rock Formation
2:30 PM
Lunch
4:00 PM
Free Time
4:30 PM
Surfing
5:30PM
Wash Off
7:00 PM
Dinner
8:30 PM
Free Time

DAY 3
8:00 AM
Breakfast
9:30 AM
Surfing
10:30 AM
Wash Off
12:00 NN
Hotel Check Out
12:30 PM
Buy Pasalubong
3:30 PM
Lunch + Dinner on the way
8:30 PM
Arrive Manila



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