Ilocos Adventure Ride

I always wanted to go for an epic ride to escape from the stressful day job and busy traffic of the metro, to view beautiful sceneries, feel and breathe the fresh air and play with nature.

Ilocos Province is in my bucket list. Riding many hours to see the sunrise and feeling the warmth of the sun was just the start of our Ilocos exploration.

The breathtaking sight relieved our stress and got us more excited to do different activities to see what this province has to offer. After hours of riding, we needed a full meal and we took our breakfast in Vigan. The morning heat feels like it was 12 noon but we didn’t bother, what mattered was to have a glimpse of the historical city. We did not spend much time in the city and we rode again as we will have more stops along the way to explore the province. The blue sky brightens more as the sun heats up and blew warm air. We took our lunch after a short time in the historical place of the late President Marcos. The best food there is no other than the bagnet and pakbet. A great lunch is having the best food.

Riding with the scenic panorama of the sea and mountain, strong winds forced us to ride slower. The peaceful view of the West Philippine Sea on the historic lighthouse made me sleepy. I realized if I am looking at the sea, we might be near the area where the wind mills are. This is one of the many places I wanted to see in Ilocos and one reason of this adventure ride.

While I’m getting a picture of the good views, to my surprise as I ride slowly downhill, the gigantic fan was on my right. I rushly rode down and took a picture of the clear vista underneath the wind mills. There were other group of riders in American muscle bikes but it was only me who rode further down to get near the water. Even though the sands were getting in my wheels, I still need to get closer.I took more shots, appreciated the free great view and bought souvenirs before we left the place.

We touched down Pagudpud at around 4pm. The wind kissed colder which I found weird because I’m expecting a warm temperature. As we are ordering a local empanada for our merienda in the plaza, it made me wonder why there is vinegar (I used to eat empanada made of bread). Never thought that the empanda is so yummy and I ordered another serving plus barbeque and cold soda drink. Our first day ended after almost 19 hours of travel and exploration.

Our Day 2 started with the sounds of wave, the cold wind  and the sunrise. A meal of local tapa and bagnet made our bellies full which we needed as we are traveling around to discover the town has to offer the whole day.

It is always fun to ride under the clear blue sky with the green fields and mountains around. I realized I am really in the province where there are less cars and more fresh air. The cool breeze of mountains always hides something beautiful inside. After walking far and sweating, we were rewarded with the sight of a beautiful and cold waterfall.

We took a short ride to see another man-made structure which became one of the icons of the province. I observed lots of tourists stopped there to take jump shot pictures. Why not, a picture with a great view of the sea and the zigzag road of the mountain edge is really a must-have.

As planned, we were there to experience the sand and waves of their beach. Playing with the clear blue water and white waves made me feel like I am a kid again and I also got closer to nature.

What made our day in the beach more fun was eating sea food for lunch. It was good we did some activities in the morning. When we felt hungry by lunchtime, the lobster that arrived on our table was just in perfect timing. After spending almost half of the day on the beach, we had our late merienda or early dinner I think – my new favorite, the Ilocos empanada.

Our Day 3 began with a full meal of tapa and fried rice with delicious local vinegar and coffee. It will be a long way down going home as we still have plans for fun adventure along the way. Just to spot beautiful views and take pictures for our souvenirs, we rode kilometers of rough roads and took stairs down. The morning heat felt like noon again and was just perfect for a ride. We took a break in a famous local bakery to buy pasalubong and refreshments.

The temperature heated up as we arrive in our target location at noon time. The heat did not stop us in enjoying the sand. The blue water and white sand dune provided another great view of nature.

Our road trip is full of fun and excitement. Experiencing the long journey on a motorcycle and enjoying the fun activities made it a really perfect adventure.  There will be next road trips and definitely more activities and adventure to try.

It is fun riding in the Phililppines

*This article was published in InsideRACING’s  Volume 11 Number 4  2013 issue.

By: Philip Bonza.