MANILA, Philippines - Bagasbas beach in Camarines Norte seems like it has been taken straight out of a surfing flick – Bob Marley blares out of speakers while participants are called to the surf shack to pick up their boards for their surfing lessons. Bronzed, chiseled bodies line the beach, soaking up the sun. A group of teens clad in bikinis and board shorts play volleyball. In the distance, another group is throwing around a frisbee. Everyone is looking forward to the beach party in the evening with dancing and still more reggae music.
The waves come in, teasing and challenging the surfers, the constant ebb and flow lulling everyone into an idyllic, laid back vacation vibe.
Though it is not as popular as next-door-neighbor, Camarines Sur – Camarines Norte is 12th on the list of most-visited places in the Philippines, while CamSur is number one – Camarines Norte boasts of charms and hidden adventures of its own.
For one, while CamSur’s main attraction, the CamSur Watersports Complex, is man-made, Camarines Norte offers an experience the way nature intended it to be.
Bagasbas beach, for example, is the most ideal place for surfing lessons. “You should come here if you really want to learn,” says Joey Cuerdo, event organizer of the Bagasbas Beach Festival. “The consistency of the waves almost any time of the year” is what Joey says makes it the best place for beginners to learn. The surf instructors are well-equipped to teach, being the first in the Philippines to be trained by the Academy of Surfing Instructors.
More advanced surfers will also enjoy the waves on Bagasbas beach, says Ryan Vito, president of the Bagasbas United Surfers Association (BUSA). The local surfers know some “hidden spots” where the waves are – to quote Ryan in surfer-speak – “gnarly.”
Ryan adds that some local surfers have been riding the waves at Bagasbas since they were young. The 30-odd members of the BUSA are active in teaching surf clinics, joining local and national competitions, as well as surf rescue.
In the early days when the beach was starting to become a full-fledged tourist attraction, Joey says that whenever there was an accident or emergency, it was the surfers who would be first to respond. Taking notice, local government decided to give them training in surf rescue, proving that despite their laid-back nature, safety and service is still on the surfers’ minds.
Bagasbas has long been recognized as the surfing destination of choice. The first foreign visitor was documented in the 1970’s – back when, Ryan adds, the bus fare from Manila to Bagasbas was just P13.
Talking about how nice the waves are, Ryan and Joey briefly contemplate calling off classes for the morning and just go surfing themselves. But there are many people, young and old, already signed up for surfing lessons and other activities in line with the Bagasbas Surfing Festival.
Already showing signs that the beach is becoming more famous, the Bagasbas Surfing Festival is already on its third year, with more tourists coming in each year. Even sponsors have started to recognize their popularity, with Mojo sandals and Canon suporting the festival for the first time this year. Aside from surf clinics, the festival also had friendly volleyball and ultimate frisbee matches and a wall climbing competition with some of the country’s top climbers joining the contest.
The surf festival is held in line with the Bantayog Festival, dubbed as the “festival of all festivals” – a province-wide celebration, it celebrates the founding of Camarines Norte.
The festival, held from April 1 to 15, is named “bantayog” in commemoration of the very first monument to Rizal in the whole country – erected on December 30, 1898.
If riding the waves – or getting a faceful of saltwater – is not your thing, Camarines Norte has a lot more to offer, including Colasi Falls in Mercedes, Pulang Daga Beach in Paracale, Siete Pecados, and Calaguas Island.
Traveling to Calaguas Island takes a two-hour boat ride through rough and choppy waves. After what seems like an eternity at sea, with nothing in sight except a wide blue expanse, you will never be more happy to see land.
And what land Calaguas Island is. It’s main stretch of beach aptly called Mahabang Buhangin, a pristine 1 kilometer strip of sparkling white sand greets you and makes you forget the boat ride. With its cool, clear emerald waters and unblemished, natural surroundings, Calaguas Island is truly a hidden paradise.
The gatekeeper to this haven is Roberto Gonzales, an artist from Nueva Ecija who has come to settle on the island.
While popularity is already gaining in the area, the lack of upscale facilities, hotels, or other resort comforts, helps to retain its rustic, natural feel of the island. Save for a few huts, the area is kept untouched by man. Guests may decide to stay overnight, camping out on the beach in tents.
What Calaguas Island offers is nature at its purest. What Boracay “originals” lament about losing in the now overpopulated tourist spot, Calaguas still has. In fact, Roberto says, he has refused an offer from some who have developed Boracay, opting instead to run things the way he always has.
For both Roberto and his group on Calaguas island as well as the local surfers on Bagasbas beach, tourism is creating more and more livelihood opportunities. Alongside the developments that are happening, they also are aware of what makes their place unique – nature itself – and in light of this, they are also actively trying to preserve it.
“We hope to encourage people to step out of the city and see the countryside,” says Joey. In Roberto’s guest book where he asks famous guests to sign, swimmer Akiko Thompson wrote “This is heaven on earth!” summing up what Camarines Norte has that is just waiting to be discovered.
Back on Bagasbas beach, the surfers have left the water as the sky grows dark. A sound system is being prepared for the night’s beach party. Groups of sunkissed beach-goers walk idly on the shore as if they haven’t a care in the world. The waves lap at their feet, inviting them back into the water tomorrow and the next day and the next, as if this picture-perfect summer will never end.