4 videos I managed to take with left hand on the camera and right hand on the throttle. This is just a small part of the river Now I tried level 2 Trying to get closer to Mayon, I thought that's enough of the scoot getting wet right after I almost sank. On the other side of the road. Dead end for me upon reaching a quarry site. Sad thing the former farmers turned to quarrying. The story about this will be told in awhile.
After trying to tire myself and ensure a good night sleep. It was time for a beer, went to a store nearby and had a strong beer with "no that is not an orange" it's boiled egg wrapped in flour with coloring, and what most westerners wouldn't try, cow instestines wrapped in flour Forgot to post this earlier, this swamped play park gives me the creeps. Located within the Cagsawa property. Time to go back and give the scoot a break it deserves. This is where I spent the night. Still trying to drain myself, took a quick dip
Just at about 6:00PM I was just relaxing within the area and had a chat with one of the employees of the property. Jo was her name. I asked about what lies beyond the stone wall, she claimed it is now called "No Man's Land" This happened in 2006 or 2007 (can't remember exactly) when a freakish heavy rain resulted in a flash flood throwing down volcanic soil all over the villages and rice fields. :eek1 Amazingly, Cagsawa ruins was the only place spared from the flash flood. No wonder there was this house just near the entrance filled with sand, she claimed that it was just unearthed that's why I was able to see it. She was one of the survivors who was rescued from the roof of a neighbor's 2 floor house. Now this is why the farmers are now relying on quarrying as their livelihood, there are no more farm lands to plant rice, not like the rich land owners who managed to rent plowing machines and bulldozers to revive a couple of hectares of their farm land. I couldn't help feeling depressed when she said they are slowly rebuilding tourism in Legaspi and farmers giving up on what they used to do. As she said "This has already happened a long time ago, and history repeats itself". Upon listening to her stories of casualties including one of the employees, and a lot of other residents, an old woman employee interrupted us and said there is a scheduled brown out from 7PM to 10PM. :eek1 Great!!!, this is just what I need it's 6:30PM I'm eager to get some rest then I hear creepy stories of how people died a few feet from where I stand, and there'll be a blackout a few minutes from now... By the way, I'm the only guest spending the night, Jo and the older woman employee will be replaced by 2 nightshift male caretakers who I don't know. 7PM and it's already pitch dark, good thing I managed to bring my LED headmount flashlight I guess you have an idea how I slept during the night...or did I?
8:45AM and it's saddle time once again. Breakfast will be on the road, or will there be one?... As I bade goodbye to the staff of the lonely resort riding through the country side was pleasant as I am more able to enjoy the views now. Still managed to make a few quick stops just for gas, drink and photos, I was sort of challenging myself if I could make it home before dark as travel time to Cagsawa took me 11 hours. I will see you again Majestic Mayon, perhaps one day on my way to Sorsogon Upon going back the terrible road from Naga, I was hearing a squeaking noise. Stopped for awhile, and found out that the luggage rack has taken it's toll. Top luggage was only carrying stuff 2 kilos more or less, (Manual says 3 kilos). Wonder what the manufactures has to say about this...probably "For city use and decent motorcycle riding only" As I exit Camarines Sur As I exit Bicol region A view of the ocean on the way to Gumaca never fails to make me smile. Had to stop again at Quezon National Park "Ëme" as the luggage rack is beginning to hit my tail lamp. Took off the few stuff and placed it in a plastic bag and hung it on a hook located in front of my scoot's foot rest. Took a few pictures of the surroundings as well The famous steep and winding roads of Eme Those were the last pics I was able to take on the way back. Paced faster than I was the day before, I was home by 6:00PM!!! I was surprised. Now it's time for a couple of beers with a few friends and it's story telling time. Till my next ride report...
This ride took place about 2 years ago. Going to Sagada or long rides on a scooter is a first time for me. Lots of people do this regularly and surely we could do it too. At last after the long wait, we were able to pursue the ride to Sagada. ETD was supposed to be at 12:00AM of July 30 expecting that travel time would take awhile. Coming home from work in the shop till 7PM, I knew I had to at least take a few hours of sleep before taking off. Excited about the trip, I laid down the bed with my eyes closed but with a smirk on my face, imagining our journey which was to commence in a few hours. Sleepless, I stood up at 11PM and to my disgrace upon looking out the window, the rain was pouring hard. The plan was to ride rain or storm but at the back of my mind, I somehow know that some would be hesitant to push through. Drank coffee while smoking in front of the house hoping that the rain would stop. Psyching myself that when it rains hard, it won't last long and good weather always follows. 1 AM and still no one was replying to my text messages. Guessing that my companions decided to just sleep instead on the rainy night. 1:30AM and finally 2 of my friends finally showed up all wet from the travel from their houses to my home, again the excitement rushed back! Also another sleepy head ride companion finally woke up after 6 calls and several text messages. Soon the rain started to settle down a bit, all geared up we were able to take off at 2AM with a slight drizzle leaving behind 3 friends who were supposed to join us with all the excuses you could imagine but we knew deep inside...they were just too scared to ride in the rain Upon entering Edsa it was clear skies and was all good vibes for us riding in the dark with our grinning faces concealed by our helmets. I'm a person who could barely remember directions so somebody else had to be the spear head and guide. We had to divert Mc Arthur Bridge "I think was the name" for us to reach Bulacan where a bridge was under repair, other than the diversion road, our spearhead knew another route where we would pass through residential areas to skip the congested diversion road. Tight roads and it was really dark and to be honest, it was creepy as sometimes, there were only 2 to 3 houses in a long dark stretch. HID lamps fitted on my scoot served me well . It was time for us to gas up, paranaque to bulacan consumed half a tank of gasoline. Note that a full tank would roughly cost Php 150-160, amazing fuel efficient machines aren't they It was a cold cold night and wasn't really aware that we we're already in Pampanga, then reached Tarlac at the break of dawn to take our first cup of coffee. Checked my index card sort of list that I made indicating the towns that we would pass by and was still wondering where this Pugo road is, it didn't take us long to reach Pugo and I came to my senses that it is the road I passed 2 years ago going to the Baguio motorcycle convention, now I am really confident that we won't get lost. We were blessed with good weather all the way, but still going up baguio on a motorcycle in the wee hours of the morning is really cold. Upper perforated leathers didn't do much of a job in giving me warmth. It was mostly good roads in marcos highway with a few spots that needs to be cemented. It's one helluva break in for my scoot climbing slowly. This ride report could also serve as a scoot comparo between my Yamaha Mio 115cc to a Suzuki Sky Drive 125cc, the more torquey Suzuki proved to be a much better performing scooter on climbs and long stretches but...fuel consumption, let's just say that the Yamaha Mio has an advantage of half a tank of petrol Front suspension, Suzuki wins but still, both are a pain in the hand and arms and is enough to shake the brains inside your skull, rear suspension-single sided swing arms and mono shock gives you a sort of feeling that your rear tire is under inflated while on twisties. Pictures to follow
Becoming a tourist again Finally after 8hrs of saddle time and a few breaks, our first leg of the journey was over. I still know how baguio exactly looks like from my visit 2 years ago, but what is baguio if you dont visit the usual tourist spots. Still tired and chilling, we opted to do a little tour and went to Camp John Hay and Mines view park. The Sagada leg (July 3110) Woke up 7AM freezing, whats the best thing to do Torture yourself by taking a cold shower to wake up the body Took a quick breakfast with hot benguet brewed coffee and hit the saddle. Passed by Cathedral of Our Lady of Atonement yet better known as Baguio Cathedral to say thanks and ask for blessings for a safe ride. Theres nothing like cruising these long and winding roads enjoying the sceneries on a scooter. Here we had to stop for some picture taking and a cigarette break. The water was really refreshing and it didn't take long for everybody to be tempted and took a quick shower in the freezing water.
Before, I really dont understand that much about the fuss in Sagada, but now I realized that the journey itself en route to our destination says it all. Heres the mountain views. Truly majestic. Reached the highest point and took some pictures for bragging rights to some of our friends who failed to come with us.
On the road again, we had to pass through patches of mud and dirt roads from time to time. Here we were closing in on our target destination, another endless ascend of rough roads mostly loose gravel and clay like soil. Truly a punishment on the scooter. It felt like riding a jack hammer while on this road. Land mark touchdown The last stretch of paved road leading to the town offered a feeling of pure serenity, this is guaranteed to make anyone sigh and smile while passing through. First things first, look for an affordable accommodation to lodge our back packs and look for food. We ended up booking at Georges which offered a clean decent room with shower , satellite TV and a terrace with a good view for Php 200 The room could be considered great for any back packer on a budget. Most shops were closed due to lean season and finding a place to eat was limited to 2 or 3 café/carinderia at the moment. Price is a bit high for taste value and what Id expect it to be for a carinderia. This made us utilize the camping stove we brought and will just cook our own dinner. The locals though are very friendly but expect to have a communication barrier if you are to speak in tagalog, I think they understand English better. Took a scoot ride again to tour the surroundings, this time on shorts to torture myself further from the cold weather. We can see the hanging coffins from this side of the road. Its also not hard to take notice of the amazing rock formation on where the coffins are nestled. My companions thought of taking a power nap before getting ready for dinner but restless me went out for a walk enjoying every moment that I have, observing the culture and feasting my eyes on the truly spectacular sights. I was also hoping to drop by yoghurt house and try their specialty but sadly, they closed at around 5:30PM. As dusk approached we took out some canned goods we have brought for contingency and cooked in the room terrace, dinner was gone in 60 seconds . Cold weather, hanging out in the lanay called for a drink that would heat up our chilling bodies, Gin! It was great chatting and reflecting about the adventure, with a few drinks on a cold night where the only sound we could hear were our voices and a couple of dogs barking from afar. It was lights out for most of the residents at 6 or 7PM. Day 3-Time to tour the places we can with the short time that we have left and was not able to go to bomod ok big falls anymore. Here we visited Sumaging cave and went spelunking for a guide fee of Php600 for the 5 of us. We opted for option 1 which is without the cave connection due to the limited time we had. It lasted for about 2 ½ hours, expect to get wet in freezing water until waist level or higher, a few rope climbs and rope descends. Here we were told to take off our sandals and shoes, I was thinking wouldnt our feet hurt? We later found out that from this point, lots of climbing, crawling, and steep descends are to be tackled and the lime stones offer tremendous grip on bare feet, like a Velcro effect, now I know what it feels like to be spider man. Very interesting rock formation Call me weird but the stench from bat guano that annoyed my friends somehow reminded me of the smoke scent of inihaw na bangus (Milk fish) . Finally it was time to wrap it up, bought bugnay wine which tasted like sweet red wine at first sip but would leave a sour aftertaste. Off to Baguio-Manila riding at a steady pace reflecting on the journey we made left an experience that was tattooed on my mind. Ive been riding motorcycles for quite some time already, but going on a scoot, even if travel time was an issue made me appreciate the details and beauty of all the surroundings motorcycle touring has to offer. Till my next adventure Cant wait
Will be going to the PI in Dec. I haven't been back there since 1973, when I left as a 6 year old kid. Are there any places where you can rent motorcycles and scooter in Dagupan city?
Nice to know you'll be visiting soon bro. Anyway, regarding motorcycle rentals, you might want to get in touch with "Hercules" I bet he'd know the whereabouts of MC rentals.
Sorry inmates this picture RR has been long overdued, the PDW (Philippine Ducati Weekend) was last May 19-20. This was the time another inmate fierestf (Frances) was here in Manila for other matters and had a chance to join the PDW. We started out early that Saturday morning at the Burgos Circle in Fort Bonifacio. A motorcade was mostly Ducati bikes participated with a handfull of non Ducati brands. The motorcade started from Makati and rode all the way to Clarkfield in Angeles, Pampanga. Here are some pictures during the grouping up before the motorcade..... And more pix before the motorcade started.... A Philippine actor, Dingdong Dantes who rides a Diavel... And finally, the motorcade starts! That's Dingdong Dantes on his Diavel. Inmate Frances on the right side background.. Another pix of her in the background...
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Sorry im so slow to reply to your post about Bantayan , Boracay, Palawan . I was supposed to go to Boracay this trip but it didn't happen . One of my good friends at Santa Fe here lived on Boracay for a long time before shifting here , he said just to many tourists there, All of my friends who have been to Palawan loved it . Im nearly 4 months into a 6 month stay here , I love Santa Fe on Bantayan , it a good community of people and if yr an expat they all speak english , where as if u go to a bar on Bohol with expats there most of the time they r speaking German . I have some good pics of this trip so will load some more . I rent a 3 bedroom house inc a suzuki multicab for 8,000pesos a month plus power which costs another 600p . As for moto rental I would just buy a XR200 or similar bike and sell b4 u leave .Cheers Toddy
Finally made sense to get a small dual sport machine and stop punishing the scooter. 2 days before baptism of fire Giving the scoot a break from abuse Typical sunday breakfast scene in Marilaque Typical public transportation in Philippine provinces I am 5'10" and am tip toed if on the XR200. Didn't imagine the bike would look this skinny though Eroded road way back, and it sill is the same now Typical Philippine provicial road side scenery...beautiful Saw this on the side of a bridge. Water from the water falls and the river is a bit dry compared from rainy season to February. But this will do. This bridge is where we were when we spotted the mini falls. No entrance, no problem. Road barriers ain't enough to stop an eager adventurer. Managed to slip the bike and 2 scoots at the side of the barriers and curb. Terrain was steep and tires offer not much grip from loose rocks and soil. Able to talk my friends to punish their scoots as well. A friend on a scoot managed to cool off on nature's jacuzzi On the road again to explore much more on what lies on the side and back roads of a commonly passed biker's ride destination. Big river spotted on the left side of the road. So there we went. Scooters go first for photo ops The terrain down below. River rocks, round and loose. Almost no control of the bike here. Friends drink and be merry, no beers this time. Probably next time when we camp.
Carlo, You will enjoy the XR-200. I got one in 2004, and it has been a good bike. You should think about some after market hand guards to save the fingers and levers in the event of a drop. Also, carry a good tire guage and a small air pump, you will find that lowering the tire pressure when riding the dirt and river beds makes it a lot better. But, be sure to air the tires back up when you get back to pavement. I have enjoyed your posts and photos, I know that is going to a high miles XR-200 soon. Keep the ride reports coming.
Im 4 months into my 6 month stay so will share it with yous . My main transport is my Kenji Superbike , a far more socially acceptable form of transport here . 1st flat tire so I waited on side of road and a man goes past and says " Stay there Sir and I bee the one to repair for you". No call out charges here . o This is the home and suzuki im renting Bocnut and Hanna love to get here pics taken . Kids here are special compared to my country. This is the view from my friends home . We have a few drinks looking at this view . This girl is 1 of my neighbours , works so hard , I appreciate turning on he tap and getting running water and not having to carry it from the well . Sugar Beach at Santa Fe Fish Ponds Things were not going so good with my girlfriend here so I found a better 1 Elvie Elvie and her work mates Its not what you have in life , Its the pride u take in what you have that counts and the people of Marikaban take a lot of pride in their village . Sari sari store This coastal road is my favorite ride
