surfin the Philippines??
Jan/Feb is Amihan (NE monsoon) season. Cold fronts sweeping off Japan and swells from the North. There's a shit ton of surf in the ilocos Norte province with little tourist infrastructure. We found great surf there. No white people.
Be prepared for adventure. We travelled by bus and boat and water buffalo. it;'s cheap, there's lot of friendly people with guns.
There's also surf on the Pacific side if you can find somewhere sympathetic to the prevaling winds. I won't say anymore, there is perfect uncrowded surf there for the taking.
The bus rides over the mountain passes will give you grey hairs. Fucking hairy.
Take shitt to swap with the locals and learn some tagalog. Every village will have a school teacher or baranguay captain who speaks a little english.
Jeez sounds pretty wild!
Thanks Freeride, sounds interesting!! Nothing more I like better than "lots of friendly people with guns." I guess I'll take my uzi along for the ride
one more clue. starts with P and ends with D.
pissed?
Christ, just went back there with Google Earth.....it all seems so easy now. Found a few nice set-ups we missed.
pissed, hah! looks like "Pull yr pud", kinda? Freeride, did you surf around the San juan area (think theres a camp or surf school there, or even a local contingent...) or areas south of Agno? on the west coast? And what about Baler? These places are on the whereuwannasurf sites, so hope Im not stretching the "no name, no fotos" etiquette here! cheers bud
Yes on both counts.
La Union (south China sea) is soft surf suitable for sex tourists who ride mals and that is what the area attracts.
Surf is far, far superior in Northern Luzon, as stated.
Baler has several options, none of them secret, including Charlies Point, a rivermouth that gets fun peaks.
Bit marginal in the amihan due to wind but worth a squiz. There's a solid crew of local surfers who rip and are very friendly if your cool. Great right-hand reef just out of town.
Fun town to hang in.
If you want a raw surf adventure, go try Real, Quezon. From there, you can go to Polillio Islands and General Nakar. Good waves that have been surfed by only a few. Best way to get there is to go to the Recreation Camp Park, KLM 115, Tignoan, Real, Quezon. The boys there will either take you, or point you in the right direction to some good waves. Be prepared to rough it. It's safe, but there is no infrastructure for tourism at the actual surf spots.
Just had a quick gander at that area wolly, jeez there's a lot of potential!
Does look immensely tasty.
Didn't get there or Catanduanes but no doubt there's shit tons of surf there.
It is so undiscovered out there. If you wanna find waves that have never been surfed, get out there and have a look. Cheap as chips.
I'm thinking of traveling to either Central, South America or the Philippines in February, has anyone surfed in these place at around these times and can offer some comparison?
I heard of Cloudbreak. Where in the Philippines is that?
thats Cloud Nine.
Siargao Island off NE coast of Mindanao.
thanks guys for the info... but still wondering... u think its as cheap as Bali/Indo or what?
Just as cheap as indo, if not cheaper
If your going in feb don't bother with cloud nine. Wrong winds and swell
all great info... one more thing. In Feb, boardies/rashie or a springy? Cheers
boardies and rashie all year and a hat, fierce tropical sun.
Ok, just a little update, while suckin on a Red Horse, of my Pilipinas sojourn for those of you interested. Firstly, thanks to you boarders who let me know some of the ins and outs... so, i did score a really good one-day swell at a certain spot which made the whole trip worthwhile... plus a few average days at the "capital of surfing", San Juan, and places further afield... the locals are totally amped on their surfing, and its more about the stoke than the ego (nice change from the hoardes of posers and heros in Bali)... plus just really nice people once you get past the mutual shyness. Only checked the northern parts of Luzon but was really impressed with the country, culture etc. It's really like the Mexico of Asia... great colours and kitschyness everywhere... cool as. And as for the surf... don't worry about it... go to Bali instead. The locals do want your peso's but it will be a crying shame when some of the lesser known joints eventually become Bali-like (San Juan-like!!)... ah, well, progress as they say. Oh yeah, and as one poster stated, be prepared for extensive travel... for 260 kms it took 12 hours by bus!! still, an interesting way to see the country...
ok all you experienced travel surfers out there.... I need some info on surfing in the Philippines, pronto! Just on the island of Luzon... have checked the sites and know roughly what to expect, but want to know some of the basics... as a solitary wanderer not wanting camps etc... prices, accommodation close to surf, motorbikes with surf racks? getting around etc... are there "homestays" like in "our" beloved Bali?
may be heading over in Jan/Feb... thanks guys and gals