Windy and Far-Flung Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte

October 28-29, 2007. The last stop to our Ilocos trip, though we spent less than 24 hours in this place. From Vigan City we had to ride a bus to Laoag City for an hour and a half, then another hour and a half to Pagudpud. We arrived at Polaris Beach Resort in Barangay Saud at past 5pm with light rain tailing us. From the town of Bangui (where the windmills are), you'll already feel the strong winds and see the cloudy skies ahead. I almost expected a storm ('cause that's how it felt like). The owner of the resort said that the gloomy weather is normal in Pagudpud in the months of October to December. Nevertheless, its no bad timing for me as I was able to get good shots of the beach and the weather's just fine with the sun hiding behind the clouds. Good thing the rain was light enough to ignore. The waves though are too strong even at low tide, its a bit scary swimming specially if you're not that good like me (that's South China Sea for you).




Despite the delay in arriving at the resort and a few glitches with the resort's service (paghintayin ba naman ang mga gutom), we were able to enjoy the last hours of our stay, though we weren't able to see the Cape Bojeador lighthouse and the Bangui Windmills up close as there wasn't enough time for a side trip. The long walk to the rocky beach past Saud Beach Resort and all the other hotels was comforting because of the view and the windy weather. I don't even remember seeing most of the sights though I've been to Pagudpud 7 years ago. Perhaps the weather gives it a different look... or maybe its more developed now that's why its a bit unrecognizable apart from its golden sands and strong waves.



We almost got delayed checking out of the resort because we couldn't get enough of the view. I took more than 200 shots in Pagudpud beach alone... and that's only in a span of 3 hours. Our swimming time was only about 20 minutes on our way back to the resort, and we forgot to apply sunblock. We thought we wouldn't be able to swim because of the weather, but with a beach as beautiful as this, who could resist?