Living
in Surigao del Sur (SdS) is a privilege surrounded with all the beautiful
destinations not yet known to everyone. Exploring north of SdS did not cross my
mind until I have known that my two favorite travel bloggers were visiting the town of Cantilan. It was just a supposed a casual meet up with Lois and
James that I decided to drop at the place known as the "Cradle of Town". I took this
opportunity as well to meet again my newly found friend from Cantilan Bank , Cathe
Duero, whom I always planned to travel with but our time wont just permit us
for so long now .
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Meeting James and Lois |
Cantilan
is one of the oldest communities that were organized in Surigao Peninsula established in early 18th century and once encompasses the municipalities of Carrascal, Cantilan, Madrid, Carmen and Lanuza , better known as Carcanmadcarlan . I have passed Cantilan countless times during my scheduled trip to Surigao City, and I have never
heard of any wonders that this sleepy town offers until the Cantilan’s 5th
Surfing Festival. I have always thought that is was only the Municipality of
Lanuza that offers such water sports festivity that could actually produce waves
suited for international surfing competition.
My Dream Meet Up Turned not so 'Up'
Excited
with our meet up, I gave in with the invitation of my friend and stayed at
Cathe Pacific, Cottage by the Beach, courtesy of Cathe Duero. It was a long
week of surfing competition attended by regional participants and those surf
enthusiasts coming from far places in the Philippines and even from other
countries. I could only hear all about surfing gigs and challenges that the
locals and visitors had done for the day including my fellow travel bloggers
James and Lois and their friends.
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Cathe Pacific at Baybay, Cantilan,Surigao del Sur |
I wasn't mentally ready that day to hit the waves and
check on my progress with this sport so I declined the idea to visit the surf
sites in the area.Besides my attention that day wasn't focused on the activity
but with the bunches of work I left at the office that I have to provide
solutions the soonest possible time .
I
stayed for an overnight at the resort but returned back to our office in San
Miguel the next day to finish some tasks. After completion I head back to
Cantilan to check on the place again. This time I was fully relaxed and willing
to get wet by the sea water and enjoy the scenery of the silent wonder.
Sea Food Delight
That night we hit the local market of Cantilan for something we could cook for dinner. Fresh seafoods are displayed at the pantry and each type of seafoods really enticed me to buy more , but opppsss check the budget please! I was so surprised to see the adult size of Danggit Fish and thought it would suit best my ever favorite "fish cooked in veneget spiced up by the special bulb species of Molluccas" or better known as PAKSIW! lol. Cathe also brought 3 giant prawns for a soup for that night that made our dinner even more sumptuous and delightful with matching glass of red wine to conclude the night.
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Fresh sea foo\d at Cantilan's Public Market |
Beach ka lang, Cantilan is Super Beach!
The next day, me,
James and Cathe simply enjoyed each other’s company goofing around with our
attempt to record a video preparing a shake for the enjoyment of avid readers.
But fate was so unfriendly that day when our ice blender did not work so we shifted to fruit
coolers instead. Hahahaha.
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Care to be hit by these waves , it is really more fun in the Philippines! |
Given
with a good weather that afternoon, we chose to take a splash and hit the great waves
of the beach. The place may not have pure white Boracay typed sands, but playing
with the gigantic but harmless waves established the highlight of the day. I have
never attempted to go on head to head collision and be swept by 6-9 foot waves in my entire
life, but that day, a challenge against my fear came to life. That wave tripping
gave me a chill of adventure of a lifetime. (You should try this too!) All we can hear were our loud
cheers hoping that our fearless attempt of hitting the waves would be captured
by the camera.
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Awesome view of the the shore of Baybay, Cantilan, Surigao del Sur |
I
never thought the waves on that local shore could go higher to even twice of my
height and rushed against my frail body. There was one particular series of waves
that hit me, making me twirl literally underneath as if I was a garment placed in a running washing machine . The adrenalin rush reached its peak flowing into my veins giving me enough energy to conquer each waves that hit me. It's been a while since the last time I experienced this elevated liveliness. Drowning never even came through my head knowing the waist high water of the beach is safe and uniformed. I never imagined that I could ever
have more fun in Cantilan's beach compared to other famous white beaches in the Philippines.
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Delectable barbeque at Larshian in Cantilan |
We
went back to our cottages energy drained and almost powerless but very much satisfied. To regain our energy we hit
the town's famous and equivalent to Cebu’s Larsian - Cantilan’s Larshianan near
the town proper. We munched on our favorite chosen chicken part and pork barbeque for a satisfying dinner that night that only cost us P220 for the three of us. (end of Part 1)
More
stories of Cantilan adventure soon, wait for my post on Ayoke Island.
Great photos! Will definitely explore Cantilan as soon as I will be in Mindanao once again..
ReplyDeleteThe waves look really strong and powerful. No wonder they hold surfing events here. Nice to see PTB members meeting up.
ReplyDeleteThere's no place as refreshing as the beach and it's even more delightful to see fresh sea foods. This is such a paradise that's truly worth visiting.
ReplyDeletei seldom share posts but when it comes to travel and discovering hidden beauties of our country, i don't mind sharing it. i could really feel you when you were chronicling your experience in this great beach.
ReplyDeleteWow great place, parang nasa ibang bansa :-)!
ReplyDeletethanks che, we really need to unveil the reality and change the notion that mindanao is a dangerous place, in fact it is a beautiful paradise :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Ephraim .. i hope to bump with you somewhere here in Mindanao ... hope to see you soon.
ReplyDeleteI was in San Agustin(Britania)SDS last August and reading your post made me check google map and found out that it was just 122 KM from Britania. Indeed Surigao del Sur are really blessed with natural beauty. So many reasons to go back and explore SDS.
ReplyDeleteThe waves are terrific, talk of being one with nature. The first photo is very nice.
ReplyDeleteAnother paradise waiting to be discovered but hopefully not ruin by too much commercialism..
ReplyDeleteI terribly miss that fresh fish and the beach. I hope the wonderful places in Mindanao will be discovered and be included in the top tourist destinations.
ReplyDeletewow amazing views I love the beach it seems like you can surf there, because the wave is just awesome.
ReplyDeleteWOW big waves and good food! I hope we can visit that place soon
ReplyDeleteheard of Cantilan but I never thought the beach is so beautiful. Wow! I love to visit the place
ReplyDeletehttp://www.prettyclaire.info
the place, the food, the ambiance.. oh my! kakainggit ha?! next time, kami naman itour mo dyan ok? lol
ReplyDeletewow, big waves! how come nobody did tell us about Cantilan when we were in Surigao del Sul few months back? hmm...maybe I can opt for Cantilan instead of going back to Britania then. :D
ReplyDeletekakatuwa. lumiliit na talaga ang Pilipinas sa dami ng mga byahero or bloggers in particular. nagkikita na sa mga lugar na di gaano napupuntahan. sa mga ganitong lugar kahit kumain matulog lang ok na.
ReplyDeletehope to meet you soon domz, kain tulog din tau , lol :)
ReplyDeleteLove the first photo! so serene!
ReplyDeleteI also love going against the waves but not necessarily the 9 foot high variety.
ReplyDeleteas i would like to sleep just few walks by the beach i just cant! im scared closing my eye and hearing the beach waves at night is just not good for me in the morning its cool though hihi
ReplyDeleteThe waves are just breath taking to watch :-) Beautiful pictures :-)
ReplyDeletehttp://www.homecookingwithjessy.com/how-a-tutor-can-makes-a-big-difference-in-your-life/
OMG! you are really someone to envy - travels, socializing, food, adventure!!! I love that bbq too!!!
ReplyDeleteYou really captured beautiful places and beaches too. Galing!
ReplyDeleteThat silhouette shot is amazing! And the fish, so fresh, bring me there!!! - Marie
ReplyDeletegot a question for you, what are the chances of finding something on the beach with running water, and hot showers?
ReplyDeleteHi John , if you worry about running water from the faucet, i think some houses in the area have or at least they have wells as source of fresh water. Hot shower is something i doubt you can find. The place is very much "tropical" :D
ReplyDeletehot shower i will not worry for then, I saw that there is a small hotel downtown, might opt to stay there at night, and on the beach during the day.
ReplyDeleteyes there is a small pension house in Cantilan ...I suggest for you to visit the nearby islands , better beaches and scenery like the Ayoke Island, Huyamao , and Iniyakan Island. There is also a secret blue lagoon in General island :D
ReplyDelete