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Baler Bay - Aurora province |
How to get there
Baler Bay is across country in the Quezon/Aurora province. Almost directly east of Tarlac on the coast. You can get there by bus via Dau and Tarlac and traveling easterly via Cabanatuan. It is though a trek of several hours. Alternatively you can hire a private car or van.
Though a trip to Baler spell quite a few hours on a bus, regardless of the direction you are coming from, it also means a visit to one of the Philippines more scenic localities. Even if you don't surf you will find Baler a great place to unwind for a while. The locals here care about the environment, the towns and surrounding areas are devoid of rubbish. You really notice the difference when you commence the climb up over the mountain into Aurora province.
Where to Stay :
Most of the resorts are located in Baler town where most tourists stay overnight. Dingalan has some beach resorts but no information is available as of now. Tourists who trek to the rest of the province either go back to Baler for the evening or stay with relatives and hospitable strangers nearby.
AMCO Beach Resort is a low-rise colonial style building with halls overlooking the driveway. Although the property is not beach front, facilities/amenities include private bathrooms and different types of bedrooms. As one of the biggest resorts around, AMCO is ideal for conferences and conventions. Rates range from P400 to P500 per night.
The Baler Guesthouse is located in Barangay Sabang, conveniently by Sabang Beach. It has seven regular rooms. There are also two public bathrooms and a public comfort room. The restaurant can seat as many as 50 diners. The resort is personally managed by its owner, Karen. It is situated right behind Bay's Inn and although it does not have a beach view, it offers its guests a private, well-landscaped garden ideal for meditation. Rates range from P300 to P500 per night.
Arguably the most popular resort in Sabang, Bay's Inn boasts panoramic views of Baler Bay, the Pacific Ocean and surrounding cliffs and beaches. It remains a favorite among foreign guests and out-of-town surfers.
Formerly known as Ocean View, this resort located in Barangay Sabang, Baler. The resort has accommodations for up to 32 guests and a restaurant that serves a maximum of 70 people. Rates range from P400 to P500 per night. They also rent surfboards for P150/day and boogie boards for P75/day.
MIA (Make It Aurora) Surf & Sports Resort
Located along Sabang Beach in Barangay Sabang, Baler, the MIA Surf & Sports Resort offers various accommodations. Five VIP rooms have their own flush toilets, showers and electric fans. There are also seven single rooms and four double rooms. There is a restaurant with a seating capacity of 100. The resort offers facilities for horseback riding and rental of equipment for surfing, windsurfing and snorkeling.
Surfing
Aurora is a paradise for surfers, with its long Pacific coastline exposed to the Pacific Ocean. The sport was made famous in the Province by the classic film Apocalypse Now. The scene in which U.S. soldiers are surfing was filmed here, and the production crew left behind surfboards for the locals to use. The locals of Baler claim that the surf is sometimes so huge that they could hear it all the way from the provincial capitol building, some 1.5 km away from the coast.
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The Baler Boys, as they are known, have been surfing since the seventies. They are more than welcoming to outsiders and though getting a wave off them is never easy they are not aggressive in the water. Take your time, relax and they will share the fruits of a superb surfing region with you.
Surfing Areas
There are numerous surfing points in Aurora, but the municipality of Baler offers most of the more accessible surfing areas with good accommodations.
Baler is also home to the country's largest Filipino surfing community, numbering about 50, although there are only some 20 surfboards in the entire town. The local surfers are always friendly and hospitable to visiting surfers, and it pays to learn from their experience with the waves in the area.
Here's a run-down of great places to surf around Baler:
Glassy right and left waves in the early mornings. Fun waves-not usually big, except during typhoons. A good site for beginning and novice surfers. The MIA Surf & Sports Resort, located by the beach, offers surfing lessons and rents out surfing, windsurfing and snorkeling equipment. They also offer tours to the best surfing, snorkeling and diving areas. more info.....
To the south of an old cement pier is a reef break just off a large rock. The area produces excellent quality right break waves over sharp reefs. It is one of the spots most frequented by Australian, European and Japanese surfers in Aurora. The sight is recommended mainly for experienced or professional surfers. Surfers are advised to wear wetsuits. Cemento Beach is usually the site of the finals for the Annual Aurora Surfing Cup. Spectators have to traverse a swamp to reach two huge rocks that provide a splendid view of surfing action. more info...
Famous for being the setting for the surfing scenes in Francis Ford Coppola's film, Apocalypse Now, Charlie's point is known for medium-quality right and left break waves on sand/gravel bottom. The waves are best from December to January. The place is within walking distance from Baler town proper, north of Sabang Beach.
Further North of Sabang Beach, Lindy's Point is a newly discovered surfing spot. The place is within 15-minute walking distance from Bay's Inn.
The tall waves were "artificially" created when local government engineers opened the mouth of Baler Bay to the town river to prevent floods during the rainy seasons. The clashing waters coming from the river and the Pacific form strong, sharp break waves that provide an exhilarating high among experienced surfers.
Surfing waves are present all year round, but the best waves come in from October to February.
The typhoon season coincides with the wet season from mid-June to November, although there are occasional typhoons in December. The area of Aurora is visited by typhoons at least 3 or 4 times a year. The typhoons blow in from the Pacific brought by the South-West Monsoon, through the South China Sea.
From October to March, the North-East Monsoon blows down from China. This is the best surf season. The hot months of May through early June bring a relatively calm sea breeze. During this time, the waves are small and are ideal for snorkeling, windsurfing and diving.
