Journey to Middle Earth

We traveled across Luzon to chase sunsets in Zambales and sunrises in Aurora. Being a girl didn’t stop us from committing on this trip. When we came across locals and told them that we were traveling on our own, they were amazed. How we made this trip possible? We packed our selves a bag of courage. First on our itinerary is to spend 1 night in Nagsasa Cove then another night in Anawangin Cove. Zambales is popular for camp sites like these two coves. It attracts mostly those coming from Luzon. It wasn’t originally part of the itinerary but we decided to embark on this camping trip before going to Baler since it will only take 2 hours and 30 minutes to get to San Antonio, Zambales from Clark.  

How we got there.

From Clark airport, we took the jeepney going to Dau terminal. Paid 50php each. From Dau terminal, we hopped on a bus going to Olongapo and paid 140php each. In Olongapo, we transfered to a bus going to San Antonio and paid 44php each. In San Antonio, we alighted at the waiting shed beside the municipal hall. We waited for the tricycle driver who will take us to the market and to Brgy. Pundaquit (the jump-off point to Nagsasa and Anawangin Cove). We already made an arrangement with JR Agasa (contact #09173809104) for this camping trip. The package costs 1600php per person. The package would be cheaper if you are in a bigger group. The package includes the following:

• Rountrip boatride in Nagsasa and Anawangin Cove (overnight stay)
• Tent
• Entrance fee for the two coves
• 5 gallons of mineral water
• 10pcs (big)ice with cooler
• Cooking wares
• Woods for bonfire
• Charcoal

Preparation

Before we jumped on the boat going to the cove, we first visited the market and bought supplies. It includes chicken, hotdog, shrimp (my favorite), pork, bbq sticks, banana, rice, paper plates, plastic spoons, plastic cups, oil, sugar, salt, tomatoes, butter, garlic, soy sauce, lettuce, mayonnaise and charcoal (we weren’t informed that it was already included in the package). We paid more or less  a total of 800php. These are easy-to-prepare food. Most of which we just grilled except for the shrimp which we cooked on a pan with a melted butter on it – my favorite meal on this trip. There’s a very limited supply of energy in the cove. Best to charge-up all your gadgets beforehand. There are charging stations though and it costs 50php. It’s zero signal in the cove which means total cut off from the world outside.

Nagsasa Cove

From Pundaquit alone, you will already see beautiful orange/yellow mountains. The mountains are mostly covered with orange/yellow grasses. Should I worry or should I be amazed? I’m not sure. It just looks so beautiful because I don’t see mountains like this in Cebu or in any other places that I’ve been to. We were so lucky that the sky was clear and the sun was up that day and the day after that that it gave us vibrant colors of the mountains and the sea. The water wasn’t that rough too.

And this is our journey to middle earth…

Took us almost an hour to reach Nagsasa Cove. It was like watching a movie in theater. We were seated there in a small boat as we sailed on to the endless breathtaking view of huge rocks and mountains. It was so surreal. And then the music starts playing at the back of my head. The soundtrack from the movie The Hobbit. If you are a fan of the movie, you’ll know what I mean :).

When we reached Nagsasa, we were greeted with a very beautiful cove surrounded with orange/yellow mountains, pine trees, friendly Aetas, beautifully built cottages (rental fee costs 100php), a few stores, a long stretch of white sand beach, and a few campers. I LOVE THIS COVE!!! Here’s a tip, go there on weekdays if you want to enjoy the cove all to yourself. A hammock was set-up near our cottage and we had an overflowing water nearby. Yes, overflowing and never ceasing. We had a well-maintained comfort room all to our selves too. We can go there anytime we want without falling in line because no one else is using it. We saw a few other campers but they are located on the different area of the cove. In our area, it was just us and a few local Aetas. They were very friendly and always smiling. After having our lunch (we need to recook our grilled chicken because it was still raw on the inside but burnt on the outside), we hiked up to the very end of the cove and found ourselves a lovely stream. Before sunset, we climbed up a hill on the opposite end to see the whole breathtaking view of Nagsasa. We hired a local Aeta to be our guide who allowed us to pay him with just any amount. We agreed to give him 100php and he was contented and happy with it. His smile is genuine and contagious. We climbed down the hill as the sun was also about to set. We enjoyed swimming on the beach with two local kids who were happily playing as we bid farewell to the beautiful sun as it disappears to the horizon. The night was almost perfect if it weren’t for the noise created by the karaoke machine that cuts through the silence of the night. Despite the noise, we were still able to enjoy the sound of the waves crashing to the shore and the strong howling of the wind. Then the night took us to the world of dreams unworried and happy. We thought we’ll be having lots of food left to eat for the next day because we consumed a little of what we had brought. Morning came. Beautiful, simple and relaxing. But we were caught off guard when we saw our cooler open, our garbage scattered and to our surprise, half of our food supply was gone. The hotdog and pork we prepared that night were all gone. I suspected it was a cat because I heard a cat when I woke up. We weighed our options and decided to save our remaining food for lunch and dinner. So for breakfast we just ordered noodles, tuna and hot coffee for two from the store nearby and paid 165php.

Anawangin Cove

After breakfast, we moved to Anawangin Cove. To our dismay, the place was already crowded. From a private area with open view of the beach, we are now in a crowded camp site with fences blocking the view of the beach. No more overflowing water nearby and a hammock for us. No more private CR. We have to line-up each we will use the CR. We explored the forest part of the cove which we enjoyed the most. We also went up a hill again to see the whole view of the cove and hired a guide for 100php. He originally asked for 150php but we haggled to make it 100php. We again witnessed a beautiful sunset and enjoyed taking a dip after our climb. Night came and we were finally able to set-up a camp fire. We weren’t able to sleep well because of some noise from the neighboring tents. Then morning came and we have to embark on another journey to the east. We have to take one last look at the cove. One last taste of a beautiful world created in this side of the country. I never thought such beauty would exist in Philippines.