“Yohooooo, Kuya be kind to us!” she shouted at the driver of the 4x4 truck as we made sure our hands were gripped onto the handlebar like glue. We were just about to go over the first mound of sand, almost 30 feet high, when she issued that reminder. Not that kuya had a habit of giving a flying eff about slowing down—it’s just that he follows to heart the unwritten rule of the dunes: the faster, the better.
He then accelerated the truck into a dizzying speed, shaking the four of us huddled at the back. The engine struggled a little going to the apex of the hill, but once gravity took over, hellacious yells from my female companions almost busted my eardrums. As we slid through the downhill path like one of those post-apocalyptic vehicles driven by looneys in Mad Max films, I felt a different kind of rush.
Paoay, Ilocos Norte: Charging at Mad Max Speeds
A Unique Geological Landscape
A desert-like heavy concentration of sand dunes stretching more than 85 square kilometers is almost unheard of in the tropical and lush setting of the Philippines. In this part of Northern Luzon, though, Mother Nature carved an exceptional landscape that almost perfectly mirrors the desert dunes found in other arid countries.
In 1993, the Ilocos Norte Sand Dunes—of which the La Paz Sand Dunes are a major part—was officially proclaimed as “one of the National Geological Monuments of Significant Geological Formations in the Philippines” by the National Committee on Geological Sciences (NCGS).
This vast picturesque sandlot also became the main shooting location for a number of well-acclaimed local films that include classic cinema hits like Panday and Himala.
Thrilling Outdoor Actions Abound
The smooth sandy setting quickly gets your mind to start imagining various exciting activities. Aside from riding a rugged 4x4 truck, one can also go sand-boarding, or you can put on your complete motocross riding gear and create your own motocross trails on the uneven surface of the sand dunes.
The scenery, comprising a fiery sun slowly sinking against the golden sky and calm sea waters, couldn’t have been better as we wrapped up our 4x4 ride. She—(now my former girlfriend)—seemed to have finally run out of animated yells, and towards the end of our roller coaster ride, her terrified expression was replaced by electrified giggles—just as the 4x4 truck we were riding bowled violently through the 5th desert hill, which happened to be higher than the rest.
We got off our truck giving everyone high fives while sensing each other's overflowing glee. After a few moments recuperating from our desert stoked feeling, our guide led us to another sand hill where he pointed to an almost 60-degree slope going sharply downward. "We're going sandboarding," he told us in Tagalog.
Our guide then demonstrated the proper form of riding a sandboard—as if one is surfing the waves of Baler. It looked easy, but once he started sliding down and as we watched him glide like a snake almost effortlessly, we all felt a sudden mixture of enthusiasm and dread.
I reckoned it was only sand—soft fine granules just in case I fell off the board. I took the first turn, and as I closed my eyes to gather courage, I felt a solid tap on my shoulder. “Ready?” our guide asked me. I opened my eyes and gave him a nod. A slow push behind my back, and I was descending downward smoothly, all the while gathering a stoked feeling and never losing my balance until I hit the landing spot. At the flattened end of the sand-boarding trails, I let gravity take over as I crashed butt-first on the ground. Feeling absolutely doped, I eagerly repeated the turn at least two more times.
Ilocos Norte Road Trip
Our adrenaline-fueled experiences at the La Paz Sand Dunes definitely belonged at the top of the charts of our Ilocos Norte road trip. We started off at Vigan, headed to Paoay, and ended way up north at Pagudpud—with multiple stops at a number of highly interesting places in between.
This particular route in Luzon has always been a personal favorite of mine when it comes to venturing into a long road journey. Who knows, maybe someday when I finally master driving a motorcycle, I will put on my motocross off-road gloves and fully enjoy this epic part of the Philippines aboard a two-wheel monster.
Ilocos Roadtrip Series
This is a part of my Ilocos Roadtrip Series that also includes the following stops:
