On the journey back
to Batan Island, I found myself fighting off nausea aboard a small faluwa, the
traditional Ivatan boat known for its open deck, deep hull, and absence of
outriggers, built to navigate the strong, unpredictable currents between the
Batanes islands.
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| Rugged cliffs dominate the breathtaking landscape of Itbayat |
As the Philippine
Sea rolled its giant waves beneath us, the boat pitched and leapt, and I
gripped the rails tightly, trying to steady both my balance and my stomach. The
thought of throwing up beside the other passengers felt increasingly real and
deeply embarrassing. To stave it off, I let my thoughts drift to the days just
passed, memories still vivid, still clinging to me like a loyal, long-lost dog.
Itbayat’s Cinematic
Landscape
Where to begin? I
wondered, as a rapid sequence of images played in my mind like scenes from a
film, each one carefully framed, reminiscent of filmmaker Terrence Malick’s
reflective approach to nature. The island unfolded with a silent power and left
a strong effect on me. I had heard stories from friends who had been before,
and I thought I had a sense of what to expect. But Itbayat still surprised me with
its immense, cinematic landscapes and unbothered beauty.
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| Valanga Port: Hope on the horizon. Locals dream of a storm-resilient, and modern seaport for the island's rugged coastline |
Just getting off
the faluwa on arrival was an experience. “You’re lucky the waves weren’t that
high today,” said a local fellow passenger. If that was a lucky crossing, I
could only imagine the worse days, as already four members of our group had
gotten seasick mid-crossing.
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| Leaping for joy at Mauyen Cliff |
Inland and finally
away from the giant swells of the Philippine Sea, we laced up our hiking shoes
and explored the countryside of Itbayat. What greeted us was a landscape that
showcased Batanes’ iconic terrain, rolling hills rising steadily toward jagged
limestone peaks and dramatic cliffs. The scenery stretched wide and open,
dotted with pockets of lush grassland where cows and goats roamed freely, as if
the island belonged entirely to them.
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| Open grassy fields as far as the eyes can see |
Rapang Cliff felt
like a fantasy come to life. Its flat ridges and sea-facing table-top like
ridges called to mind Game of Thrones’ mythical Wall, only this one was carved
by nature. Getting there took a two-hour hike over a five-kilometer trail. But
between the steady climb and irresistible views, the trek stretched longer. We
stopped often to breathe, to snap photos, to soak in the gifts of the island.
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| "The Wall" as seen from Rapang Cliff |
At Mauyen Cliff,
the scene looked tailor-made for the finale of GMA’s Widows’ War, if only they
had chosen a location shoot over a green screen. Here, cliff drops offer both
breathtaking beauty and edge-of-your-seat suspense. We found ourselves
exchanging nervous reminders: don’t get too close, or else, it’s sayonara,
world.
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| at the hand-painted Rapang Cliff sign |
Even from a safe
distance, the place gets your attention. That high-altitude mix of adrenaline
and awe, outlined by a 360-degree panorama of sea and sky, felt like a movielike
mic drop, an exclamation point to end our first day on the island.
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| The hike to Rapang Cliff is full of photogenic stops |
Among the natural
attractions we managed to visit during our brief three-day stay on the island,
several offered not only stunning views but also unexpected insights. One such
site was Cavaywan Lake.
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| JC of @travelingmoreno poses in front of Umawen Arc |
At first glance,
it’s still waters projected a sense of calmness typical of many nature spots.
However, it was the land surrounding the lake that captured our attention. Our
local guide explained that the reddish soil may be due to high concentrations
of iron and protein, giving the area another earthy character that sets it
apart from more typical lake environments.
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| This "Axurud" burial site links Itbayat to early Austronesian settlers |
Of all the places
we visited, Torongan Cliff offered me the most meaningful learning experience
of the trip, providing me with a newfound insight into the prehistoric past of
the Philippines. Within Torongan Cave, now inaccessible after a typhoon
destroyed its mouth a few years ago and once believed by archaeologists to have
housed the country’s earliest known human settlements, lies the Axurud: a
spherical stone tomb now stamped with archaeological significance.
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| Cavaywan Lake |
Shaped like a boat
and pointed toward the sea, the tomb is thought to contain the remains of an
entire Austronesian family that lived on the island between 2,000 and 4,000
years ago. Its design is no coincidence. For the Austronesians, the sea was
more than a passage—it was both a path and a final destination. In death, they
believed that the spirit was to return to the ocean, completing a journey back
to its origin.
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| A windswept tree in Itbayat, Batanes |
Archaeological
evidence traces these early settlers to Formosa (modern-day Taiwan), from where
they embarked on a vast maritime migration around 4,000 B.C., eventually
spreading through the Pacific and Southeast Asia. Their influence remains
evident in our languages, rituals, and even the physical traits of many
ethnolinguistic groups across the Philippines.
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| Timeless terrain. Views that look exactly like thousand of years ago. |
Learning this
raised had me raising a question: who truly came first? The Negritos long
believed to have crossed a land bridge from Borneo tens of thousands of years
ago? Or the Austronesians, whose presence has been strengthened with recent
discoveries in caves across Batanes and as far south as Cagayan’s Callao Cave?
It’s a debate that continues to drive archaeological inquiry and it’s what
makes places like Torongan essential not just for tourism, but for identity.
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| Blue lagoons such as this is a common sight below the cliffs of Itbayat |
A few more nature
spots, each deserving of a lengthy article on its own, rounded out our glimpse
into the island of Itbayat. As a travel writer and someone who takes every
chance to explore during time off from work, I sometimes find that travel can
begin to feel routine. But Itbayat shattered that illusion.
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| Speaking of cliffs, be careful or its adieu, world |
It reminded me how
fortunate I am simply to stand, walk, hop, and even leap for a photograph
across its swelling hills, high-rise cliffs, and boulder peaks—all sculpted by thousands
of years of crashing waves and nature’s craftsmanship. The landscapes here
weren’t just remote; they felt otherworldly or like a setting of a period
movie. Think Braveheart. And for that, I felt nothing but gratitude.
A Trip Long-Time
Coming
After over a decade
of toying with the idea, imagining the wild faluwa boat ride, I finally made
the leap. Or more accurately, I finally crossed the water from Batan to this
long-teased, mysterious island of Itbayat that I skipped during my first visit
to Batanes. Now that I’m here, I get it.
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| Content creator Justine, steps out of a Faluwa |
The island delivers
the goods: vast, rolling hills carpeted in grass where goats and cows freely
roam, and a sweeping terrain that would make you want to run and sing a tune
from the classic “Sound of Music” even if you don’t know the lyrics.
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| Cows, goats and horses roam freely in the grasslands of Itbayat |
Yes, I stepped in
cow dung, more than once, but if anything, it only confirmed Itbayat’s rawness.
Here, there’s no filters nor tourist trappings, just full-on island realism.
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| With fellow travel writers, content creators and TPB members |
The real story,
however? It’s the people. Morning walks turn into scenes of spontaneous warmth:
cheerful greetings from strangers like they’ve been waiting years to say hello,
tour guides who double as natural storytellers with a flair for the dramatic
and a refreshing sense of humor, and visual delights that feel like they’ve
been lifted straight out of a Wes Anderson film. Yes, put them all together
Mallick, Anderson, Braveheart, and as the Martin Scorsese meme says, Itbayat is
'Absolute Cinema'.
This article first appeared on Esquire Philippines.
