Cagsawa Ruins

The bell tower at Cagsawa is what remains of a Franciscan church destroyed in the 1814 eruption of Mayon, the volcano's deadliest, which buried the town under volcanic material and killed a large number of people who had sheltered in and around the church. The tower now stands alone in a park of grass and old lahar deposits with the cone rising directly behind it, and that alignment - ruin in the foreground, near-perfect volcano behind - is the image that represents Albay and appears on the country's currency. The park has a small museum, souvenir stalls, food vendors and operators renting ATVs for rides out over the lahar fields toward the volcano. The catch is Mayon itself: the summit spends much of the year in cloud, and a visit can easily produce a photogenic tower with nothing behind it. Mornings give the best odds.

History

The church was built in 1587, set on fire by Dutch pirates on 25 July 1636 and rebuilt in 1724 by the Franciscans under Father Francisco Blanco. On 1 February 1814 the strongest recorded eruption of Mayon buried the town of Cagsawa under tephra and lahar, killing an estimated 2,000 people, many of whom had sought refuge in the church; the survivors moved to nearby Daraga (Wikipedia, Cagsawa Ruins).

What's there

• The bell tower - the surviving belfry of the buried church.
• The Mayon backdrop - the cone directly behind on clear days.
• The lahar field - old volcanic deposits across the park.
• The ATV routes - rides out toward the volcano's base.

When to go

November to May, at sunrise or early morning, for the best chance of a clear cone. Mayon is in cloud on most afternoons in any season.

What to expect

The volcano may be entirely hidden - plan for it. Vendors are persistent, and ATV rides and parking are charged on top of entry. The site is small and busy with tour groups by mid-morning.

Nearby

Sumlang Lake, Quitinday Hills and Hoyop-hoyopan Cave are all within half an hour; Daraga Church is minutes away.

Key facts