The author posted his Albay Heritage Series beginning in May 2026 which consisted of 40 parts which he uploaded daily on his Facebook page. With his generous permission, we are posting this series from now through October.

PART 13: CAGSAWA WAS NOT BURIED BY LAVA

Contrary to popular beliefs, Cagsawa and its church were not buried under lava, because the flow did not reach the town proper. The town of Cagsawa lies beyond the ten kilometers radius of Mayon. Studies show that during the 1814 eruptions the flow of lava did not go beyond the 8 kilometers extended danger zone. Many parts of the town however were flooded, lahar buried some low portions, ash covered the whole town, and large flying fragments of lava solidified in the air, fell as huge rocks and damaged houses and structures in many areas.

A major controversy was created by my declaration in 2014, during the bi-centennial commemoration of the destruction of Cagsawa that the church was not buried by lava during the 1814 Mayon eruption. However, there were incontestable evidences such as the photographs taken in 1934 by Robert Larimore Pendleton (1890-1957) and John Tewell showing the Cagsawa Church with its bell tower, façade and walls still standing. I first visited the Cagsawa Ruins in 1963 and saw the tall walls still standing, attesting that the church never went under the ground.

The entire area surrounding the town center of the old town of Cagsawa was abandoned for over 120 years. And during that period, repeated eruptions and pyroclastic density currents from the volcano brought layers upon layers of ash, sand, stones, boulders and lahar that raised the grounds around the church area. The river in front of the church was silted and in some areas the inundations of lahar formed hills and mounds in the vicinity of the church.

Thus, when the area was cleaned in mid 1930s the church appeared to have been buried by a few inches above ground. Most of the early pictures taken were from the banks of the river and the church appeared to have been covered by sand and vegetation. But no lava reached the area. The violent Plinian eruption of 1814 may have caused lava to breach the 6 kilometers permanent danger zone. But there is no record that the flow of lava from the volcano breached the 8 kilometers extended danger zone, and Cagsawa is beyond the 10 kilometers danger zone.

PART 14: CLIMBERS OF MAYON

“Experience the challenge of traversing different terrains with varying degrees of difficulty: part forest, part talahib grassland, part desert of rocks and boulders. Mayon Volcano — one of the most exciting mountains to climb in the Philippines; beautiful to behold at a distance yet behind the graceful symmetry of its slopes lurk hidden perils. Its rocky borders may be dislodged with a careless foot and turn into a dangerous avalanche.

“The safest approach to this 2,463-meter giant of Albay province is from the northwestern slope, which starts at 762 meter above sea level on a ledge where the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) research station and the Mayon Rest House are located. A narrow 8-kilometer paved road links the place to the main highway.

“From the Observatory, the trail creeps upwards through a tropical secondary forest, which is replete with a wide variety of flora and fauna. It then cuts across a talahib wilderness and swerves at approximately 1,220 m towards Buang Gully, a ravine formed by ancient molten lava flow. On the gully’s floor are depressions containing rainwater.

“At slightly above 1,524 m where water becomes scarce, Buang Gully branches out into two canals. The left fork leads to the transition line at 1,921 m where the grassland ends and the rocky slopes begin.

“This spot is ideal for a campsite since it is near enough to the summit yet far enough from poisonous fumes which sometimes snakes down the slopes with a sudden shift in wind direction.

“After scrambling over rocks and boulders, a cliff system is reached at 2,195 m. A 40-degree ascent on loose volcanic cinder and lava sand follows. And finally–the summit.” –Adapted from Philippines Department of Tourism Brochure

THE MAYON VOLCANO CLIMBERS

Here are two of the most notable climbers of Mayon Volcano:

Catalogo Biografico de los Religiosos Franciscanos de la Provincia de San Gregorio Magno de Filipinas by Eusebio Gomez Platero, pp. 65-66, had this entry:

“Esteban Solis, OFM, born in Extremadura, Spain, he was a soldier who came to the Philippines with a relative, Governor Francisco de Sande in 1575. He was sent for the pacification of Camarines. He became a priest in 1585. Fray Esteban Solis was the first to climb and reach the crater of Mayon in 1591 to dispel the superstitions of the indios. He discovered three mouths or vents in the crater.  As a result of the ascent and the difference in temperature to which he was exposed, he fell ill and died in Manila in 1592.”

Thus, some say, Fray Solis failed to dispel the superstitious beliefs of the natives. There were also stories in olden times that women were forbidden to climb the volcano. This was probably bolstered by later stories that branched from the legend of Daragang Magayon which said that the spirit of Pagtuga still haunt the slopes of the volcano hoping to exact revenge on any woman who climbs the volcano. 

The other famous climber was Ricardo “Mayon King” Dy. Born in 28 July 1932 in Cullat, Daraga, he started trekking up Mayon in 1941 when he was only 9 years old. He first reached the summit in 1956. He has climbed Mayon more than 600 times. In 1991, he brought his 11 years old daughter to the crater. He was the oldest, at 78, to climb Mayon in 2010.

Of course, there were other known personalities who climbed Mayon, like the then Secretary of Education Alejandro Roces who reached the crater in 1963. Then Tourism Secretary Richard Gordon (2001-2004) also came to climb Mayon but there is no record of him reaching the summit. In 2012 Hollywood actor Zac Ephron came to ride the all-terrain vehicle around Mayon and up to the Lava Wall.

The featured header is a posterized image of the Cagsawa Church ruins (credit: National Museum of the Philippines – Bicol; original photo by James David Givens, circa 1902 – 1914)

About the author

Abdon M. Balde Jr., Poet Laureate of Albay, is a leading figure in contemporary Bikol and Filipino letters. He currently serves as consultant for Cultural Affairs of Albay’s 2nd Congressional District and has previously headed the province’s Historical‑Cultural Section as well as served as a Komisyoner of the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino. A longtime leader in national and regional writers’ organizations, he has been active in the Writers Union of the Philippines, FILCOLS, WIKA, Kabulig Bikol, and the Albay Writers Group, and has also advised National Bookstore on literary matters. His achievements have been recognized with major honors, including the Southeast Asian Writers Award (2009), Ani ng Dangal (2010), the Outstanding Albayano Artist Award (2012), and multiple regional lifetime and literary distinctions.

A prolific author, Balde has published 26 books, four of which have won National Book Awards. His creative work spans poetry, fiction, drama, and libretto, including “Sayaw kan Tulong Bulod” and the CCP‑staged “Daragang Magayon, An Istorya ni Mayon.” He has received the NCCA Writers Prize for his work on the Bikol epic Ibalong and earlier won the Palanca Award and the Rokyaw Ibalong Most Outstanding Bikol Award. Born to farmer parents in Busac, Oas, Albay, he studied at St. Michael Academy and earned a civil engineering degree before spending 33 years in construction engineering. He later shifted fully to literature and now resides in Tiwi, Albay with his family and three dogs.