We were back in San Vicente Port a little past 02:00 PM. We settled our payment with our boatmen and thanked them for being such reliable guides. From the port, Ran and I started to walk back to our accommodation in E.F. Costales Lodge.

On our way back to the lodge, we stopped by a landmark that we would otherwise ignore somewhere else: a KM marker. The one where we stopped at though is the famed KM 642 marker in Santa Ana, Cagayan. The marker holds special significance as it is the farthest north marker from KM 0 in mainland Luzon.

It was around 02:30 PM when we got back to the lodge. Ran and I settled that we would just freshen-up, rest a bit, then explore Santa Ana on foot. Actually, he said he wanted to jog, so the idea that we had was to trek southwards, towards the direction of the Santa Ana welcome arch.

Our on-foot exploration of Santa Ana started at 05:00 PM. We just walked along Dugo–San Vicente Road until we reached the bridge over the river that exits to the sea through Casuarina Spit. The time of the day gave the skies a beautiful hue that we stopped to take photos.

The sunset blended perfectly with the foliage-laden river banks that the dusk had slowly transformed into silhouettes. The scenery made us to stop over the bridge and marvel on one of those split-second moments when there is beauty in the dark.

We hiked back to the lodge after watching the sunset. Not sure of what to have for dinner, we settled for hotdog sandwiches and burgers from a burger chain located just before the entrance to the lodge. Honestly, we got really curious about the burger chain as we have been seeing it all throughout our Cagayan Valley road trip, but we never saw a single stall in our hometown and nearby provinces.

We also ordered pizza from Koosina.ph to add to our dinner, rested a bit, then went to bed. The following day would start early as Sir Dino and Ma’am Ela would bring us to the airport even before the sun rises. Our Cagayan journey was drawing to a close.

03:00 AM the following day, we were already up and about. At around 06:00 AM, we were already in Tuguegarao Airport. Ang bilis ng mga pangyayari. Paalis na kami ng Cagayan.

Sir Dino and Ma’am Ela were terrific hosts. Hindi sapat ang salita para ilarawan kung gaano kababait ang mga hosts namin sa Santa Ana. If you intend to visit Santa Ana and Palaui Island, contact them by all means! You may check our Renegade Directory for more contact details.

We spent a couple of hours in the airport waiting for our flight. We were onboard by 08:00 AM. Our journey to the northeasternmost part of the country has already come to a close.

At around 10:30 AM, we were back in Manila. Our Cagayan journey was a relatively short trip, but one that is definitely filled with so much experiences. We were even telling ourselves how we hope we could return to Cagayan.

Little did we know that we actually would eventually, in the same way that little did I know that on the weekend that would follow after our trip to the northeasternmost part of Luzon, we would take down the northwesternmost part.

Yes, we were being truly renegade.