Seeing the Taal Volcano up close and personal is a bit of an underwhelming experience. Yes, what do you expect a volcano to do when you visit it? Aside from the obvious “explode”, it doesn’t really do much. However, I got to see a whole new side to Taal Volcano that I have never seen before. This boat ride and horseback ride up the slopes of the world’s smallest volcano is still something to remember.
My guide was waiting for me to go down from the crate rim and he excitedly called out to me to let me know that he will be bringing the horse down. He asked me to go down further since the slope here was a little steep and it might be a little dangerous to mount the horse here. He mentioned that there were times where the horse slipped, fortunately no one was seriously injured, tourist and horse. Apparently they have quite a number horses on Volcano Island and to discourage bugging tourists, the guides and horses take turns. In an island where that vast majority of people rely on tourism, it helps everyone.
There are other access points to Volcano Island, the town of Talisay is just one of them. I could tell from they way other horses come from a totally different direction from where I came from. At the pier, the boatman was also waiting for me to come down and quickly showed me to the boat and a short while we off. However, he needed to turn back to the pier since there were other passengers. He mentioned that these guys were from the municipal hall and were hitching a ride back to Talisay town.
Bert Mendoza was not at his stall in Talisay and was said to be attending a baptism at the church. Instead, the wife was there to welcome me back. I paid her the fee and she refused to accept money for the lunch I had at their place additionally, she helped me find a way back to Tagaytay City. A quick tricycle ride took me back to the main junction that leads me back to Tagaytay City.
If you want to go to Volcano Island from Talisay town you can get in touch with Bert Mendoza and he will be more than willing to assist you, who knows, you might even get a discount. His mobile number is +63 (917) 3873447. If possible try to gather as many people as you can so it will be cheaper.
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