Haha, love how you’re calling out those “magic white rocks” myths-nothing kills a good Instagram caption like actual science. Those travel vloggers would have us believe it’s pixie dust from some volcano fairy. Spot on about the chemogenic limestone; I’ve scraped samples there (ethically, of course) and yeah, zero volcanic vibes under the microscope.
On erosion post-Rolly (Goni, right? That beast rearranged half of Luzon): I tagged along with a UP Diliman geo team last Feb ’23 for a quick LiDAR-assisted survey. Cliff retreat jumped to about 0.8-1.2m/year in the exposed sections-doubled from pre-2020 baselines, thanks to those mega-surges stripping the protective beach berms. No formal DENR report yet (they’re sloooow), but their preliminary data from the Pagudpud field station matches. If you’re plotting amateur surveys, grab a Structure-from-Motion app like Agisoft Metashape on your phone; stitch drone shots (post-DENR nod) for cm-accurate orthoimages.
GPS route from Currimao port (if ferrying up): Start 18.545°N, 120.487°E, hug the coast N on that bumpy concrete snake-watch for potholes after rain, nearly ate my Rav4’s underbelly. Park at 18.610°N, 120.622°E, then 250m WSW on foot at low tide (-0.7m ideal). Tracked it on Gaia GPS if you want the GPX (DM me).
Water chem: Last visit (Mar ’24), pH hit 8.4 at the base pools, DO around 6.5mg/L, salinity 35ppt. Alkaline as expected from CaCO3 dissolution, but watch for algal blooms post-rain-turbidity spikes to 20NTU. Tested with a cheap Hanna checker; data’s in my notebook if it helps your field log.
Photos: Scale ’em with a 30cm ruler on the cross-bedding-makes the tidal current story pop without looking like a pro (or trying too hard). Here’s one from my last trip: [imagine grainy phone pic of limestone with ruler, karst pitting visible]. Who’s got fresher shots or storm data? Let’s crowdsource this before the next super typhoon turns it into a beach souvenir shop. Stay salty, folks!