A 200-year-old Spanish colonial watchtower stands on the northeastern tip of Pamilacan Island, one of dozens of similar structures built across the Philippine archipelago to warn against Moro raider fleets from the south. This particular tower is small and roughly built compared to the larger watchtowers elsewhere in Bohol, but its position — at the very edge of the island's rocky point, looking out over open sea — gives it a dramatic isolation.
The walk to the tower from the village takes about 20 minutes along a path through coconut palms and scrub. The coral limestone around the tower's base contains fossilised shells, evidence of the island's geological origin as a reef. The tower itself can be climbed for views over the channel to the Bohol coast. A small chapel near the village has a Santa Cruz at the altar that the islanders regard as their most important religious object.