Mt. Sembrano

an overnight camp.

our tent was ravished by the typhoon.

we were bathed with mud.

rewarded with a chilling falls.

and a friendly local who offered

their place for refreshment

and bath..

:))

cagbalete island

unexplored.
untarnished.
with fireflies in bounty during the night, it is a pristine get-away.

soon...

Mt. Romelo w/ the Good guys

Calaguas/ Caramoan in my travel list

I am going to Calaguas Island.

i am inspired now by two beautiful beach paradisoes in camarines Norte. The islands surrounding the Caramoan has long been in my list and hopefully this will soon push through. Before that happens though, i have to include in my list the island of Calaguas, also in Camarines. they certainly make a good night thought...

After visiting the beautiful Anawangin in Zambales, discovering the Island of Capones and its lighthouse, and trekking the Batulao, i suppose this will be a very adventurous year yet.

i am dreaming....








still dreaming...

Picturesque Batulao Took me Peak after Peak

this post was a week overdue since we were up this helm 28th of march.. and yet after more than a week, i can still feel the gruelling midday heat that we tried and victored on..

we took the new trail up and unlike the previous mountains that we hiked, this one took us through 10 peaks, some just couple of meters from the ascending point. but the sun at 2pm did exhaust us more than anything. and after i lost count of all the stops that we had, and when i started to feel my legs crumbling under me due to strains of ascent and descent, i was rewarded with the most scenic mountain silhouette this part of luzon.

on the peak, i could make the outline of the taal lake, taal volcano, nearby batangas mountains and the outlying towns. being on the summit without cover by 4pm was a sweating retreat. i basked under the sun, had a grab of a clubhouse sandwich we packed and took my nap.


an hour later, we decided to go down the old trail where the initial descent was steep. steep. steep. whereby on the new trail was marked by peaks, the old was marked with camps. I could say that this mountain had been taken care of well and good. each camp was marked by a rock under a talisay tree. and upon reaching the first camp, indeed it was the best-maintained and cleanest campsite i’d been to.

Much as i want to dwell and stay overnyt, this was not an option. I had work eary the next day, and for the first time i experienced a night hike. i forgot all about my aching limbs, for the moment, for the coward in me began imagining things. In the dark…
don’t be threatened by the foolish me though, this mountain is adaptable for night hike especially with full moon.

unexercised fellows like me however, got a dose of my own medicine. with the help of two tablets of alaxan, life did move on.


to get there:
from Alabang:
airconditioned van to tagaytay: 65.00 (1.5hr)
tagaytay to evercrest- batulao : 23.00 (30minutes)
evercrest to jump-off- tryke: 80.00-100.00
hiking fee new and old trail : 20.00 each
freshen up at the sarisari store in front of evercrest for 20.00
(new trail takes less time but if staying overnyt, the old trail has charming camp1)

alternate route:
take a nasugbu bound bus and alight at evercrest.

ANAWANGIN COVE (where Brokeback Mountain was partly shot)

or so it seemed.
Anawangin Cove is still part of the mainland of Zambales although the only ways to get there are either through a 30-minute boat ride from the Pundaquit Beach or a five-hour hike over the Mt. Anawangin (Mt. Pundaquit). This relative isolation weaved magic for this quaint (peculiarly odd but very pleasing) beach get-away.

Odd? the beach is lined not with palms but pine trees, in volume enough to shade more than 400M stretch of sand for camping. This rare feature had spelled this cove's instant rise to both sand-worshipper's and mountaineer's buzz. it was only this last three years that tourists had continuously been flocking here every weekend which i think began when it was introduced in the net where I, too, land on it.
But i for one would like to keep it secret. Being there, four days and three nights, felt it should remain undiscovered. Selfish? It was so beautiful and peaceful, you don't want too much convergence of people to ravish it. But on the other hand, who was i to keep this from everyone who deserves to find it?

So here i am sharing. 'was there last week.
we would have chosen to hike over the mountain but the supplies for the next four days were more than enough for us to carry on our backs so boat-ride it was. Manong Rodrigo's banca was fast and in 2o-minutes record time, we were welcomed by Manong Vernie and friends, the caretaker of the place. It was thursday noon and we were the only visitors. I felt transported to a foreign place. I was embraced by trees and only paces away was the serene sea. the sand was powdery-gray making love with the ashes of Mt. Pinatubo (they said that only after the eruption did the place evolve into something like this, the pines and all) so that would make white-beige on the uppermost but it turned smooth gray once wiped by the waves.

the day would clock around cooking for meals, walking, swimming and reading. what a relief it was to have handfuls of firewood and dried pine leaves nearby. Preparing food in the camp was pretty relaxed. We had adobong chicken, kinulob na pork, dried pusit, salted eggs, pasta, pancit bihon, tuna, and luncheon meat. I felt i had gained pounds whilst i was there. with such a tranquil ambiance, who wouldn't be apettized?
we spent 2nd day exploring the trail and stream of rocks 100M far back from the sea. we even saw a bird's nest nestled on the rocks along the way. what a delight! there was also a lake by the side of the southern beach where i thought the location could well be where brokeback mountian was shot, hence the title.

it's really transcending.
thursday and friday night, two groups arrived, one each day both leaving a night after. the morning of saturday was different. as early as 6am, pumpboats came and went, visitors arrived by the dozens and including those coming from the mountain. by 12 noon, there were already more than thirty tents pitched and more than 200 hundred people on the sand and it felt crowded. privacy? well, we had it for two days.

the waterpump we solely used whenever we wanted it, was being lined for. the restrooms including the two which were just finished the time we came and the ones we used did not hold it. by night of Saturday, one was dirty, and by morning of Sunday, both toilets were. it was somehow saddening but this was part of camping in a place where no cellphone signals came in, no electricity worked for comfort. I am sure, despite this, everyone was awed and enjoyed their stay. you can hear it from them. They will share this experience, they will tell their stories. they will be back bringing friends with them, proud of the place.

i am too.
Getting here:
Victory liner buses ply the route from 5am in Pasay and as early as 1am from Caloocan
Pasay - San Antonio, Zambales 266.00 -4hours
San Antonio Municipal Hall - Bgy. Pundaquit 25.00 -10minutes
Pundaquit Beach - Anawangin Cove 1000.00 - 30 minutes

Post note:
the rate of the boat is already back and forth and shared with everyone so that would mean less budget for each in a group. 1000boat rate is good for 5-6pax. Also you can request the boatman to sidetrip on your return to nearby Capones Island ( don't miss the still functioning century-old lighthouse) or Camara Island (sandbar from November to February) for a minimal additional fee. You can test your haggling skills here.

The place is fronting South China Sea. If staying the night, bring a tent. You wil be camping in a place where most of the time, you will be under the forces of nature. So take caution. The beach and the swimming area is wide but there may be underwater cliffs where current may be dangerous especially during high tides.

There are also resorts and available accomodations in Pundaquit Beach.