So last 24th of December, I decided to hike alone in Montalban. There's this strong urge in my heart to do it alone, with no one to depend on but my self. (With occasional assistance from the guide though.) Hehe
I had to face the fear of commuting alone at wee hours, crossing a dark footbridge nested with pickpocketers and going back home without oversleeping in the jeep!
I left home at 3AM, took the route to Montalban. Jeepneys are usually present at the footbridge in front of Sta. Lucia Grand Mall. I arrived in San Rafael at around 4AM and headed straight to the registration area. My guide was late, so we started trekking at around 5AM.
Mt. Binacayan (424 MASL)
It was a lucky day because there are very few hikers. And they would usually notice me of being alone. Some people at the trail would tease me of being heart broken. I would just smile or joke them this way, "Kailangan po pag magso-solo malaki problema? Di pwedeng masaya lang?"
Can somebody enlighten me? Because I've come to this point that I cannot resist going to the mountains, with or without companion. :)
Mt. Pamitinan(426 MASL)
We reached the second summit at 11AM. It was scorching hot and the wind at the summit makes me wanna take a nap but my guide/friend said no! So mean, right? Haha
This is my second time in Mt. Pamitinan, so this is sort of a revenge climb for me because I haven't took photos on its "buwis buhay spot" during my first visit.
Mt. Hapunang Banoi (517 MASL)
The last summit for that day and the highest among the three. Its trail is composed of big boulders and sharp rocks akin to Mt. Binacayan's. It was my first time here so this was really exciting for me. And at this moment I already feel the achievement! :)
But the trail gradually becomes easier when you get nearer to the summit, as there were flat spaces which is covered with bamboo trees ; a great relief after a series of rock scrambling.
This spot was my favorite because of the huge grey-colored limestone st the background. I was a bit nervous at first because this one is very tricky! But when you let go of your fear, its liberating!
We reached the summit at 1PM, so that's like a 2-hour trek from Mt Pamitinan's summit to Hapunang Banoi's summit.
And then I met these guys at the last leg of my Trilogy, who were incredibly passionate about the outdoors as well. We had a short chat about the mountains they've hiked, their experiences which inspired me more to go further, and eventually led to planning a hike together. Which I hope we could push through next year.
Successfully finished the trilogy at 2:49 PM making 19,064 steps on my steps tracker! :D I can now say, my 2017 is fulfilled! We were already hungry and I was already asking Jeric about food. He opted to eat rice and I had cup noodles since there's no other food at the jump off. :(
To the locals at the jump off who congratulated me on accomplishing my goal that day and who were very hospitable they even offered me to try their pulutan "adobong paniki", which was very good by the way, thank you guys!
To my guide, Jeric who I no longer treat as a guide but rather, a friend who I can trust and who won't take advantage of your kindness. Thank you buddy! The beautiful pictures are all because of this guy!
My Itinerary:
0330 Take a Jeep going to Montalban
0430 Arrival in Wawa, Register and pay Environmental Fee
0500 Start trek to Mt. Binacayan
0630 Mt. Binacayan Summit
0700 Descend
0800 Breakfast at Jump off
0930 Start trek to Mt. Pamitinan
1100 Mt. Pamitinan Summit
1130 Start trek to Hapunang Banoi
1300 Mt. Hapunang Banoi Summit
1330 Descend
1459 End of Trilogy/Jump off
As for the expenses, this was not exactly what I spent since this was a friendly hike for me and Jeric, he just told me to pay for his food and don't bother for the guide fee but of course we can't be okay with that so I still gave him something.
Expenses:
Sta. Lucia vv Montalban Php34x2 = Php64
Tricycle to Wawa Php60x2 = Php120 (special trip, you can opt to wait for other passengers to cut the fare)
Registration Fee Php40
Guide Fee for Trilogy Php1500
Total: Php 1,724
Watch my travel video here:
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| The Trilogy Version 1 Map at my back! |
This is definitely one for the books! (or blogs in this case) I did not only discover more of my self but I discovered more of the goodness in strangers. Because sometimes, it's the strangers that will give you honesty rather than the people you thought were loyal to you. 😘
See, going solo isn't so bad at all. You open your doors to new discoveries, new capabilities, new camaraderie and never ending new things life can offer.
💕
