post imported from another site dated 08.11.08
Climbing
Mt. Daguldul proved to be more difficult than I first expected. We
scheduled the climb two (2) weeks ago and prayed to the gods that it won't rain
or that no storm will come on the scheduled date. My sister and her
officemate even did the "sun dance" to coax the heavens to suspend
the rainfall even only for a weekend. I guess the gods do want to
see us sweat over the climb or the sun dance did its magic trick. We had
a very sunny weather last weekend.
We
started the day last Saturday (August 9) early. For people who know me,
that would mean really early for me. My brother insisted that we leave
the house in LB at around 2am. I said that would be too early and it's
quite difficult to find yourself without a ride in the wee hours of the morning
and without a bench to sit on. So we agreed to leave at 4am. We
were 11 people plus 1 who will come from his house and will meet us before we
take the jeepney to Calamba.
After
the usual morning bath and breakfast before a climb, we finally left the house
at 5am (an hour later than the agreed time). Nevertheless, we were in
Lipa early enough. We took a bus from Turbina, Calamba. This took a
shorter time since the bus passed through the Star Tollway.
Upon
arrival in Lipa, my brother had to wait for a former classmate who wasn't sure
if he could come with us. It took us almost an hour to wait for the guy
who as it turned out couldn't really join the climb. Then we left Lipa
riding a jeepney to San Juan. The driver agreed to take us directly to
Brgy. Hugom where we will start the climb. The fare was P120.00
each. It was fair enough so off we went.
It
wasn't difficult to find the beach front where we'd start the trek. We
had to register at the HEGA (Hugom Environmental Guides Association) where we
were assigned a guide. Registration fee is P35.00 per head and the tour
guide fee for the entire group is P350.00. After a 10-minute wait the
guide arrived and we started the trek.
We
took a 15-minute hike along the shore to the takeoff point. Then we
started the climb without even the usual stretching that is a must. I
suppose my brother who is used to the climb forgot about it or we just didn't
bother. And like I said at the beginning, it was more difficult than I
expected.
Since
the gods I was talking about earlier decided to let the sun shine that weekend,
we climbed Mt. Daguldul under the scorching heat of the sun. We were
sweating and puffing our way up. Yeah, I did sweat some despite my skinny
frame. There were a lot of stopovers as our companions were not all
experienced climbers. Or the last climb they had was years ago. So
we took our time. Along the way, we passed by the famed (there actually were
three of them) halo-halo store. We got to experience the sweet, savory
goodness of Batangas hospitality for P20.00 a glass. It was a welcome
treat after an hour or so ascent to the top. We decided to cook and eat
lunch at the halo-halo store.
Trek
then resumed at 1:00pm. This time it was more difficult since we just had
lunch and we'd much prefer a nap. But being our first time to climb Mt.
Daguldul, we weren't sure how much longer it would take us to reach the
top. We were more concerned with being there before sunset to see the
majestic view. After a few more stopovers we finally reached a
campsite. That would probably be the Gulugod Baboy they were talking
about at the different sites I've visited to know more about Mt. Daguldul.
We
went to the other campsite which was nearer the water source. There were
already a few people there when we arrived. They were the first group up
and were able to take the better spot. Nevertheless, there was more than
enough room for all our tents. It was 4pm when we got to the top and was
still too hot to set up the tents so we just lazed around. Not
surprisingly, I fell asleep on the carabao grass covering the field with a
garbage bag to lie on.
Then
the guys pitched our tents (4 in all). One tent was for the guys, my brother's
tent was for my sister and her companions (they're 3 in all) and another one
borrowed by my sister and her officemate from another officemate was for them
and myself (we were 4 girls).
Before
long, the guys were cooking our dinner of corned beef and spicy tuna (canned)
sauteed in oil, tomatoes and onions. The first group who came before us
ate their dinner earlier than we did. We took pictures (lots of them to
be posted later) and went to the water source to freshen up. Yes, girls
need freshening up after an arduous climb under the sun.
The
first group who got there ate their dinner early. After a few minutes our
group was ready to eat ours but the guys have started sharing the only bottle
of gin they brought along and decided to eat later. After dinner there
was nothing much to do. A socialization would have been good but our
group was a little shy and the first group started their drinking session after
dinner. Had we known there wasn't much to do at night we would have
brought our own drink. Since we didn't, we simply contented ourselves
with playing cards and turned in early. After all, we were all really
exhausted with the climb.
The
next morning we were up before sunrise. As we opened our tent,
behold! The fog surrounding the campsite was as thick as smoke. So
we got our cameras and phones ready to take pictures. They will be posted
soon. As the sun slowly came up, the guys once more prepared our
breakfast. We brought salted eggs, tomatoes, dried fish and noodles for
breakfast. Soon enough we were eating our hearts out. They weren't
much but when shared with friends at the top of a mountain you labored to
climb, it was a feast for us.
We
decided to start the trek down earlier so we can pass by the Naambon
Falls. We started at 8:30 and arrived at the falls by 11:00.
The descent was a lot faster than our ascent. We took pictures at the
falls then headed down to give us enough time for swimming at the beach.
Once more, we passed the halo-halo stalls and had our fill. This time,
there was fresh coconut too. Almost an hour of rest at the place then we
resumed our trek. By lunchtime we were at the beach front. The guys
(as always) prepared lunch while we took a swim. We couldn't swim long
since it was almost noon and we were scheduled to leave by 2:30. They
talked with a jeepney driver in the place who agreed to take us back to San
Juan for P55.00 each.
A
short swim and lunch of breakfast leftovers and some luncheon meat and we were
good to go. After the last person had showered and all the trash was in
its proper place, every bag secured and nothing was left, we headed for the
jeep and rode to san juan. Some of us (that includes me) were asleep
during the trip. The short swim and the breeze (dusty that may be) lulled
us to sleep. We arrived at San Juan then rode another jeep to Lipa.
By 4:00 we were in Lipa ready to board the bus once more for LB. My
brother and his friends took a bus to Batangas while the rest of us went to
LB. My sister's friends were bound for Alabang but they decided to ride
with us to Turbina where they took a bus bound for Alabang.
It
was a good weekend. Tiresome really but fun. Our pictures should
describe what we went through. But the soreness of every muscle in my
legs and feet and even in my stomach (how could it hurt?) wouldn't be seen in
the pictures. Suffice it to say that I groan once in a while of
muscle pain and soreness. I am not complaining! It was all
worth it. I can't wait for the next climb.
posted by le grunge @ 11/07/2012 02:52:00 PM
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