What do Maculot, Romelo and Manabu have in common - Part 2

My Mt. Maculot traverse experience with K reminded me of my very first mountain climbing experience in Mt. Romelo. It was August 2010 and I was supposed to go to Taytay Falls but the friend I was supposed to go with stood me up so I decided to just go somewhere with fewer people - the mountains. I hired a guide who perhaps had a third eye as well, the reason why he saw what he did. We were walking towards Lansones Falls, he was like ten feet ahead, when I noticed that he kept on looking back towards me. I thought he was just checking on me as the thought of "stuff" like that in the mountains hasn't really occurred to me at that time. Had...

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What do Maculot, Romelo and Manabu have in common? - Part 1

I climbed Mt. Maculot every week last December to lose some inches on my tummy. And because not everyone likes to climb the same mountain over and over again, and because I'm really a loner, I climbed those four times alone. The Rockies campsite is safe to climb alone. (I can almost hear my few more experienced mountaineering friends disagreeing with me.) The trail is wide and there are no forks aside from one early in the trail, but there’s an arrow pointing to the right direction so I really don't see how anyone could get lost. My first two weeks were bliss. I was literally alone at the campsite aside from a big tuko on the first and a monkey...

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Mt. Manabu v2 (Solo Climb)

It is one of those days when you're itching to go out and you don't have anyone to go out with because they're either in school or just plain busy. In my case, my climb buddy wasn't available that day when I was so in the mood for a dayhike. It was a Friday, August 19th, and life had been so good that I wanted to shed that extra energy I had in me the whole week; more so, I wanted to celebrate by doing something that I love best. Because the previous night proved futile in looking for someone to climb with, I woke up quite late the following morning. It was already around 9:30 AM when I logged in to Facebook and hoped to find a hiking buddy...

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Mt. Maculot's Garbage Problems

Mt. Maculot's campsite, as I mentioned in my recent post titled Mt. Maculot: A Not-So-Pleasant-Surprise, has a big problem on waste management. It wouldn't have reached that point if all of us "mountaineers" are disciplined enough to "Leave No Trace" and if we really care about the environment. Judging by the pile of liquor bottles, I think that some (if not most) of the hikers go up Mt. Maculot just to drink and party. Have the mountains become the new venue of Friday/Saturday/long weekend night-outs? Perhaps some would argue, "What are the registration fees for?" Do you think P10.00 is enough to let the locals chase our garbage in the...

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Mt. Maculot: A Not-So-Pleasant Surprise

Last week of July, I learned that my young friends in MLQU Stallions Outdoor Club (MSOC) were planning to do a Mt. Maculot hike on the first weekend of August. I get invited to MSOC climbs most of the time so it was kinda automatic (especially with these young members) that I would be joining them on this one. No one among those climbing that time had been to Mt. Maculot before, while I already did a traverse of the mountain September last year with my friend Danilo. So I was immediately appointed as the guide. It was my first time to ever guide a group of climbers in the mountains, but as they say, there's always a first time for everything....

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E-Games' Domination V

I was at the e-Games Domination V last April 2. I arrived at SMX around 4:00 PM while the Shure Band was performing. The band was the 2nd place winner of the battle of the bands during the R2D5 NCR leg. The event was hosted by Eri Neeman and two other girls I didn't get the names of. SMX was packed but I think there were more attendees last year. Well, correct me if I'm wrong but I could barely roam around last year. Or was it just the floor plan this year that made it seem more maluwang? There were computers for free play but the line was oh-so-long. I just busied myself with watching Ran Online's "Flip Top" challenge in the game's booth....

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Mt. Pulag – Toploading to the Clouds

I love traveling alone, even climbing mountains with just a guide, but I know there are some places I cannot go to alone for two reasons – it's so remote it's not safe to go alone; and it would cost me a fortune if I don't go with a group. Mt. Pulag in Benguet, Luzon's highest peak, is one of those places. That's why I felt so lucky when the MLQU Stallions Outdoor Club invited me to join them for their Mt. Pulag climb. It was originally planned for December 2010, but because of the cold weather, it was moved numerous times until it became February 18-20, 2011. I don't really have the gears, much more for a high-altitude climb. I have a tent,...

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