Conquering the High Peak (Mt. Tapulao)

By: Gecarl N. Binongo

Mt. Tapulao is a tough mountain to climb not because of its dangerous terrain but because it has an endless trail or let may just call it “an infinite dirt road”. Mountaineers will surely run out of patience because eighty percent of the whole trek is the same rocky, muddy, long and winding road with tall grasses and not so grand forest which offers few surprises. But behind those seemingly endless trekking, a beautiful Pine Country emerges as one comes close to the foot of Mt. Tapulao. Surely, the scenery is such a wonderful prize for ones painful efforts.

Boring trek? This was our group impression after six hours of trek along the unchanging 4x4 trail. Where were those great Mt. Tapulao pictures I saw in the internet? We had enough of this same dirt road trail. But before we stopped for a lunch break, it rained so hard that we decided to set up an emergency shelter at the clearing near the second water source. The rain just won’t stop which provoke us to consider setting up our tent and forget the idea of conquering the High Peak. This wasn’t in our plan and it broke my heart not to continue our quest but we have to do it for our safety. After we had our stomach filled, our group agreed to continue our hike since the rain was reduced to drizzles. Whew! A big sigh of relief… The clearing was actually “limatik” infested; this really gave us enough reason to move forward. Eight hours after, most of the guys started complaining. Where are those pine trees? How long? These questions were asked a countless times. My frustration to locate the pines just got me an idea that the pines were truly worth to find. The problem was, we were really exhausted. The rest of the guys already lost hope and wanted to camp just anywhere in the trail but I wasn’t buying the idea. It was too dangerous to camp besides the dirt road since the possibility of our tent to be swept away by the running water was high. I got to be patience... I got to lead them to the bunker campsite. Slowly, we hit back to the road again and endured the pain caused by a seemingly endless trek.

The pines! Everybody was in high spirit. Amazed by the scenic surrounding, everyone was busy taking pictures. “Where is the campsite”? Johnny asked. Well, “maybe will have to walk for another 20 to 30 minutes”, I told them. I actually was not sure where this campsite near the bunker was. We passed by a landslide area and again we trek uphill into a rocky road with no pine trees. What had happened? We thought we were close to the campsite. Our pace was getting slower. I was now concern with our situation… there were no part of the trail that was suited for camping. The areas were too dangerous for flashfloods. The trail was covered with fogs and it was getting darker. Being the lead man, I was ahead among the rest for almost half a kilometer. Slowly, fear conquered my inner self. I could hear nothing but my own breath and the eerie sound from something which was hard to described. More than an hour after, I reached a clearing which I think was the mining area. A lot of rocks were filed in all directions and the place was very dark. It was surrounded by bushes and forest. From there; I got a glimpse of Mt. Tapulao peak and the pines where just a few meters away. I waited for my group mates to arrive but I could not stand my fear. I thought I saw something up in the pines… I can’t explain what I saw but it was like starring at me… woowoow… the place was too eerie and strange… as if eyes were everywhere… the dark bushes and the forest… I felt too heavy. Feeling uneasy, I decided to trek back. I was almost back at the rocky road when Johnny alighted not far from where I am. “Are we going to camp here?” I asked Johnny. Without hesitation, Johnny said “NO” while scanning the area. “It’s too dark here”, we have to go up to the pines. I knew Johnny sense something and it was not until the next morning that he told us his reason why he didn’t like to camp at the mining area. Surprisingly, Johnny saw what I saw!

We camped at the clearing which was elevated more than a foot besides the dirt road. It was already seven in the evening. A 13 long hours of trekking and finally we made it to the pines. Even at night, this mountain offered a great deal of view. Our camp site had superb scenery comparable to that of Marlboro Country. It was so fantastic that we were all charge up after a long and exhausting hike. With all those beautiful pine trees and a starry starry night, our efforts were really worth it. We actually had our best dinner while watching the scenic High Peak pines at night with a million of stars above it. But our night didn’t last long… because of chilling temperature plus our tiredness; all of us hit our sleeping bag very early. I woke up early the next morning to witness one of my finest sunrise viewing in my mountain hiking career. The glow of the eastern horizon and the mixed of stars was really great. My camera went busy capturing those precious moments. At 5:50am, I started walking towards the direction of Mt. Tapulao peak. I was all alone since Abner who was already awakened didn’t want to come and the rest of the guys were sound asleep. I reached the bunker 10 minutes after. The caretaker of the place alighted from one of the bunk houses and greeted me. We chatted a little and then I asked him for the direction going to Mt. Tapulao summit. The trail to the summit was just in front of the bunker house. It was quite steep but very manageable. Five minutes after, I was at the campsite along the pines near the mossy forest. From there, I scanned the area and looked at the direction of the peak. It wasn’t that far from where I am. I checked the trail going to the summit and it leads me to the mossy forest. I stood there for several minutes deciding if I have to continue or go back to the campsite. I asked God’s guidance… well, I’m already here, I thought. I entered the mossy forest alone. It was dark inside and the trails were wet, slippery and some parts were muddy. A clearing greeted me as I came close to Mt. Tapulao summit. This could be it… A familiar tree at the summit which I saw from other mountaineers multiply site was there. I was all alone and I really can’t explain my feeling. I paused for a moment and thank God for my successful assault. I stood high and fullfilled. Finally, Gbins conquered the High Peak. My camera went busy capturing just anything… the crater, the nearby mountain range, the Tapulao forest, etc… At exactly 7am, I started my way back to the campsite. I arrived at the campsite 40 minutes after with a perfect timing… its breakfast time!

We broke camp at exactly ten in the morning because the rest of the guys went to the bunker for photo ops and a decent call of nature since toilet was available in the area. Our trek downhill was more painful. A knee breaking descent was inevitable since the proximity between the bunker and Damapay-Salaza is 15kms… a very long way down. Before twelve noon, we had our lunch at the second water source as rain started pouring. We immediately set up our emergency shelter and stayed there for an hour hoping for the rain to subside. As the rain stopped momentarily, we hit back the road right away. Ten minutes after, heavy showers greeted us again. This time, the rain didn’t stop until we reached Damapay-Salaza. We had actually a four hours non-stop hike downhill in a non-stop rain which transformed the long and winding road into body of raging water. What an adventure! Johnny and I were the first to arrive at the Damapay- Salaza tourist center while the rest arrived before 5pm. Since water was unavailable at the tourist center, we opted to take a nature shower (sarap maligo sa ulan)… what a fun adventure! Our way back to Iba was equally exciting and adventurous. It featured a boatlike tricycle ride in a river highway and we almost didn’t make it back since the river overflowed at one of the bridges that connects the resettlement area to the highway. Luckily, we managed to cross the bridge safely.

Our hike to Mt. Tapulao was a full-packed adventure. It was the best! Definitely, I will be coming back. Until my next mountain adventure… God bless.