Gbins Can Do It!: June 2016

February 2015

This is the only popular mountain destination that I haven't climb since I started my hiking career many years back. It isn't about lack of interest, I just can't find the right time and the right people to climb with because I wanted to climb this mountain via Talipusngo, the last barangay of Maragondon before the Municipality of Magallanes where the more popular jump-off at Barangay Ramirez is located. Although Gideon Lasco of Pinoy Mountaineer had done the climb via this route (naunahan pa ako), I wanted to do it myself... a trailblazing.

Mt Marami

By coincidence, My brother-in-law Pastor Albert Soltero, who, in one of our conversations, disclosed to me a motorcycle off road trail which his group traversed starting from Barangay Ramirez in Magallanes passing by a mountain he called Silyang Bato and all the way down to Barangay Talipusngo in Maragondon. After learning this new and exciting trail, the climb was set and the rest was history.

Pastor Albert Soltero and his son Darryll

We commence our hike starting from the mango plantation and into a rough and muddy road up to the mountain. After more than an hour of trekking, we got lost! We found ourselves walking on a ridge, a nipa hut and a deadend! After our quick lunch, we decided to go down the mountain following the cow's trail and alighted on the rough road where a rumbling sound of water in a distant can be heard. We continued our trek crossing by two rivers until we reached the Nuestra Senora Chapel. We actually missed the upper Maragondon trail. As per Pastor Albert, "the trail is all mountains, rolling, with a nice views and a grasslands"... like "sky way". He actually can't remember passing by two rivers.

Mt Marami's famous boulder

Cow along the trail of Mt Marami

Gbins can do it!

After almost 4 hours, we finally reached the famous rock formation of Mataas na Gulod. The place is perfect for photo ops... this is actually the main reason why mountaineers, climbers and tourists flock to this place just to experience this wonderful scenery where rocks and mountains are combined. As we rested on the top of Mt Marami boulders, Pastor Albert pointed out the grassland where the trail is visible and he said, "that's the skyway trail.

Silyang Bato

Mt Marami

Pastor Albert and his Son Darryll

It was already four in the afternoon when we begun our descent. We followed the long and scenic grassland trail hoping to finally descent via the new found skyway trail. But there were so many trails going in every directions and just one wrong turn, it could lead us to unknown territory. But luck was on our side not just this time but almost everytime! Along the way, we met a farmer who was so kind to lead us to an almost invisible pathway going to Talipusngo. The trail was actually split into two and the other one which was actually the more established is going down the river and into Barangay Ramirez. We followed the path which was rolling passing by several farmlands until the trail became bigger and bigger then down to the mango plantation and back to the jump-off. It took us three hours of almost nonstop trek and it was already past seven in the evening when we arrived. We were actually trekking without a flashlight and thank God we're all safe!