Background
Mt. Napulauan is located in the province of Ifugao, and is one of the many beautiful mountains of the Cordillera. The mesmerizing forest, its spectacular sunset and sunrise, and the picturesque sea of clouds are just some of the highlights once you ventured to its highest peak.
Mt. Napulauan is located in the province of Ifugao, and is one of the many beautiful mountains of the Cordillera. The mesmerizing forest, its spectacular sunset and sunrise, and the picturesque sea of clouds are just some of the highlights once you ventured to its highest peak.
The summit
It is also known as The Million Dollar Mountain. Legend has it that General Yamashita's wealth is hidden in this mountain and that this is the location where he surrendered thus ending the war at that time.
There are two known waterfalls in Balentimol trail. The Mungkilat falls is the first you will see coming down from the summit which lies in the middle of the forest. The second is the Tobac falls popularly called as Balentimol falls which is few minutes away from the public road of Hungduan, Ifugao.
Balentimol Falls
Itinerary (Hungduan - Balentimol)
Day 0
0900pm Assembly time in Ohayami Bus Lines (Sampaloc, Manila)
1000pm ETD to Banaue, Ifugao
Day 1
0700am ETA Banaue, Breakfast; Buy food and supplies
0800am ETD Hungduan
0900am ETA Hungduan Tourism Office
0945am ETA Mt. Napulauan JOP
1030am Start Trek
1230pm ETA Campsite; Lunch
0100pm Resume trek
0530pm ETA Mt. Napulauan summit; Setup camp
0700pm Socials; Dinner
1000pm Lights out
Day 2
0500am Wake up Call
0600am Breakfast; Sunrise Viewing
0800am Break camp; start descent
1100am ETA at Mungkilat Falls; Lunch
0200pm ETA at Balentimol Falls; Swim, rest, and tidy up
0400pm Head back to Banaue, Ifugao
0530pm ETA Banaue Proper; Dinner
0700pm ETD Bus to Manila
How to get there
From Manila. ride a bus bound to Banaue, Ifugao in Sampaloc, Pasay, or Cubao. Then ride a chartered jeep heading to Hungduan, Ifugao.
Contact Information
Jaschel (Guide Leader) - 09263802090
Journey
1st day
I never heard of Mt. Napulauan until it was introduced to me by one of our jeep driver after our trek at Mt. Amuyao. He suggested to try the mountain that is similar to Mt. Amuyao in terms of difficulty.
After months had passed, I was able to organize an event to finally venture the mountain and experience its mossy forest including the waterfalls oozing with beauty. The audacity to explore the mountain via Hungduan – Balentimol trail was overflowing, which resulted to a successful journey regardless of the pain and injuries sustained by some of us.
A rice terraces in Hungduan
After some delays, setbacks, and numerous talk with the locals we finally reached the jump-off point of Mt. Napulauan and meet our brave guide namely Jascel and Michael who are cousins. We commenced our hike after a brief orientation and started scaling the horrendous mountain.
Fellow hikers who are with me on our journey
We were oriented about the difficulty of the hike but it was very challenging than we thought. Halfway to the summit, we were awestruck of the view along the way that made us stop just to sight the beautiful scenery.
We had our early lunch at one of the wrecked house above the first campsite, and also had our coffee just like always. We had a few minutes to talk with fellow hikers we first met at our recent climb in Mt. Ugo; we also had the chance to talk about the hardship of the mountain and our planned socials at the campsite.
We had our early lunch at one of the wrecked house above the first campsite, and also had our coffee just like always. We had a few minutes to talk with fellow hikers we first met at our recent climb in Mt. Ugo; we also had the chance to talk about the hardship of the mountain and our planned socials at the campsite.
The old wrecked house
Reaching the summit became extra challenging as we continued to trek through the night being numbed by the cold wind. Some prefer to take booze along the trail while others threw jokes every now and then just to lighten up the difficulty of the trek. For some patience and silence is their way to tackle the trail.
It took us all day long to tackle the trail, and followed by night trekking which made us nocturnal - quite active in scaling the forest until finally reaching the summit. The hike was never easy, its hard but its worth when you reach the highest peak.
Warm greetings and welcomes were given by fellow hikers when we arrive at the campsite. Those greets somehow made me at ease despite the difficulty experienced trekking in the middle of the night.
We then celebrate and had booze that night as we discuss our experienced at Hungduan trail. It was a night of talk and laughter as we commemorate our success.
2nd day
Waking up in the morning as the sun rise was a mesmerizing encounter; all hikers tend to go to any higher point to see sunrise.
Morning Sunrise
The hikers taking a selfie along with the presence of the sunrise
I was literally filled with wonder of the nature and her beauty while taking a zip of coffee by loitering around the summit just to gaze the beautiful view of the mountain. Along with my cousin, sister, and buddy we just sat there beside the tent and enjoyed the beautiful sunrise.
The blogger along with her sister
Subsequently we had our breakfast to strengthen our body and spirit for our next steps to come. After an hour, I was approached by our guide - mam Jaschel and asked if we want to visit a dead lake located just few minutes from the summit. Though I was not able to visit the lake seeing the pictures taken by other team members convinced me that I will visit this place again.
Dead Lake
Our group photo before the descent
The trail was a grandeur of mossy forest so mesmerizing it felt like we were in a different country, witnessing the forest covered with mossy was a different gesture, it was an unexpected encounter that leave me awed. As I was starstruck of the beauty of mossy forest, I grab my chance to stay for a while just to grasp and feel the Mother Nature.
Mossy forest of Balentimol trail
Due to the difficulty of the trail most of us stumbled down but never gave up. Words of encouragement were given to mend their broken spirit to push through their adventure. We tried to help each other until the end of the journey with the help of our dearly guides. All I can say is it was one hell of an experiences – It was memorable.
We were able to go down at around 5pm and quickly jumped in to our rented jeep without tidying ourselves because of a limited time we have. It was of pure luck and an answered prayer that we arrived exactly when the bus was just about to leave.
Despite all our smelly clothes and our worn out body, the existence of joy still embodies within.
|| End
Photo Credit: Maan Villamor and Nes Pena
No comments:
Post a Comment