My First Major Hike: Mt. Tapulao

I still don't consider myself as a mountaineer. I think i need to level up and climb more and higher mountains. Not because I want to brag but because I want to know my limits and capabilities and I want to learn more. When a group of friends ask me to climb Mt. Tapulao which is a major climb (for me at least), I said yes without hesitations. Then I realized I am not yet ready for this climb. Just like when I climb Pulag, I am not prepared. But I am not the type of person who back out once I already committed to someone. And when you hike , all you really need is courage , good company, plus some jelly ace for trail food Haha. 

So there I go, I challenged myself last August 30- September 1, 2013 to hike Mt, Tapulao, the tallest mountain in Zambales. To some it is just a minor hike but I really don't care about the difficulty level, I am after the experience, scenery, and learning. This is going to be a long post. :)

I will not post much details  about how to go to Mt. Tapulao as you can get it from a lot of travel blogs. I just want to share what I experience. 

We arrived in DENR around 4:00AM. They gave us some briefing and they assigned a guide for us. Few minutes before we started the hike, a bus arrived , bringing about 50 people in DENR registration for an overnight hike. I was saddened by the fact the  more and more people treat mountains as tourist spot. I don't own the mountains to say that those 50 people should not hike, neither you or them  or DENR or the government. But we should be mindful and responsible for every actions we do that have an impact to our mother earth. 

We were four and I was the only girl the group. I told them that they should not make special treatments to me and that it's okay if I'll be left behind because I know they are fast hikers and they  should not be worrying about me as long as the guide is with me. haha 

Our guide's name is Hannibal. The guys actually did not consider getting a guide since they are confident that there's a trail and they can carry their big bags all the way up. I said we needed a guide. Not only because it is required by DENR , and I need a porter if I needed (haha), but because its a source of livelihood. I was able to help guides by giving small amount of money in exchange of good service. We, as the fortunate one's , who have the opportunity to help others, do so when you have the chance.  

It was 5AM when started the hike. For the details of the mountain, it's rocky and uphill! You can see it from the video. At first it was cold and dark then it became tiring but the scenery is priceless. It really challenged me. I thought I was not gonna make it. I walk and walk and all my friends are gone, only me and Hannibal, and the sun started to heat up. I rarely take breaks because I want to be fast and to hike with them. Then I stumble. I don't know what to think so I cried. I don't want to stop. This shit became dramatic than before. hahaha So yeah , i stopped and cried for a while. Hannibal was beside me asking to take my bag and cheering me up. Even if I decided to go back , its useless. I am halfway there and there is no way but up. Hannibal words of encouragement helped me. He constantly says that there have been people who hike Tapulao who think they can't finish the trail but they did. He always says we are near so to keep me going. 

My friends waited for me and we ate lunch together. I only brought easy open canned goods. But my friends brought cooking sets and they cooked for our lunch. We stayed in a shaded area near a small source of running water. It was my first time to experience that because in Pulag the organizer cooked for us. Since I do not know how to cook, I was the dish washer. It was an amazing experience, we actually rest for about an hour.

We reached the campsite after 12 hours. Yes , 12 hours for me and still proud! And to our bad luck, it was raining and all bunkers are occupied. Anyways who needs smelly and dirty bunkers when I have my own floral tent (so gay). We decided to go to the summit early in the morning to see the beautiful sunrise.

It was raining all night and I used my beach tent and I don't have a sleeping bed , can you imagine that!? I was really cold up there. This is one crazy adventure that I will never forget.

The day I cried because I was so tired and I almost give up but there's no turning back.

I have no choice but to get up and continue hiking.

The Guide that I will never forget - Hannibal.

The Trail that I will never forget.