Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Mount Pulag 01: From Baguio to Ambangeg

Quick Facts:
Also known as: Mount Pulog
Location: borders of Benguet, Ifugao and Nueva Vizcaya
Elevation: 2,922 m or 9,587 ft
Type: mossy forest, grassland summit
Prominence: highest peak in Luzon, third highest peak in the Philippines, ranked 106th out of 125 most prominent peaks in the world, a UNESCO World Heritage Site


There are many mountains in the Philippines but if there is one that I would really like to climb, it’s Mount Pulag (or Pulog to some people). Exciting personal accounts, excellent photos from the summit, friendly people of Benguet— these suffice my eagerness to conquer this mountain.

registration at Victory Liner in Pasay

Registration of participants at the terminal of the Victory Liner in Pasay

So when Oki and I heard about pinoymountaineer’s Pulag Charity Climb we did not hesitate in joining. Immediately, we signed up. Oki is a frequent reader of Gideon’s blog so she practically knows the drill. Another come-on to this climb is that it will support charitable endeavors from donating medicines to the Kalanguya tribes in Mt. Pulag to helping improve the conditions in PGH Pediatric Wards.

jeep going to Ambangeg

The mighty jeepney that brought us to Kabayan, Benguet

Registration was held at the terminal of the Victory Liner in Pasay—the rendezvous for all the climbers. I was informed that there were 80 participants. Through a chartered bus, we left in batches going to Baguio City (6-hour trip). Early birds get to register and sit on the bus ahead of time.

curvy road going to Ambuklao

The curvy road going to Ambuklao

In Baguio, there were jeepneys waiting for us going to Ambuklao. We signed up for the first batch to go. The group of Gideon rode with us. It was less than 4-hour trip from Baguio to Ambangeg, Bokod which is located at the based of the Mount Pulag. Off-road we passed by Ambuklao Dam, the biggest rock filled dam in Asia. The main source of water comes from the Agno River, the longest waterway in the Luzon. We stopped by an eatery to have our breakfast-lunch before heading to the DENR office.


Ambuklao Dam

We passed by Ambuklao Dam

boats

Boats at the dock

pass bridge

Pass bridge

We registered and secured our permit at the Mt. Pulag National Park Protected Area Office in Ambangeg. All climbers were required to undergo an orientation/briefing at the visitor's center/protected area office. Facilitating the orientation was Emerita "Mering" Basco Albas, protected area superintendent .

PAWB sign

PAWB advisory for all climbers

PAWB office

DENR Information Office

orientation/briefing

Ms. Mering briefing the climbers after watching a video presentation

After the video presentation and an orientation of the DOs and DON’Ts, we headed to the Ranger Station—the jump-off point to Mount Pulag. On our way to the station, our jeepney got stuck in deep potholes that the driver had to try several times to rev up the engine.

to Ranger Station

Inside the jeep going to the Ranger Station, Oki looking at the camera



jump-off point to Mount Pulag

Alas, we reached the Ranger Station

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

si oki ba yung *wave*

sel

pieterbie said...

Wow I love that bus.

Sidney said...

So...that is Oki! ;-)

Why "alas" we reached the Ranger Station" ? Is this the start of a horror story? ;-)

my gulch said...

@sel: hehe, siya nga yun. at marami pang susunod. actually, di ko pinagpa-alam yan. baka dumami ang stalker niya.

@peter:
it's only in the Philippines that you'll see this kind of vehicle. it's synanymous to the tuk-tuk of Thailand or the cyclo of Vietnam. ours is the jeepney.

@sidney:
haha. i notice i kept saying that word every now and then.

punky said...

wow ayos magfishing dun sa amboklod dam ah!

Photo Cache said...

rayts, pick up your award from my site. :)

Kyels said...

Wow, interesting. Looking forward to see more photos of this hike.

:D

my gulch said...

@punky: onga, actually daming nagtitinda ng isda sa tabi ng pass bridge.

@photo cache:
yea, i've read it. thanks ha. will try to get on with it in my next post.

@kyels:
thanks!

Anonymous said...

panalo yung river ha. =D sige, ill wait for your follow-up post. =)

escape said...

i can only say "if only....". at least i get to see the photos like i was there.

next time. nga pala akyat kami ng pinatubo sa feb28 daytrip nga lang.

my gulch said...

@pao:
ganda nga. lahat ng may mga camera, yan ang unang pininturan.

@dom:
oist talaga? wow, exciting. goodluck.

escape said...

salamat!

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