Five in the morning the following day, he called me up and asked if I could check with the PAGASA to see if there were any storm for the next two days. After confirming that there would be no storm forecasted, we decided to meet at Wendy's Buendia around seven that same day. After having breakfast, we ventured around to buy some of the stuffs that we needed and find out if the other hikers were planning to climb the same mountain like us. Usually freelance climbers like Mario and myself routinely do this to save on expenses and to have companions during our hike to the mountain. Originally, our group consists of about 9 persons but due to unforseen circumstances, Elmer chickened out(well, he was able to lend us his tent and burner, thanks man!) Bien and Jason were transferred from CFM to Medicine. Deadsperm has his own excuse while others had a major exam in surgery( excuses...excuses). It was around 11 am when we reached Lipa City, from there we rode a jeep to San Juan. When we got there, the jeep barker told us that a group had just left an hour ago and we had to wait for the jeepney to be filled with passengers. We have to share the ride with the goods bought from town and retailed in the barrio (half of the jeep was packed with cement, flour, softdrinks, ol, grocery products etc.) As expected, most of the trip was painted with rough road( usually this is the part I hate most, when you will be blanketed with clouds of dust), as we near the the jump-off site, the beach started to peek across the horizon, which made me more excited because of the feedback and info I had been receiving regarding the climb. Barrio Hugom, our destination located at the foot of Mt. Daguldul is gaining popularity as a tourist dstination because of it's beautiful beach. We reached our destination around 1 pm. We talked to the people in charge, paid 25 pesos each for the entrance fee and 350 pesos for the guide(although in the other mountains that I've conquered before, this is optional. They said this fee is to cover for the maintainance of the mountain and to pay the private owners of the land.)
At 2 pm, after eating and doing our own rituals before climbing, Carlos, our guide approached and told us that if we're ready will be leaving ASAP. We started the trek and after passing a couple of houses, wham! I saw the beach and it easily earned my admiration. White sand coupled with a beautiful panoramic view, a place comparable to Puerto Galera and Boracay but sans the commercialized place and crowded people. There were cottages and resorts, sign of increasing popularity and tourist destination. My shoes kept sinking on the sand as if it was trying to embrace my feet, we went over large rocks, passed by this man-made walkway at the base of the cliff, all of which kept our mind from thinking of a more difficult ascend tha lies ahead. We passed by a small community and stopped at a sari-sari store. Carlos bought a few kilos of rice and advised us if we were going to buy anything this would be the last source of our supplies. As we go on, the terrain slowly became elevated and I began to feel the burden of carrying a heavy backpack: tent, burner,clothes, extra stuff and worst, 5 liters of water (what was I'm thinking when I packed my stuff)? I kept on looking bak to see the scenic view, this large body of water surrounding the the distant island of Marinduque (which happens to be the birthplace of Mario), a small banca gently being rocked by the waves, a huge bird hurdling over us looking for a prey and clouds sailing through the horizon. Reminders that tell me to go out and always have a break from medschool. I was breathing rapidly, rivers of sweat was dripping out of my skin but doing better compared to Mario who was being punished for not having enough sleep and ample rest. When we reached the top of our steep ascent, Carlos told us that the climb would be a lot easier from now on but the bad news was that we've just covered 1/4 of the trail. (WHAT?!?). Further up the trail, there was house selling some refreshments(thank God!). From the stop over, I was able to see crops of corns layered at the sides of the mountain, herd of goats and huts. When we reached the last stop over, we were able to catch up the group who was ahead of us by an hour. I though we were like turtles climbing up the mountain, this boosted our morale! From there Carlos said that would only take us about 20 mins to reach the peak. We rested and tried to regain our energy for the last 20 minutes burst of adrenalin, although our legs were beginning to give up, we were still determined to conquer Mt. Daguldul.
Iit was almost dusk when we reached the summit, although tired we still set up camp then fixed our stuff and cooked dinner. I envied the other groups for they are plentier and was having "socials" unlike us, we have only have each other as a companion. After eating a hefty dinner, we just laid there watching the stars and the skyline, we talked about stuffs like IM "tsismis", we also wonder why we have to submit ourselves to this gruesome experience (maybe for the adventure, excitement, the chance to see beautiful places, meet new people, experience the outdoor or just prove that if we set our minds we could achieve our goal; same as aspiring to be a great doctor, to live, to love, to serve. Our siesta was cut short by the thick fog that blanketed the campsite, we decided to retire and went inside the tent.
The next day, we planned to start the day at 6 am but we're just too tired to get up until 8, prepared breakfast, fixed our things then hit the trail. The guide said that we should visit the "rockies" so our climb would be complete.From there you would see a lot of spectacular views, perfect for taking pictures. But for me it wouldn't be complete if I wasn't able to to swim at the beach. Around noon, we started the descent. After saying our prayer, we went down because it was starting to rain. We need to reach the forest so that the trees would protect us from the down pour. Luckily, the rain didn't fraught us as we expected. Having faster pace, we were able to overtook most of the groups who was ahead of us, maybe because of our desire to stay longer at the beach. When we set foot at the beach, I had another agenda, since I was setting up a salt water aquarium, this would be perfect time to collect large stones for my aquarium (warning: collection of corals is prohibited!). Before we reached base camp, Mario's load was now heavier because as we journeyed along the coastline, I was picking up large stones and placed it in his bckpack cover(he he he). At around 2:30 pm at the basecamp, we had our lunch ( for me it was like a merienda, consisting only of bread and canned goods) and rested for a few minutes.
Alas! I was running towards the water. The urge of frolicking in the water, swimming back and forth was satisfied when my skin sensed the tepid water caressing my body. I stayed there for 30 mins, then I took a bath in where also the women washes their clothes. While I was enjoying my bath, Mario opted to rest. He then just took a bath later. We unpacked our stuff and bought out my camera, we took pictures of ourselves and tried to capture the place where people were proud of their natural habitat, trying to preserve and protect it but at the same time sharing it with others. After finishing a roll of film, we loaded our backpacks and head back to Lipa City.
Our experience was worthwhile, shortlived yet sure to be remembered. It was my first climb with Mario but I enjoyed his company. Experiencing the outdoors and appreciating its beauty is an activity that I urged that the students should take. I know we are all busy and preoccupied with studying (toxic!) but careful planning and preparations can be done.
If you feel the urge of climbing, just
Also published in CADUCEUS Vol.7 No.1 (Official Student Publication Of FEU-NRMF Institute of Medicine) |
