My Sixth Climb- Mt. Maculot

MounTrails # 6
Mt. Maculot
Cuenca, Batangas
March 20-21, 2010
Group: Take Five
Hikers


A well-known hiking destination south of Metro Manila is the Mt. Maculot located in Batangas. Apart from the write-ups that I’ve read about this mountain, a friend of mine who used to climb this mountain together with her families also shared her climb experience to me and stories about their climbs as well as accidents occurred to other mountaineers (the death of a girl climber who climbed Maculot with her boyfriend using the Grotto trail. The girl slipped on one of the parts of the trail but her boyfriend did not manage to save her. A helicopter used to get the girl’s body ). I dreamed to climb this mountain since August 2009 where we went to Batangas and saw this mountain as the background of the house where we stayed.
After obtaining a good confirmed number of participants for our Mt. Maculot climb, we decided to meet up at 7-11 Buendia located near LRT Gil Puyat Station on March 20. We went to Buendia Bus Terminal and rode a bus bound to Lemery, Batangas at 6:30 A.M (buses bound to Lemery, Batangas passes at Cuenca, the jump-off for Mt. Maculot. This is advisable to save time and money than ride a bus to Lipa then a jeepney to Cuenca from Lipa). We arrived in public market of Cuenca around 9:30 A.M. After we had our breakfast and bought our food for lunch, we rode a tricycle to the jump-off of Mt. Maculot. We had a stop over on our way to the jump-off to register. Registration fee is Php 10/ head.
We reached the jump-off at 10:20 A.M and started the trek at 10:30. I noticed that monkeys, which are staying on some houses on the jump-off, can be found on the way to Mt. Maculot. The cool atmosphere brought by the forested trail of Maculot made our trek enjoyable. Along the trail, stalls selling various kinds of drinks and chichiria at a costly price were familiar sights aside from some trashes. I was dismayed at how garbage management handled on this mountain. Various kinds of trashes, from glass to plastics, could be found particularly on the stalls area. Some trashes could be seen along the trail.
The trail of Mt. Maculot (we used the trail to Mt. Maculot- Rockies) was, for me, generally made our trek easy due to its forest environment. The only part of trail that is exposed to the sun and needed extra care in trekking is the part approaching the campsite (almost 15-20 minutes trekking to reach the campsite along Rockies). This part of the trail has loose type of soil.
At 12:30 P.M, we reached the campsite. I noticed that there was a nipa hut (mountaineers called it 7-11) that was selling various types of drinks and food. This 7-11 was being abandoned at around 6:00 P.M, for its vendors to give time to rest and go home. At the campsite, it seemed that we were in a sauna room. It was really really hot that time. The campsite was exposed to the heat of the sun and shaded areas provided by trees were limited to a number of mountaineers (3 tents at most).
Around 4:30 P.M, we trekked down to Maculot Rockies. The views along the trail were amazing. At the Rockies, the views of Taal Lake and Taal Volcano were promising alongside the views of Tagaytay City and other parts of Batangas. We trailed down to what some called “Dila” part of the Rockies, a trail that is considerably steep and has sharp stones. When trekking the “Dila”, one should be vigilant enough because this part is prone to accidents. Just a slip on the “Dila” could cause serious injuries and maybe, death. When we reached the “Dila”, I was deeply amazed due to the serenity that brought me by the views. There was a spot in the “Dila” where we sat down and enjoyed the beauty in front of us. Though this spot is very vulnerable to accident because it is located on the tip of the Rockies and if someone will slip on this part, he/she will have her way down to Taal Lake. There was a story that a girl, who was so drunk, got her way on one part of the Rockies then jumped, causing her death (reason why she jumped: the girl was said to be brokenhearted).
At 6:00 P.M, we started to prepare our dinner then after that, our socials at 7:00. We were blessed with a good weather that time though it was cold at night. I was surprised by the number of mountaineers climbed on that date (could be almost a hundred). Another thing that surprised me was a certain group had prepared for a bonfire that night. We were worried because of its impact not only on the mountain but also to us. The campsite of Maculot was generally dried that time and having a bonfire can put the whole mountain on fire. We initially planned to snatch the lighter or matchstick that they will use to ignite the woods on the said bonfire (^_^). Plan B was to pray for a rain though rain did not happen that time. I did not know what really happened that time why that group did not continue the bonfire that they had planned. Good thing!
Next day, at 6:00 A.M, we went back to the Rockies for the sunrise. We met a group of mountaineers where one of its members played a flute (he played a song with lyrics “You feel up my senses… like a water in spring time... like a moon that shines above”- I don’t know the exact title). That was perfect to start a beautiful morning.
Back at the campsite, we had our breakfast at 8:00 A.M then start our way down at 9:30 A.M. Along the trail, we picked up as much trashes as we could but still not enough on the amount of garbage present that time. At 11:00 A.M, we were already at the jump-off and tidy-up at a sari-sari store.



Kaisipan Pagkatapos ng Akyat
Dito sa Mt. Maculot ang masasabi kong pinakamaraming basura na nakita ko sa lahat ng mga bundok na naakyat ko nung panahon na yun. Minsan, napapaisip ako kung saan napupunta at ano ang tunay na layunin ng paniningil ng registration fee sa pag akyat sa bundok. Ang unang ideya ko sa registration fee na ito ay ang pagpapanatili ng kalinisan sa mga bundok. Marami ng makabuluhang paglilinis ang ginagawa sa iba’t ibang bundok ngunit may mga bundok talaga na talamak pa rin ang mga basura. Kung magpapatuloy ito, marahil ang bundok na ating nakagisnang akyatin ay hindi na maaakyat ng mga susunod pang henerasyon at ang mga magagandang pagsasalarawan ng mga bundok at ang mga tanawin ng mga bundok ay hanggang pagsasalarawan na lamang sa mga panulat ng mga taong dati nang naakyat ang mga bundok na ito, kasama ang bundok Maculot.


_Cory_ Nov. 1, 2010