Traveling is one thing I always love doing. It gives me an opportunity to know more about the place, people, culture and best of all, food of a certain locality. And with all those adventures I’ve tried, it never crossed my mind that I’d take it a step further; or in this case, literally higher, climbing mountains. A friend of mine introduced me to her group of mountaineers, the BulSU(Bulacan State University) Mountaineers; and the experience was awesome!
Independence Day came and there is only one thing in our minds - holiday, in other words: “walang pasok!” Rather than spending it at home, we thought, why not make a climb, Freedom Climb as we call it. We have 2 destinations on our Freedom Climb: Mt. Gola and Mt. Manalmon in San Miguel, Bulacan. (I should say, these were much easier than my first climb experience.J)
Our plan to make a twin climb will take us the whole day, so we all met up at around 6 in the morning to arrive at the jump-off by 8 in Sitio Madlum, Brgy. Sibul, San Miguel, Bulacan. A two and a half-hour bus ride bound to Cabanatuan from Cubao QC is all it takes to get to Kamias, San Miguel. From there, tricycles are available for 200 pesos (good for 4 pax) to get to the jump-off at Sitio Madlum which, will take 30 – 40 minutes. In our group’s case, however, it took us just an hour and a half jeepney ride since we came from Plaridel, Bulacan. We arrived and our team leader settled some fees and met our guides who were contacted before we went there. After a short orientation on the rules for the trek, we went off our much anticipated climb.
At the initial part of the trek, we passed through Madlum Cave to get to the other side of the mountain. Crossing Madlum River along the trail added a little excitement to the whole experience. We first headed to Mt. Gola, where the trail going to the summit is more challenging than Mt. Manalmon. Trekking Mt. Gola was not as easy as I thought. Some parts of the ascend will require you to climb slippery rocks, without any rope or tree to cling on to, another first for me. It took us 2 hours to reach the summit; but just like my first climb in Mt. Pulag,reaching the summit of Mt. Gola gave me that serene state of mind convincing me that everything was just bliss. A tip to remember though is to always be ready for sudden weather changes; coz as we reached Gola’s summit, heavy rain literally came gushing on us. Sunscreen lotion is also very important. But the sudden weather change is just part of the whole experience. So, after the rain, we took a few minutes of rest and took a lot of pictures. Then it was time to descend.
It was almost lunch time when we reached the foot of Mt. Manalmon. From there, we enjoyed a few laughs and stories of our climb so far over packed lunch. A little over an hour from noon, we prepared for our next climb, Mt. Manalmon.
The trek in ascending is much easier than Gola. Our guide suggested to take the shortest trail going up and the other trail down so we can experience both. After around 40 minutes, we reached the breath-taking summit of Mt. Manalmon. The mountain may not be that high as Pulag, but seeing the vast green range of Sierra Madre is simply magical. By the way, if you wish to stay overnight, a camp site at the summit of Mt. Manalmon is available. After a lot of selfies and groupies, we trekked for an hour and a half back to the jump-off.
Some climbers from our group went spelunking in a few caves nearby, while the rest spent time resting and cleaning up. There are bathrooms at the jump-off site where you can take a shower or do your thing for 10 pesos per container of water (5 gallons I think). You can also do other activities like monkey bridge and raft-riding on the river. The community also has a few sari-sari stores where you can buy snacks and street food like kwek-kwek, halo-halo, barbeque, water and sodas. Shirts as souvenirs are also sold for around 200 pesos.
After a few snacks, bonding with friends and relaxation, we packed and got ready to go back home. Along the road, you can make a stop-over at some stores that offer local products like chicharon and pastillas.
Just like my first climb, it was indeed a tiring one. But like I said, it was awesome; more so, if you have your dear friends to experience it with you.
Using a public transport, you can go to any bus station in Cubao, QC with trips to Cabanatuan. Tell the driver to drop you at Kamias, San Miguel (approximately 2 hours travel). The bus fare is around PhP 130 per pax. Ride a tricycle going to the jump-off site which will take you around 30 – 40 minutes at PhP 200 for 4 pax.
If you have your own vehicle, go north through NLEX, take Sta. Rita exit. Go straight via Cagayan Valley Road going to San Miguel, passing by the towns of Plaridel, Baliuag, San Rafael, San Ildefonso and then you’ll reach San Miguel. You can ask directions going to Brgy. Madlum.
Registration: PhP 5 per pax
Guide Fee: PhP 300 per group of 8 – 10 per summit
(If you’ll stay overnight, it will be PhP 600 per guide)
Vehicle entrance fee (for private/rented vehicle): PhP 20
For caving: PhP 200 for a group of 5, Php 40 per additional person
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