KochiTripp

Mt. Osmena Peak - Dalaguete, Cebu

When I got a chance to visit the province and the city of Cebu in Central Visayas for the second time, I added some exciting adventure in my travel itinerary. This is to climb the Cebu's highest peak, The Osmena Peak or O-peak. More or less 3 hours bus ride from Cebu City South Terminal to the southern part of the province in Dalaguete where this mountain is situated.

Dalaguete is the vegetable capital of Cebu, it reminds me of the vegetation in Benguet last time we visited Mt. Pulag. The weather here is like in Baguio City, so don't be surprised why the locals are always wearing jackets even during day time.

From Cebu City, we took Ceres Bus bound to Dalaguete, just ask the conductor where you are headed, to drop you in the right location. In our case, we alighted at the town proper of Dalaguete the locals are celebrating a feast that time. We took Habal habal for P50/ head on our way to Mantalongon Barangay hall for registration. From there, jump off point is just a few meters away.

Habal Habal Ride

Jump-off point

Thirty minutes or more from the jump off point, we reached the fork in the waiting shed. We took the left side and continued our hike until we reached some villagers. We asked them who can guide us to the peak and down to the Badian Falls since we are planning to do traverse. We were guided by 2 kids for P600 but not in the entire trek. They accompanied us up to the next Barangay only where Badian falls is 2-3hrs hike ahead.

The trail to view deck of O-Peak is fairly easy, it is just 30-45 minutes from the village where we started. But another 6 hours hike if you are planning to go to Badian Falls. In our case, we reached Badian Falls within 4 hours on a fast pace. Osmena Peak is a resemblance of Bohol's famous Chocolate Hills, but O-Peak has a pointed and rocky peak. The view deck gives you a 360 degrees view of the entire province. According to our guide, if weather permits and gives us clear skies, province of Negros is also visible from the peak. But we are not so lucky that time as the clouds started to build up and rain might pour anytime soon. So, our eyes feasted the scenic view at the peak, we took photos as many as we can and ate our bread before we commence for the long hike. This was my 5th mountain so far but still I get amazed on the beauty of Mother Nature.

Pointed peaks of Osmena

Panorama of O-Peak

Yrwin and the 2 guides

If I'm not mistaken, we started our long hike to Badian Falls past 11:00 am, since it took 6 hours to reach the falls, we hiked in a fast moving pace as we need to catch the last bus trip to Cebu City as well. We did ascend and descend in the whole trail; we passed by so many vegetable plants along the way like bell pepper, cabbage, onions and etc. We met also some locals transporting their goods in a large basket using their head. Imagine how long it will take before they reach the flat ground and how heavy that basket was. Also, imagine without them we don't have fresh veggies on our tables.

Belle Pepper

Cabbage

Onions

We kept on walking and walking and walking until finally the rain fell down. For the first time since I've been into mountaineering rain caught us while on the trail. Nice experience isn't it? That is why you need to keep your raincoat with you all the time even during dry season. As they say, mountain has its own weather. Since then, we did our first stop to let the rain pass and also to take some rest for a while. This time we are little bit slower when we resumed to the trail as it was getting slippery due to rain and mud. We are more cautious and focus on our every step, slowly but surely. According to our guide we are not in the middle of the trek yet. It means we need to hike few more hours and overcome the rain just to hit our itinerary.

Thick fog

Trekking on the rain

We then reached the next barangay (I forgot the name) and then our guide left us there and hiked on our own. Since the rain won't stop, some locals offered us to ride a habal habal to shorten the hike and lead us to the next jump off site. We paid P100/ head for that ride. We alight at the sari sari store and had our rest for the last time. According to the habal habal driver, Badian Falls is more or less than an hour ahead from this sari sari store. Gladly the rain stopped so we were back on a fast pace again. We need to spend some more time to take a dip in cool water before we headed back to the City. That's why we were in a hurry. We didn't have opportunity to take some photos after the habal habal ride, we were so tired and exhausted. Our target is to be at the Falls according to the plan so we kept on moving fast.

Trail to Badian Falls

Trail to Badian Falls is very established, there are some houses too. When you get lost, you may ask some locals you will meet along. They are very approachable and they can understand Tagalog too, so no worries. After almost an hour, we started to hear rushing water ahead, so few meters after that, here we are at Badian falls, the greenish cold and fresh water.

We stayed at one of the cottages where the Falls is visible. We asked the caretaker not to charge us for our stay; instead we will buy foods for our very late lunch. We ordered 4 rice, 1 1.5 soft drinks and their own version of Pork Sinigang. Wohooo! bon appetit. It was a good reward to eat delicious food along the natural beauty of nature, truly relaxing. After our tummy was full, it's time to get a dip in. Swimming time!

Finally, we made it!

Their own version of Sinigang

After we enjoyed the waterfalls, we waved goodbye to this place and proceeded to 30-45 minutes hike to the main road to catch the last bus to Cebu City. It was a great experience, tiring but worthy. So, next time you'll plan a vacation, try to add a little spice on it to make it an extraordinary vacation.

Anyway, if you followed the path of that waterfall, it will lead you to the open sea across the main road where we waited for the bus. From fresh water to salted water, amazing, isn't it?

What's on my 28L pack during this climb? (Observe proper bag anatomy for comfortability)

Clothing

2 pairs of Dry fit shirts

1 Trekking pants (Convertible into shorts)

1 Trekking short

2 pairs of underwear

1 Raincoat

1 Columbia Sandals (I used in the entire trek)

Towel

Arm band

Hat

Foods

2 liters of water (in hydration bladder)

Trail foods (Bars of cloud 9, Jelly ace and peanuts)

Bread

Personal Items and others

Medical Kit / Toiletries/ Bath soap/ Shampoo

Wet wipes/ Sanitizer/ Tissue papers

Head lamps/ Flashlights with extra battery

Digicam / Cellphone

Trash bags

Knife

Lighter

Extra money

ID's

Mt. Pulag - Kabayan, Benguet

Every mountaineers / hikers constantly look for the next mountain to climb. Something more challenging in terms of difficulties and higher in altitude. In other words, they are looking for new level of fulfillment to add in their mountaineering experience. So, some of them including me tried the major climb for the very first time. And this moment, we headed to northern part of the Philippines to climb the Luzon's highest peak - Mt. Pulag, the third highest mountain in the country (following Mt. Apo and Mt. Dulang-dulang) (Source: pinoymountaineer.com).

At the height of 2922 MASL, we climbed Mt. Pulag for 3 days and 2 nights via Akiki Trail or so called "The Killer Trail" because of its steepness all throughout the trail. Our adventure started after the briefing at the DENR. Around 12:00NN, we arrived at the Akiki jump off and started our trek towards the ranger station. This is where you can secure for a guide, porter and to register. We also ate our packed lunch there. After ensuring that everything is set, we commenced the trek to Eddet river for 2 hours or more if I'm not mistaken.

DENR

Akiki Jump off point

During the trek, you will be amazed with the nature that surrounds you. The trail of Akiki is just like an adventure game that you will need to pass by stage by stage. First, the Eddet River where we spent our first overnight camp and passed by the hanging bridge the next day. Followed by the so called "Marlboro Country" where you can witness lots of tall old trees all over the area like we've seen in the famous cigarette commercial. Next is the mossy forest or enchanted forest as they say. Once you reach this area you’ll feel like you are in a fantasy movie (hehe). From here, you can witness big tress where the trunks and branches are almost covered by mosses. No doubt, because of the climate in Mt. Pulag is cold. And lastly, the grassland that is composed of dwarf bamboos. When you reach this area, you are not too far from the summit. This is where the saddle camp is located. From saddle camp, the summit is just a 30mins or more away.

Continuing our hike under the heat of the sun, we reached our first stop. There, we met some hikers spending their few minutes of rest. One good thing about mountaineering is you keep on meeting new friends with the same interest. Even though you don't know them personally, you’d still feel welcomed. Greeting each other's group and exchanging conversations and sharing different stories and experiences.

Master Joey, S' Arnold (Center) S' Edwin

Yrwin with pine tress at the background

Your's truly at the edge

As we continued we finally reached the Eddet River. This is a nice spot to spend overnight because the water source is just a few meters away. Around 4:30PM we started pitching our tents, cooked our foods for dinner and had some socials. We allowed ourselves to experience the cold water in the river by washing our tired bodies. This is the first time I drank water directly from river. No after tastes and it’s really cold (Nice experience). Some hikers took their bath also. The good thing about having water source along the trail is to lessen the load during the trek. Just spend your water wisely until you reach the water source. Also, you can wash your dishes after use to avoid some crawling insects on it. Be in mind that most water source in the trail are locals’ daily source too, so keep it clean and avoid some contamination by using soap, shampoos and the like nearby.

When spending socials overnight, make sure to minimize your noise to avoid disturbances with the fellow mountaineers having rest. If your group has drinking sessions, try to avoid too much intake of alcohol to avoid some unfortunate events or behavior.

Views captured along the trail

Eddet River below as seen from the top

Try to spend some time to pause and take some photos along the trail. This is for you to savor the beauty of the surrounding and to connect yourselves to nature as well. Feel free to relax you mind and forget the busy moment in the urban living. There are so much to discover with this kind of activity, if you have journal, write it down so that you can have lots of stories to share back home. In my case, taking pictures are enough. These images are enough to tell the story how good this adventure was. Enough for me to reminisce the place, the companionship and the experiences that once in a while, I can say, I was there, in that mountain of Mt. Pulag.

Fresh water of Eddet river

Group picture before we leave the camp
Master Joey, S' Edwin, Ms. Jho, S' Aldrin, S' Eric, S' Arnold, Ms. Nina, Ms. Yrwin, Me and S' Alex (right)

The following day we woke up early for breakfast and for another long day of hike. The cold night gave us a comfortable sleep and regenerated. We took the hanging bridge to cross the Eddet River. This bridge is made of rod and cables attached together to make it stronger and stable. Don't worry it's safe. After that bridge, I started to realize why they called it "The killer trail". Majority of the climb from Eddet river is steep slopes. Like us who are new to take major climb and in this kind of trail, I can't go 30mins straight hike without stopping just to catch my breath. It's hard to push yourself up while your backpack weight and gravity pulling you down. But you have no other choice but to keep on moving. According to some article I've read, mountaineering is an art of sacrificing, yeah! I agree. This is where you can relate your own life in reality. That sometimes in our life we feel so hopeless, tired and in some point we are thinking of quitting just to put an end to all burdens. But then again, we can see new beautiful things along the trail that give us hope and inspire us to keep on going. Your hiking buddies motivate you to keep going, help you to stand up and to stay focus on trail. There is no turning back alone. In real life, you will learn how to stand up and move forward by your own foot. Your friends and relatives are just there behind to support you.

At the hanging bridge

Around 12NN, we reached the so called Marlboro country to have our lunch near the 2nd water source. Lots of climbers drop by here for lunch and rest. After that, our adventure continued and commenced our trek up to mossy forest. When you engage in this kind of trail, make sure you have lots of trail foods that you can eat along. Full your water container after your lunch because that is the last water source up to saddle camp. I guarantee you, this trail is no joke, it made me drain and exhausted. Your trail foods and water helps you energize to keep you going. Chocolate bars, peanuts and jelly ace are the good examples.

Ms. Jho Esteban (left)

Master Joey & S' Edwin at Mossy Forest

We cannot take more photos in Marlboro Country and Mossy Forest because we are too tired enough. On the other hand, we reserved our own batteries for the summit photos. The two photos above are courtesy of S' Edwin.

Group pic during pit stop

After the mossy forest, we found ourselves in this open place on a higher ground. We are now at about 2600 MASL. Spend some of your time to witness the cloud formations and feel the cool breeze of winds that touches your face. At this point, you can feel the success, because behind this peak is the way down to the saddle camp where you can see the nearby summit of Mt. Pulag. Saddle camp is less than an hour hike from this area.

While we are on the trail to saddle, the weather is getting colder as the fog is visible everywhere.

All of us were too excited, but some of our companion was left on the trail just to savor the moment and capture different cloud formations. When we arrived at the camp, we started to pick good spot to pitch our tent. Good site to cover us from the cold winds. Finally, I picked a place to cover us but not that good because of the un-even ground. While the others busy catching the sunset, me and my climbing buddy cooked our food for the night. Some members of our group have their own food too for dinner. We decided to cook early so we can eat and rest as early as possible. We need to wake up early morning to catch the sea of clouds during sunrise. Our call time is 4AM.

We didn’t have a good sleep that night as the cold weather was freezing. I had 4 pairs of socks on my feet, 3 layers of jacket on my body, leggings and pants for my lower part and gloves for my hands, and yet I was still freezing. According to some climbers, the temperature dropped down to -4 degrees that time. I don't know how accurate that was. We didn't believe them until we saw some ice on top of our tent. I can't believe it but it's really true. It was like the tiny white ice that you find inside your fridge when I opened the tent door. And when I came out of the tent at 3:30am, viola! the ice is almost on everybody's tent. It really amazed us.

Sir Edwin showing t-shirt and tent that has ice

Preparing breakfast

After a quick sipping of hot coffee, we commenced our final summit assault. Climbers are coming from different directions and trails but with one purpose, to reach the summit and witness the sunrise and the sea of clouds. The stunning 360 degrees views that makes Mt. Pulag popular as hiking destination.

Breaking dawn

Sunrise at the summit

Fellow climbers

The famous Sea of Clouds

Saddle camp viewed from the summit

Yrwin at Mt. Pulag summit marker

Sir Eric (left) Sir Arnold (Right)

After our eyes witnessed the wonder of God's creation, taking some photos as souvenir and saying goodbyes to the summit and its beauty, we decided to descend and head back to camp for breakfast and for final pack up preparation. We did our traverse via Ambangeg trail. That was a very memorable climbing experience since most of us in the group were his/her first time via Akiki trail and first time to climb Mt. Pulag. I will surely keep on coming back to this mountain.

What's on my 32L pack during this climb? (Observe proper bag anatomy)

Shelter

Tent - X2 Hillman (2 Persons tent)

Fly sheet

Ground Sheet

Sleeping Pad

Sleeping Bag

Guy lines

Clothing

1 Thermal Jacket

1 Windbreaker

1 Mid layer Jacket

3 pairs of Dry fit shirts

1 Trekking pants (Convertible into shorts)

1 Trekking short

3 Under wares

4 pairs of socks

1 Raincoat

1 Columbia Sandals (I used in the entire trek)

1 Merrel Trail glove shoes (I used in summit assault)

Arm band

Hat

Bonnet

Gloves

Cookwares / Kitchenette

Stove - Bulin (Folding)

3 Canister of butain gas

Cook set (for 2 Persons)

Utensils

Lighter / Matches

Knife

Thermo Jug

Water container

Foods

5 cups of rice (for 2 persons)

Canned goods

Soup powder

3 in 1 coffee

Noodles

Salted egg with tomato

3 liters of water (1 in hydration bladder)