Mt. Pulag; A Journey on top of the Clouds

It is the 3rd highest mountain in the Philippines. I wasn’t able to see its beauty at its finest because of the weather but I’ll surely be back sooner or later. I wanted to see the famous “sea of clouds” but unfortunately I just saw a glimpse of it.  This is an amazing place and one of the reasons why I climb mountains. Inspiringly and spectacularly beautiful plus the amazing bunch of people I got to climb with.

Mt. Pulag I’ll see you again later 🙂

These are the magnificent rice terraces you can see at the beginning of the climb. It can surely ease your shortness of breath before starting the upward trail.

The summit with these two amazing people 🙂

And yes! It’s a rainbow up there, it’s like a dreamlike scenario. Quite pleasing to the eye and uplifting to a weary soul.

Climbing Mt. Pulag wouldn’t be complete without trying to ride on top of the jeepney, worth the risk. You can see amazing landscapes along the way.

on the way to Mt Pulag

I got to climb with these tough girls, how amazing 🙂

As Mt Pulag constantly gains its popularity, the number of tourists and climbers are also increasing. This is actually an alarming scenario, years from now I wonder how this place would look like if people wouldn’t start taking action to protect this lovely gem of Cordillera.

Mt Pulag

Expenses and Itinerary:

It’s advisable to go to Mt. Pulag in a group if you want to save money. I’ve been here Dec of 2013,  we were a group of 20. We paid 2k inclusive of ride from Manila to Baguio and vice versa, monster jeepney from Baguio to Mt Pulag jump-off, 3 set of meals and a souvenir shirt.

Day 0:
night trip from Manila to Baguio

Day 1:
06:00 monster jeepney from Baguio to jump-off
lunch and briefing
start trek
Ambangeg-Ambangeg trail =2-3 hrs trek
campsite = dinner/socials

Day 2:
05:00 am = trek to summit 1-2 hrs
summit = sea of clouds if the weather if good
picture taking
back to summit
pack your things and leave no trace
travel to Baguio, sightseeing for 2 hrs then back to Manila

Notes:
There’s a portable toilet at the campsite but don’t expect much.

Things to bring:

The usual camping stuff

tent
headlamp
insect repellant
super thick jackets = really cold
waste bags
cookset
survival kit
first-aid kit

The Gentle Giants of Oslob, Cebu

Well, who would have thought that these enormous sea creatures are  harmless to humans. Well they don’t eat human flesh, they eat planktons. And they are really achieving popularity nowadays. I was here on July of 2014.

You can also find these “butandings” in Legaspi, Albay but I think it’s only seasonal. In Oslob, you can see these whalesharks all year round.

How to Get There:

Just ride a plane bound to Cebu International Airport. You can find good deals or wait for seat sales of Airasia and Cebupacific.

From Mactan airport, ride a cab to South bus terminal (P250.-300.00). From there, ride a Ceres bus going to Oslob ( P150.00) 3 hrs. Ask the driver to drop you off at Tan-awan. Depending on your itinerary, you can opt to find a place to stay or go directly to the whaleshark watching site. Just ask directions from the locals on how to go to Brgy. hall where a seminar is conducted before the whaleshark watching.

Expenses:

airport to bus Terminal : P200 -250
Bus ride to Oslob: P150
Whaleshark watching: P500 for 30 minutes /1500 for foreigners

If you will stay in Tan-awan, I recommend Chateau de Tan-awan. We paid P850 for overnight stay, they also serve breakfast P150.00. It’s really worth it and you must try their banana cake.

Cebu whaleshark

Cebu whaleshark

Oslob Cebu whaleshark

Oslob Cebu whaleshark

You can watch my video in Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZAPaCSgDKk

Tips:

break your own snorkeling gears, be at the whaleshark watching area early in the morning. Oslob is really popular nowadays, expect a flock of tourists.

Kwebang Lampas; Pagbilao Quezon

I always want to spend time at the sea, the serenity it brings is like a medicine to the soul. I normally search for an unexploited wonder where I can unite with nature without the usual hard partying which is common among the popular tourist’s attractions.

Quezon Province has a lot of beautiful wonders to offer. I searched the internet and convinced my friends to go to Kwebang Lampas for an overnight camping. We used a private car going to Pagbilao, Quezon. It took us 5 or 6 hours to get there.

How To Go There:

By Public Transport

Ride a bus en route to Lucena (either from Buendia, Kamias or Cubao) and get off at Lucena Grand Central Terminal. From the terminal there are vans and jeepneys en route to Pagbilao. All buses en route to Bicol will also pass the town of Pagbilao.

From the Lucena Grand Central Terminal
Take a jeep ride bound for Brgy. Polo for Php 35.00.
Tell the driver that you are going to Lukang Beach (Lukang Beach is the old name of Kwebang Lampas).
Once in Brgy Polo, you can hire tricycle going to the Kwebang Lampas Registration area.
Tricycle drivers are charging around Php 200-250.00 one way, to bring you to the registration area. From the registration area, you can either walk all the way to the beach or ride a boat for P20.00 Round Trip, after the boat ride you need to hike to the beach for 15-20 mins.

At the registration, you have to pay for entrance.
Php 160.00 for an overnight stay.
Php 20.00 If you are crossing the lake via boat, two-way.
Php 300.00 Tents for overnight rent. bring your own tent to save money.
Php 700.00 Tables for rent.

By Private Transport

From Manila take SLEX to its end at Calamba and follow the signs towards Batangas. You will see a fork road on the right a short distance after passing the entrance to the STAR expressway. The right fork goes to Lipa City and the left goes to San Pablo – take the left fork towards San Pablo.

– See more at lakwatseradeprimera.com

The photos will speak for itself 🙂

Kwebang Lampas

Just make sure to bring your own foods if you go to the island. There’s a sari-sari store here but the price is really over the top.