Mt. Batulao Nasugbu, Batangas - Our 4th Year Anniversary

Disclaimer: picture heavy post (yes, again!)

We arrived at the entrance of Everest Golf Club Resort at 5:30 in the morning after a 2-hour bus drive from EDSA-Taft (near the MRT). We rode a bus named BSC that has daily trips to Balayan via Tagaytay. First trip leaves at 3AM with a 30 minute interval for the next ones. It was so cold when we got out of the bus that we zipped up our jackets up to our noses before we started walking our way to the jump - off point. It was still pretty dark so we opted not to take the tricycle and walked for some warm up and do some stretching.

freezing at 5:30 in the morning

After about 15 minutes of walking we finally saw houses. Stores adorn both sides of the road where you can buy all the necessary things like food and toiletries for your climb. Others also offer bathrooms where you can shower after the climb but this is different from the ones you see on the highway before entering Evercrest.  After 30 minutes of walking, a boy called us and asked us if we wanted a guide. We said yes and paid him P200 for the entire climb. More of him on my next post a.k.a Kid of the Trip. :)

I was not aware that we already passed the jump - off point until I saw a a little hut where locals sell coconut juice for hikers. Our guide said that we will climb via the old trail and descend via the new one since it is much nearer. The sun was already making its way through that bright and clear sky so we took off our jackets and wore our arm warmers. We were greeted by the sun and the beautiful grassland slopes of Mt. Batulao in all its morning glory.

all ready!

Our guide said that it takes 3 hours for newbie climbers like us to get to the summit. Our official starting time is 6:30AM. We reached a hut where the path was like a fork which separates the old trail from the new trail.

The cool breeze accompanied us as we made our way through the trails fenced by tall grass and trees until we arrived at the registration point (old trail) an hour and thirty minutes later. It was so early that there was no one in there and the souvenir shops were still closed so we were spared from the P20/person registration fee.

opposite expressions haha!

souvenir shops

literally, for nature calls

The registration point marks as Camp 1 and you will see trail signs as you go along and reach Camp 10 which is in the summit. We stayed for 15 minutes and after reloading our body with water and some nuts (Oishi's Pinnatsu is the best trail food for me) we started going up again and by the time we reached camp 6, I was exhausted. On the way up, you will be able to see the new trail's campsite where we saw some tents were pitched from the day before.

tents!

I don't know how to put the view into words because whenever I turn my back after a few minutes of walking, I am quite surprised myself to see how high we already were and greeted by the spectacular grasses that danced along with the wind.

On the last 45 minutes of our climb, the trail changed from grassy to rocky. Constant blows of wind can set the dust flying in your face and eyes so wearing protective gear is a must. You need to be careful on this area because there are smaller rocks that are slippery so make sure every step is firm. We reached Camp 8 and rested again before our final ascent.

well hello there summit!

 

flushed with excitement and sweat

My knees were wobbling as I saw the trail before me. It was a series of high steps and a wall of rocks. There is a rope that you can use but I doubted it and went on all fours.

Our guide shouted with a very giddy voice "CAMP 10 NA!!!" (we're already at Camp 10!) and that alone pushed my last ounce of energy to its limit as I stepped on the summit. I was actually a bit emotional but I didn't cry haha! (ang drama ko!) The time was 9:30am.

Summit baby!!!

trying to connect to the internet to post our picture online

old trail

happy 4th birthday to us! <3

Facebook-ing 811 meters above sea level

it was freezing!

last one before our descend

The descend was not easy either. There were some steep and sharp curves which will keep you running down. The trail goes and up and down too. I used the boss' trekking pole because I already fell on my butt and hurt my shoulder but nothing more serious than that. I was also sneezing uncontrollably at this point and coughing a little maybe because of the temperature and the dust on our way up. Thankfully, no wheezing that led to an asthma attack.

it was so windy!

almost near the new trail's base camp

Our guide said that we needed to register so we paid P20/person, drank some water and took off. We were greeted by climbers who spent their night at the camp. Upon reaching the hut where the new and old trail separates, we had our lunch.

P25 each

Chicken Adobo with Adobo Fried Rice by yours truly

We took our time and rested for a while longer after our lunch. We reached the highway at around 2 in the afternoon. We availed of the P20/bucket shower at one of the stores nearby and went to Mushroom Burger to continue our celebration. But by the time we arrived, I cannot fully enjoy my burger because my taste buds were dead due to my colds. I was already feeling a little under the weather and my head started pounding. We wore our jackets again as we walked our way to View Site Restaurant for some Bulalo.

a bird!

yes, we were still hungry.

Enjoyed our meal while listening to Yakap sa Dilim by APO

Mt. Batulao is charming and surreal at the same time. If not for the cold breeze, the climb would be a very hard one because of the lack of trees to give you shelter. So make sure to be there early for a day hike or else you'll get the sun burn you usually get on a beach. I would love to come back again and spend the night there for the majestic sunrise. I will post the expenses and itinerary on a separate blog post.

This is by far our very tiring and challenging date to date but the most fun of all. I love you boss! <3

Trivia: I was down with colds, cough and flu the next day! :(

Hasta luego!