[HIKING]BENGUET: Mt. Pulag (2,922 MASL), walk to the sea of clouds

We joined YABAG Mountaineers for this trip. I have read in many blogs that since Mt. Pulag became famous among hikers, it is better to get a pre-organized tour for convenience.

For this trip, I am looking forward to seeing the sea of clouds. The group is prepared for the extremely cold weather at the campsite and the summit of course. News reported that the temperature to this area can drop up to 0 degrees and more so in the summit, where the sea of clouds can be seen.

Mr. Miguel Mapalad of YABAG Mountaineers presented this final itinerary few weeks before the trip. I said final because this was not the itinerary provided to us and because of an advisory from DENR this has been modified.

SAMPLE ITINERARY:
Day 0
21:00 Assembly
22:00 Departure to Baguio City

Day 1
05:00 ETA Baguio, Light Breakfast (coffee/hot Chocó)
05:30 ETD Baguio to DENR (via monster Jeepney)
07:00 ETA Stop over 30Mins free time; have breakfast- buy pack lunch
08:30 ETA DENR – Register-Orientation/briefing (this will take hours or more
10:00 ETD DENR to Ranger station
11:30 ETA Ranger Station, Lunch, Set up camp, Roam around, chill at ranger camp
FREE TIME at (2345MAS)
18:00 Dinner
19:00 Lights out – rest

Day 2
01:00 Wake-up Call
01:30 Trek to Summit for Sunrise
02:30 Camp 1
04:00 Camp 2
05:30 Arrive at Mt Pulag Summit
07:00 Start Descent
08:00 Arrive at Camp 2 – Have a hot fresh Breakfast
09:00 Resume trek
11:00 ETA Ranger Station, Break camp,
12:00 Ranger to Baguio via jeep – Lunch along the way
18:00 ETA Baguio, Dinner

22:20 ETD Baguio-Manila (OPTIONAL BAGUIO CITY SIDETRIP)

Having notified that due to massive number of hikers going to Mt. Pulag, the DENR advised for hikers to set camp at the Ranger station instead of staying in Camp 2 or Camp 1. The soil in the designated camps began to soften making it dangerous for hikers to stay over night.

We met the organizers at the Victory liner Bus terminal in Pasay city. Sir Miguel Mapalad is the one of the leads of this group. He has been very accommodating to answer all our questions before the trip.

We left Manila at around 10:30PM of Friday and will arrive to Baguio at 5AM. Another 2-hour trip via Monster jeep is needed to reach the DENR  and the Ranger Station. We are expecting many hikers because it is a weekend.But we did not expect it to as many as 300 people on that weekend alone!

Monster jeeps colorful exterior

arrival at Shell station near Victory liner terminal

Singilan time... Dane collects all the balance for the payment for this trip

One sidetrip was visit at the Ambuklao Dam, it was massive and has a great view. Some locals even offered us with their catch of the day. There is no entrance fee to visit that area.

Papaya with branches?!

Upon arriving at the DENR, it is still packed with people attending the orientation. So we decided to go to nearby eatery to have breakfast by the time we are finished, we have our turn for the orientation. The food were home-cooked, simple, and has variety. The eatery doubles as a souvenir shop too. I have observed that there were many banners of different mountaineering group in the eatery making it a famous one among hikers.

We arrived at the DENR and we were almost a hundred in the room to be oriented by the DENR Superintendent. Before the speaker remind the visitors of Mt. Pulag, she played a picture presentation made by a group who visited the area and it was good... I mean it was breath-taking! I was inspired to do better in photography.
The speaker reminded us to be responsible hikers. Be considerate about other hikers and the environment. Leave No Trace...

After an hour, we are back to the jeep again to get to the Ranger station. The area is already full of campers. The Ranger station has a small community wherein they earn a living by selling vegetables they farm from the foot of Mt. Pulag.

We arrived at the Ranger station and since 2 of the organizers arrived there earlier, the camp is set and all we have to do is unpack our things. The whole afternoon was our free time.
Most of us were tired the whole trip so decided to have a nap. At around 4PM, we regained energy and weather started to get colder. We needed to zip up our jackets and wear a bonnet. More than the cool breeze, we got excited to explore the community we are staying and may be buy some water or snacks.

Sir Miguel in light blue.

After a while, the sky changed hue. It is almost sunset...

In this time of the year, some of the families chose to not farm for a while and entertain the growing number of tourist in the area. They allow visitors to use their comfort rooms for some donation. They also sell souvenir shirts, bracelets, and water. While some cook food to be sold to hikers' snacks. I personally liked the carrot and chives fritters. Too bad before I even thought of taking a photo of it, it is finished. :)

carrot fritters stand for P10.00 per piece

The hike

Wake up call is at 11PM. The start of hike from Ranger station is 12AM. The trek will take around 3-4 hours, they say. Upon seeing the procession of hikers starting to build up, I doubt that everyone will arrive at the summit by 4AM. Sunrise is between 5AM- 6AM. Thank God for the good weather that morning.
Temperature that time was at its extreme maybe 5 degrees. Considering an elevation of 2,400+ MASL of the Ranger station, we expect that it will get colder by the campsites near the summit and at the summit per se.
In the middle of the hike, I began to catch my breathe so Cathy, Jojo, and Kuya Alex (sweeper guide) stopped and took a rest with me. We were left behind by the rest of the group. We pushed until 4:30AM we reached Camp 2. There is an area they call The Tower. Kuya Alex offered for us to just go there because there is an equally stunning view of the sea of clouds but we refused as I have regained energy and focused on getting to the summit.

At the crossed road going to the summit, it was the beginning of an assault, the extremely cold weather started getting into and I started to feel a headache. My fingers started to get numb. I asked our guide if we could go to The Tower instead because is more near as to the summit is still 45 minutes walk. I was thankful for Cathy, Jojo, and Kuya Alex for being with me in this experience. I know they would like to experience being in the summit.

On our way The Tower, wind blew and it got colder. It feels like having brain-freeze even if you are not drinking something cold. I finished my gatorade and ate my chocolate bar for energy. That time, we are not in a hurry anymore. Kuya Alex knows what the sunrise will be. He knew the spot in the tower where we can hide from the wind. By the way, The Tower they are referring to was a view point with a satellite tower on top of it.

Tip: if you want to get closer to the sea of clouds, better wait for the sunrise at the Tower. :)
My DSLR battery died right after the sunrise hence I was left with no choice but to use my cellphone and GoPro. Nevertheless, it became a good thing. I embraced this experience and even fell as sleep as the sun gone up the sky. Priceless...

After few minutes, the sky became golden and behold Mt. Pulag showed its exceptional beauty among tired, sleepless, and hungry hikers. Now I know why they say Mt. Pulag is known to be the Playground of the Gods...
If I was a goddess, I would like to play here too! :D

we rested in the middle of the trail going to the Tower.

the grassland was actually green but it turned golden as the sun rises

Credits to Jojo for the following shots:

We went back to Camp 2 for breakfast and decided not to wait for the rest of the group as we want get packed before noon time.

tree invaded by moss at the Mossy forest

We were almost at the Ranger camp when we saw some riders offered for a trip back to our campsite for P100.00. We would not like to pay that much as it will be just few minutes walk but just for experience, we did the ride. :)

sea of clouds is still there even after 9AM

I would encourage hikers to still go to Mt. Pulag just be responsible when being there. No matter how experienced or novice you are. Be prepared as weather is unpredictable. Plan ahead. Acts people who already did it and learn from their experience.  Always remember, nature is irreversible lets help DENR and the community of Kabayan, Benguet preserve this wonder for future hikers. :)

Enjoy my short video about our Mt. Pulag trip!

Glimpse of Mount Pulag from Baking Byahera on Vimeo.