Finally, Mt. Apo Opens

Exactly a year after our Mt. Talomo climb, it's time to conquer the highest peak of the country, Mt. Apo. This should have been our our first conquest, unfortunately, due to the forest fire, it was closed.

Again, our gratitude to Eng. Albert C. Gabriel for facilitating our climb, http://www.mtapoadventures.com/. Of course, having experienced the climb to Mt. Talomo, our preparations was much lighter since we were already equipped with clothing and gears. By the way, we were informed that as of this date (18 Oct 2017), we were the last mountaineers to climb Mt. Talomo.

Day 1 at 4 AM, we were ready to start our trek to Mt. Apo.

We used the Brgy. Sibulan, Sta. Cruz, Davao Del Sur as entry point. After almost an hour bus ride from Davao City, we arrive at Sta. Cruz to eat breakfast and to shop food supplies. 

A 45-minute motorcycle ride brought us to our entry point at the foot of the mountain.

The trek begins. At first, it seems so easy, but the worst is yet to come. 

Yes, the worst is yet to come. At the back drop are heavy clouds because the day before, Super Typhoon 'Paolo' hit Mindanao with 240 kilometers per hour maximum sustained winds and gusts reaching 296 kph. In fact, we were one of two groups reported by Bombo Radio to climb with the storm just passing by. With limited time for the sembreak, the climb must push through.

Along the trail, a garden of cabbages.

After reaching the marker, the temperature went down. Wind and rain welcomed us. During the hike, we met mountaineers on their way down warning us of zero-visibility at the peak, which they failed to reach. But our hopes were not dampened.

After almost nine hours of hike, wind, rain and mud along the trail, we reached our campsite, and camped for the night.

Mt. Apo, Day 2

The night before, it  rained a lot. Wind, yes, it howled all night long! You would think that anytime, the tent would be blown away. But, we survived.

This morning, we were ready to push through our quest to reach the Boulder Face. Rain, yes, it still rained. What made it more difficult, MUD!

 Lots of obstacles along the way. This is just one of them.

 Finally, we reached the marker for the Boulder Face. But still, it was a long way up.

More obstacles!

And yes, it was a long way up!

We thought we had reached it, but it was still the beginning of the boulder climb. We had to stop for a brunch.

 Our team with guides from mtapoadventures.

 This is still the climb we have to face, the Boulder Face!

The Boulder Face

After a quick brunch and a pose, the boulder climb started.

 The climb was steep. No mud this time, but boulders.

Still climbing with almost zero visibility

Mt. Apo is still an active volcano as several sulfur vents emitted yellow gas and remained visible with sulfuric powder along the trail.

The vegetation...

We were still climbing until the top was zero visibility.

Selfie at the the summit...

The Descent

The real challenge seems to be the descent.

The conquer is worth celebrating.

What next, who knows...

Mt. Talomo, Our First Conquest

Gathering information from various internet sources (with due respect to the writers/bloggers), Mt. Talomo is a mountain in the Davao Region, adjacent mountain to Mt. Apo, and has an elevation of 2.670+ meters above sea level. It is ranked within the top 12 mountains in the Philippines. Accordingly, in "Pinoy Mountainer", the mountain is classified with a difficulty level of 7/9, the same level with Mt. Apo and Mt. Pulag.

It will take you two days for the ascent and descent, depending on the weather and the frequency of breaks/rest times. The frequency will depend on the physical fitness of the mountaineer. Also, it will take time if the trail is muddy. 

The trail will entail passing through fields and forests with mossy and muddy trails. In the ascent, you will have to rely in gripping tree trunks, sturdy branches and roots. Hence, it is important to wear construction gloves. It could be tricky in choosing branches to hold since some of them are frail branches while some are deceivingly strong, but in fact merely fallen or cut branches, hence unattached to any tree. The choice of branches to hold on is important, or you will find yourself at the bottom of a ravine. Good body coordination and balance are keys in passing fallen mossy trunks.

Reaching the summit is victory itself. A reward for walking nearly ten hours and climbing almost an elevation of 2,670+ meters. You really have to enjoy the view and experience the natural situation at the top of the mountain, before starting the treacherous descent.

While it may look easy for the ascent, the descent is very difficult since you are descending with gravity. It is very tricky to look for a foot stop to hold your momentum, and it is doubly difficult if the trail is muddy. Sometimes, you have to crawl the fallen trunks to get down from a certain level.

Because of the previous night rain which made the trail muddy, and having nightfall caught up with our hike, it took us more than twelve hours, with total darkness, to reach Mt. Sicao Village.

But nothing will beat the experience in scaling Mt. Talomo, specially for us, our first climb ever.

The Preparation

We beg for your indulgence with this detailed preparation. It took almost six months to prepare for this climb, taking to account the mid-year semestral break. Mostly, constant search in the internet aided us in our preparation.

Our original plan was to scale Mt. Apo. Unfortunately, government closed the mountain indefinitely because of forest fires. Second choice, Mt. Matutum, but the same result as Mt. Apo.

A contact with http://www.mtapoadventures.com/ through Eng. Albert C. Gabriel, an alternative he suggested would either be Mt. Kitanglad and Mt.Dulang-dulang Traverse Trekking or Mt. Talomo. After mentioning that this was our first climb, Albert recommended Mt. Talomo.

We really had no idea what to expect with the Mt. Talomo climb, so we had to rely on internet searches and inquiries with Albert.

Preparation started by procuring footwear, apparel, and gears. Hence, we bought:

MUST-BUY items:

1) Gore-Tex Hiking Shoes (Merrell) which we bought on-line to avail of discount-vouchers. These shoes kept our feet dry through out the hike despite heavy rains and mud trails;

2) Jacket- water-proof with fleece (The North Face). The rain did not penetrate our jackets, while the fleece kept us warm from the 4-degree centigrade temperature in the summit;

3) Bonnet /head gear - As mentioned, you have to have this item because of the cold climate;
4) Thermal Underwear (Bench) - to keep you warm during the night;
5) Construction gloves with rubber coating - sure grip for branches and roots;
6) Raincoat/poncho, because of potential heavy rain, which did happen;
7) Waterproof Back Pack, to be doubly sure, we lined it with garbage disposal bags;
8) Trek Pants (Conquer) - to protect you from scratches from branches and thorny plants;
9) Dry Fit Shirts - you will sweat a lot, and cotton wear will make you heavier; and
10) Flashlight - there are no lights up there, I bought from Lazada one with a big battery that lasted for hours.

FIRST AID:

You will have to stock these items, just like what we brought:

MEDICINES: Make sure that you label each kind and placed individually in ziplocks:

1. Analgesic (Mefenamic Acid) – for pain and headache;
2. Antidiarrheal (Loperamide) – for diarrhea; not advisable when you’re at home but is useful during hiking trips when you do not have the time to relieve your bowel;
3. Antihistamine (Dipphenhydramine/Loratadine) – for itchness, allergic reactions such as hives “pantal-pantal”. Careful though, drowsiness is a common side effect of this drug class;
4. Decongestant (Phenyephrine / Phenypropanolamine) – may be of some benefit with colds that can be caused by high altitude and cold temperatures;
5. Antihistamine (Dipphenhydramine/Loratadine) – for itchness, allergic reactions such as hives “pantal-pantal”. Careful though, drowsiness is a common side effect of this drug class.

TOPICAL:

1. Sunscreen – Sun creams with SPF15 or higher aren’t just for people who don’t want to get dark; they are medically advisable because they protect the skin from UV rays, not only preventing acute conditions such as sunburns but also long-term complications such as, possibly, skin cancer with prolonged exposure.
2. Insect repellant – This is very useful. Lower elevations would usually have common mosquitoes which can be more than a nuisance when they’re in great number. Some hikers also report that repellants like Off lotion can also protect against limatik. 
3. Calamine lotion – This is useful for itchiness and insect bites, as well as exposure to poison ivy (lipa).
4. Betadine – disinfectant, in case of wounds; otherwise plain soap and water will do.

OTHERS:

1. Adhesive tape (Leukoplast)
2. Adhesive strips (Band-Aid)
3. Bandage – may be used to support sprains and fractures