it took me some time to choose the mountain in the Southern Tagalog region for the second trek of Eskapo Mountain Series. a region that envelopes a great number of day hike mountain trails. not until a group posted for an open trip to Pico de Loro, Cavite's most iconic and highest peak.
located Southwest of the province of Cavite which i believe is also one of the province most isolated side. Pico de Loro is part of the proposed Palay-Palay and Mataas na Gulod National Park. covering a large area of mossy forest and a coastal side of the Manila Bay channel.
the most interesting aspect of this mountain is the trail itself which is composed of downhill and uphill treks. the first section of the trek until the first stop was mostly descending over slippery rocks and muddy trails.
two days before and even the night before the trek, rain was continuously pounding Manila and the rest of South Luzon. so i equipped myself with a raincoat and assured all clothes in the bag are inside a plastic.
so good that during our trek, it did not rain. when we reached the second stop at Alibang-bang station, we had our lunch and had enough rest to boost our energy for the long ascend. it was tough for those who had it as their first climb.
the one hour assault included significant five-minute stops and the tree roots was at most a great savior to steep portions. what was surprising was most trees there was thin yet strong and deeply rooted. when we reached the last ascend and when we started descending, our guide realized that we were taking the wrong trail.
but he was also quick in finding our way back the right path. minutes after that we reached the camp site with an awesome view of the boarder of Cavite and Batangas. the towering rocky summit was right infront of us.
we set camp while some other groups, who did a day hike, started to descend. the beautiful view of the mountains did not last long as fog suddenly overlapped it until it reached zero visibility by night time. by dawn, it was already raining hard. just in time for a good night sleep.
Profile: 
Mountain Spot: Pico de Loro
Altitude: 660MASL
Municipality: Maragondon
Province: Cavite
Region: Southern Tagalog
Island: Luzon
Location:
Distance from Manila: 54km
GPS Location:
14' 14'' 16 N
120' 42'' 56 E
How to get there:
[1] Manila to Ternate (2-3hours) by bus. [2] Ternate to Palay-Palay/Mataas na Gulod/Pico De Loro jump off point (20-30minutes) by tricycle or by jeep.
[3] From jump off point, there's a parking space for private transportation. there's also a toliet and a mini food shop. you can buy bottled water and chips from this point.
eskapo recommends:
1. you rent a van or a jeepney from Manila to jump off point.2. make sure that you have a guide as trail to the peak can be confusing on some areas.
31 comments:
hi Dong ho, still foggy? I was there last September and the 360 degree view was clouded. Summer must be the best month.
This is one of my favorite climbs! Kapit talaga sa mga ugat habang papalapit sa camp site... and then to the summit... :)
although i am not into trekking, i agree with you that putting clothes and all things in plastic bags before packing them in your backpack is important in traveling. you'll never know the downpour. the act is common sense (however, as they say, not everyone does it for it's not that common, hehe).
the last photo was surreal!
ang husay!
mahirap palang pumunta sa pico de loro pag may suicidal tendencies. hehe!
gusto ko to.. interesting trail.. sana makasama ako minsan sa mga hike nyo.. ;)
love the bato bato at ugat ugat sa trail. hehe i've been hearing a lot abt pico de loro, parang famous din xa like Pulag
i loved the last pic. the one thing i want to be able to do: have a picture with the clouds underneath me.
hay.
My favorite mountain! I've climbed Pico de Loro 10 times and I still want to climb that mountain.
Great photos Dong. Dahil sa mga photos mo parang hinahatak nanaman ako papunta ng Pico de Loro. :)
....and I'm back here! I remember may Batang Lakwatsero na nagpapasama sakin dito eh.
Namiss ko bigla ang pagpanik ng bundok. Di pa ako handang pumanik uli kaya ieenjoy ko muna ang series na ito. The best ang last photo, dream ko ng ganyang kuha.
Hindi ko pa na-try umakyat dyan. Nagdala ka rin ba ng Green Chippyat Jelly Ace? :P
i love reading your adventures even though trekking isn't my cup of tea
In the second photo is that Fort Drum or a legit ship? Di ko kasi makita eh. :P Naintriga lang ako if yun nga yun. :P
As for the climb, haggard - wala bang trail na wala yung kapit-kapit-to-the-ugat effect? Prissy chick here eh And Im from Cavite so naddraw attention ko when nababanggit yung pico de loro
danda the last photo, coincidentally, I was watching LOTR ROTK kagabi -- parang Frodo lang
The picture of that sitting female hiker with backpack resting on her lap amused me - she obviously doesn't want it to get muddied, right?
I love the last photo!
Looks like quite an adventure!
awesome view on top. kitang kita ang sea of clouds! madali ba ang trek?
the last photo is very nice. top of the world!
Wow that's a great climb and adventure. Thanks for sharing these photos with us.
i didnt know that pico de loro is that high to see sea of clouds... or foggy lang? great photos :) wish i could climb mountains again
astig ng mga photos! very dramatic yung clouds sa last photo, and the hint of a human subject makes it a badass pic!
Sayang foggy noong umakyat kayo, ang ganda ng view dyan lalo na sa part ng Hamilo Coast.
panu ba pumunta dito?? kasi gusto namin isama sa thesis namin etong lugar na to eh... plsss pa help po kuya.. magkano aabutin ang budget? hehehe
huwaw sir dong...ayos ah..gusto ko umakyat ng bundok ulit... ayos!
just looking at your pictures i am in awe! eh pano pa pag andiyan na talaga di ba? galing!
gusto ko yung sea of clouds.
parang gusto ko nang magsimulang magtrekking! iba yung view sa mga bundok.
that last photo's a killer!
Mountain climbing is a real adventure talaga, mas masaya kung mdami kasama at kumpleto sa gamit.
ito sana yung bundok na aakyatin namin after mt. tapulaw sa zambales kaso di ako nakasama.
hi dong! it's nice to be here again! :)
sa ternate ata to, anyway, napa-wow! mo na naman ako as always. sana makapunta din ako jan.
Jan 28-29 of next year i will be climbing this mountain. Sana hindi foggy para makita ko ang cove...
It's not easy to climb with all those slippery surface. I am sure this would be one of your most memorable climb
I missed hiking slippery trails in the rain. I did it for work then but I'll do it for fun now...if my legs can still handle the challenge.
interesting trail and mountain.. hope i can climb pico de loro before the year ends.- from a hiker in Mindanao.
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