It's been a week since my first climb. I tried mountaineering just last week and it's wonderful! I was invited by my friend, Juliet, but I initially declined due to some minor tasks. I was undecided and told her about it. She had been inviting me to join her and her friends but due to schedule and what not, I wasn't able to. I unconsciously (hahaha) said "yes", I decided to commit out of curiosity and mixed emotions. A massive thanks to her because she helped me prepare myself and provided me a bit of Mountaineering 101. Due to excitement and fear (you know that feeling when you know something but you're still clueless? Somewhat similar to you-know-what-to-do-but-do-not-know-how-to-do-it feeling), we did our research, we read blogs and stuff. I was in great anticipation because of Mt. Damas'
specs. I really did not have any idea of what I was about to experience.
Saturday night, 16 May 2015, we arrived at the meeting place somewhere in Quezon City. I was with Juliet and Jhong. We waited for hikers who were unbeknownst to me (saling ket-ket lang ako), and we had a little talk -- rapport. Good thing there's a rented van, and it surprised me that Jave's mum and dad would join us on our trip. It's cool, isn't it?
It's past midnight (couldn't remember the exact time) when we arrived somewhere in Tarlac. We waited for our guide (Sir Baner!) and started our trek. It was still dark and the nature's beauty was still unexposed. Jhong and I agreed to be buddies during the hike but I could not keep up with his speed (or I was just too sluggish). I was feeling dizzy, perhaps due to lack of sleep.
I felt relief upon reaching a stream/river. The smell of nature is always incomparable, would you not agree?
After a few meters, the challenge started. I was just following the steps of whoever's ahead of me. I could not remember the happenings, was I half-asleep or dumbfounded, I don't know.
Steep slopes -- Imagine yourself walking in high heels on a rocky uphill road. Yes, that. I'm never fascinated to walking in high heels. Ascends and descends, gravity versus myself. The experience will always be remembered.
Rappelling -- One of the things I liked during the hike. (Did I just rap? lol).
Rock-hopping -- It might seem exhausting but I had fun!
After some minor assaults, we rested on top of a hill where we fancied the view of Ubod Falls whilst eating breakfast. Then, we descended slowly and cautiously until we reached another stream/river. It's another rock-hopping/river-trekking, we passed by a few little falls, and we had to rappel (baging at sanga-sanga) when we reached Si-El Falls.
That was a mini-heart-attack moment, really. But I indeed enjoyed it. I told Juliet that it might be the hardest part of the climb, I assumed by just looking at the pictures when we're doing our "research". We're ecstatic and giddy about successfully passing that part of the journey.
After a short rest, we had no clue of what's going to happen next, all we know was "so, cardiac assault's next". Yeah right, cardiac assault. "A sixty-degree (hmm, I might be wrong here) slope is before us, plus the sweltering heat of the sun. Fantastic!", I told myself. It tested my stamina. My "mind over matter" mantra was losing its effect. I felt exhaustion I had never went through before but it's comparable to the training I underwent 8-9 years ago. It was extreme. Gangster's Paradise was playing on my mind. Juliet and I stopped, we opted not to continue because we're already not feeling well. I did not want to leave her alone. Her "jowa" (hahaha) and tropa continued to reach the top. Whilst resting, we still had the guts to talk and laugh about our condition. A few minutes later, a rescue scene happened (LOL). I asked myself, "are they panicking?". Well, judging by how fast they went down, they were not panicking, they were worried. We started to climb again until we saw the others resting and taking photographs. It's refreshing to see the scenery that Mt. Damas has to offer, however we, Juliet and I, still did not decide to reach the summit. Instead, we took a rest. I tried to take a nap but I failed. Moments later, the team arrived and we had our lunch. "Blimey!", I silently uttered as I was consuming a can of tuna and a half cup of rice. It was surprisingly tasteful (the effect of weariness, obviously).
We started to trek down and we headed to Ubod Falls. It was so hard for me because my knees failed me, and there were blisters on the bottom of my feet. Many thanks to Jhong for helping me. And apologies for causing troubles (that slide was brutal). Everyone enjoyed the refreshing effect of Ubod Falls, we stayed there for an hour or two. We were not able to follow the itinerary, and the goal was to conclude the trek before sunset. It did not happen. The trek along the stream was longer than I expected, I thought I'd end up in Narnia. At 8-ish, we finally arrived at Brgy. Papaac. I immediately slept since I was dead tired. I woke up to the team's noise, I heard them talking about their "extraordinary" experience during the hike, specially when we were on our way back to Brgy. Papaac.
Thank you for making my first hike interesting and worth remembering! The agony was nothing, it was euphoria after all.
Oh, Mt. Damas, thou art so lovely and marvelous!
I am a neophyte, Mt. Damas is my master, and the experience is my initiation.
Massive thanks for the experience, Mt. Damas! It was challenging but I had so much fun! More fun than should probably be allowed.
Credits to Juliet, sir Adi, and sir Ivan for the photographs.
If you'd ask me if I would join another hike, my answer is yes, absolutely yes! I may say that mountaineering is truly an addictive activity.
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