Exactly two weeks after the last climb in Mt. Daguldul, Kaya Pa Mountaineers packed up their bags once again on June 12, 2009, and headed to San Antonio Zambales to scale Mt. Pundaquit then traverse to the becoming-popular Anawangin cove. The intermittent rains days before the trip did not stop the team members to proceed and explore this spectacular mountain which turned out to be one heck of an adventure.
The team left Manila at around 4am proceeding to NLEX and SCTEX. After a very filling breakfast along the way, prepared by spouses Boyet and Maribel, the team drove right away to San Antonio, Zambales to register at the local police station there, following protocols. A few meters away was the Barangay Hall of Pundaquit, where the team leaders paid courtesy to the Barangay Captain who was more than kind enough to refer the team to the most suitable guide.
At exactly 8:40 AM, the team composed of twelve members, headed to the foot of the mountain.
A few steps after, we were already overwhelmed by this breathtaking sight:
The minor bloopers in our previous clilmbs taught us to be more disciplined in this one. Thus, we agreed to trek in a single file and to look out for the ones behind or to the ones ahead. Our sweeper for this climb was Boyet Nueve, who really took his assignment by heart. On the other hand, Kuya Louie placed himself behind the guide, immediately followed by the kids. The ladies were designated to stay in the middle. We brought a lot of water with us because as gathered from our research in other blogs, this climb really requires lots of water from the mountaineers.
This next photo below shows our sweeper Boyet with Judith Labrador, acting it out in the middle of the boulders as the "oblation". He had so much fun doing it.
The group faced different kinds of ordeals this time, for there were streams both wide and narrow that we had to cross. One of which claimed the lives of four mountaineers in 2008, at the height of typhoon frank. They were swept away by a strong current when they tried to cross this stream:
Our hearts were really pounding when we crossed this body of water. It has huge and sharp-edged boulders. There was a strong current indeed, even with the waters only at knee level. I remember the fellow mountaineers who lost their lives here, and I felt sad. Their tragic death sent goose bumps on me. It was good that we hired a very experienced guide, Ed, who was a Boy scout and brought with him ropes in case of a very strong current. Little did we know, that this river crossing was only the tip of the iceberg, for there were more thrills waiting for us far ahead!
The mountain is considered a level 2 climb in terms of difficulty. Measured at around 460+/- meters above sea level (MASL), it was actually steep with very few trees scattered in between with which to shelter from the sun. Team members had to put on their gloves to avoid cuts from the sharp edges of cogon grass.
We reached the summit by 11:30 AM. Team members quickly unpacked the lunch and devoured them effortlessly. As usual, the group posed at the summit this time with our own streamer and printed shirts. The views in front of us and behind us were so spendid. God is so marvelous indeed for His beautiful creations. Because we were on top already, our goal was to go down and reach campsite, which is Anawangin cove before sunset. So the group didn't waste any more time and started the descent after lunch. So excited to see Anawangin cove finally.
It took us three hours to descend. Along the way, the trail was full of boulders and rocks and was a little bit slippery because of the rains. It seemed to us, though, that the streams were never ending. One after the other, we crossed them all. There was one that caught our attention and just really made our jaws drop. At the back of our minds, we couldn't come to terms if what we were seeing was for real?
When the group was nearing the campsite, our guide ED thought of gathering logs and dried twigs to light our bonfire. The guys in the team were kind enough to carry some. Eric happily agreed to carry a bigger one. Boyet was on the other end. Thanks guys!
Sure enough, the logs and dried woods kept us all warm as we were about to call it a night. The bonfire thrilled as to no end....then it was time to hit the tent and sleep.
After an energizing sleep (although some members lost a good one), the dawn greeted us so warmly. As usual, the guys prepared breakfast while the ladies enjoyed the scenery.
Can you actually believe we'd be able to do rock climbing as well? Above photo shows Janet, Judith, Maribel, Lucilyn and Joy having the time of their life with a rock formation at the far end of anawangin cove.
Of course, my husband Dennis and I had to pose as well. Geez, we left the kids at the campsite!
There are two ways to reach the anawangin cove. One is to trek Mt pundaquit for four hours, and the other is to take a banca. Going back to Barangay Pundaquit where we left our vehicles, the group decided to have the 30-minute banca ride instead. One final group shot before leaving the spectacular anawangin cove:
Another mountain crossed out in our list. Where to next? Congratulations members of KAYA PA!
By: Lucilyn Banac-Saylon
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