Mt. Pinatubo Trek | To the Crater

If typhoon Ondoy didn't ruin the sky way nearly two years ago, this would have been an easy trek. However, because of such unfortunate event, we needed to use the old trekking way would take us 3 hours before we could reach the crater. As if the thought of trekking wasn't enough, it also rained right before we started. It wasn't really heavy, but since my sister and I didn't bring umbrella, it became difficult for us to handle it. At that point, our tour guide said that we needed to hurry because of the water's current.





Even though it was raining and I felt tired already, I still enjoyed trekking because of the different rock and land formations right before my eyes.  However, part of me was worried because we (companions at the 4x4 ride) left sister behind. At my end, I knew I just have to keep walking because if I stop, it would make me feel more tired. Sister didn't at all mind that I had to leave her - she knew the trek would be a big challenge for her, so even with a heavy heart, I still went on walking.





After an hour and a half, the sun peeped through, and it got me more excited when the tour guide said we were almost there. Somewhere along the path, there was a rest area where we caught some breath, ate snacks and waited for other companions - including my sister. At one point, the guide received a message from the guide assisting sister and said that my sister had a leg cramp. It got me more worried, so I told my other companions to go on ahead and I will wait for my sister. It took a lot of time for my sister to reach the rest area, and when I saw her, I just clapped in happiness because she was able to pull it through.



The guide said the crater is still a few minutes away. When we saw this signage, we all laughed at the line, "Your trek STARTS here." Say what?!? So... what we did for the past two hours wasn't trekking? Actually, the signage wasn't at all wrong, because the guide said that if the Sky Way was open, the 4x4 ride would take us to this stop, therefore our trek would start here. The signage posed a challenge to us - giving specific time frame until we reached the crater. Now being in the "middle age," I thought I could reach the crater in 20 minutes, but it took me 30 minutes because at this point, it was already a subtle uphill climb, and because I was already tired, it was quite difficult for me to exert more effort.

Of course, once we reached the crater, it was pure paradise.

Jesz

Mt. Pinatubo Trek | 4x4 Ride

I have been to many places and I can't wait to share them all, but since June is the anniversary month of Mt. Pinatubo, I decided to start the travel side of this blog with my Mt. Pinatubo experience.

Last June 4, 2011, I went to Mt. Pinatubo with some bloggers, thanks to my dear sister who told me about it. I also would like to extend my sincerest thanks to Let's Go, Sago for giving us a chance to experience this and to all the sponsors and to all those behind this gathering - it really made a dream come true.

There are different paths going to Mt. Pinatubo, but our group took the path from Capas, Tarlac. If you also want to take this path, you need to go first at Santa Juliana Tourism Council at the Municipal Hall where you can register and arrange for your guides and provisions.



After registering, you will ride a 4x4 jeep that can fit up 5 person travelers, your guide and the driver. I was a little bit nervous riding in the jeep because I still remember the accident happened here. But of course, the tour must go on, and I needed to conquer my fear.



We were given the privilege to choose the jeep we wanted to take (our group was given 5 jeeps, so we just chose from those), and my companions for the 4x4 ride were my sister, and new blogger pals Yodz, Alex, and Ed. The ride takes about an hour and you will experience some bumpy ride like riding in a roller coaster.




Riders choose whether they'd sit or stand, and because the five of us have our own cameras, we decided to stand. Like I said, this was one bumpy ride, so do take care of yourself and hold on tight. The time we went there, there were rain showers the night before, so it wasn't dusty... but, as much as you need to take care of yourself, you also need to take care of your camera (if you're using one) against the elements. We didn't encounter a whole lot of dust, but we sure had some mud splats, good thing we had some scarves to protect our camera.

From the foot of the mountain you will cross lots of streams, mountains, grassland, plain volcanic sand. You can also tell the driver to stop if you want to take some pictures.



More than an hour after, we reached our destination... but we still had to trek by foot going to the crater of the volcano. That story will be shared next post.

Jesz