Mt. Napulauan Traverse Climb
| Dates: | January 27-28, 2001 |
| Location: | Ifugao Province |
| Objective: | To traverse the mountain, with ascent via Hungduan and descent via Hapao |
| Team: |
Team leader - Mamu
Members - Aline, Anne, Darlyn, Jun, Liza, Marc, Nelly, Obet, Oboy, Ranger (guest) |
After two aborted attempts of climbing Napulauan, it finally happened. The first one was last October and November, where I luckily ended up with Vic, Tonton and Naidz trekking the remote Ifugao villages of Batad , Cambulo and Pula . The second one was a week earlier, when Erap's presidency collapsed resulting to EDSA Part II. Some of us decided to back out at the last minute to witness history unfold.
The week after EDSA, there was no way to control that climbing itch except to organize another climb to Napulauan. At the first Sierra Gen. Meet for the year at Bingbing's the following Thursday night, five other Sierra members confirmed to join the climb.
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Hungduan jump-off
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From a historical point of view, Mt. Napulauan was where Yamashita, the Tiger of Malaya, sought refuge at the end of World War II. It is more than 300 kilometers away from Manila so it is not a popular destination. Rising at 2,642 meters above sea level, Napulauan is considered a major climb that can be more strenuous than climbing Mt. Banahaw in Quezon.
Aline and Anne almost never made it to the departure time of 10 PM at the Autobus station in Dimasalang had some of us not resorted to delaying tactics to keep the bus from leaving on time.
Upon arrival in Banaue, we ate lunch at the public market. Jun and I negotiated to hire two guides and a jeepney, which took us on a two-hour journey along bumpy roads to the jump-off point in Hungduan.
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First leg of our trek
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The first leg of the climb consists of wading through giant cogon grasses on a steep, exposed trail. After the lunch break, we reached the forest line where we trekked under a canopy of moss-covered trees.
By nightfall, rain began to pour. We were still trekking, hoping to reach the campsite at the summit at each turn we make. Aline was already shivering from the cold, some were already hungry and I found out that not everyone in the group brought a flashlight! To top it off, our two guides were already with the lead pack leaving the rest of us to follow the trail on our own. By 7:30, some had suggested that we set up an emergency camp. It was too early in my assessment, so Liza and I urged the group to move on.
It was in one of those periods when we were resting that a dark bird caught my attention. The bird was perched on a low-lying branch, about five feet from where I sat. I shone my flashlight to our new neighbor who just stared back, at peace in its own way, now that it had found its own niche to settle for the night. I found comfort remembering this passage from Matthew 6:26:
"Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?"
As we reached the summit, we were greeted by a myriad of bright stars scattered in the clear night sky. Our last man and our sweeper, Marc, reached the campsite at about quarter to nine. On the average, it took us nine to ten hours of arduous trekking to reach the summit. Temperature at the summit was about 10 degrees Centigrade and could have dropped lower sometime in the wee hours. Darlyn led the cooking of our menudo and sinigang dinner that we hastily ate to retreat in our tents. It was only Nelly who managed to be awake longer and shared some drinks and stories with our two guides.
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Mt. Napulauan summit panorama
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I had a dreamless, unbroken sleep and, I assume the others had also, after what we had gone through. Emerging from our tents in the morning, the scenery around us was a glorious sight to behold. With its dwarf oak and pine trees, our camp at the summit looked like a tiny island surrounded by a rolling sea of clouds. In the distance, we could see the summits of the neighboring mountains of Pulag, Amuyao, Ugu, to name a few --- floating like islands, with its shores being lapped by the cotton-candy clouds. The harrowing experience we had the day before was worth it. This distinct vista was how Napulauan was named, from the local term for "white." The sun slowly rose and gave out a mild fiery glow in the skyline. It was an auspicious time to hold the induction ceremonies for Oboy.
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Pilipinas Sierra, above the clouds
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We made our descent via the long and rolling Hapao trail, traversing a series of peaks of the mountain range. Treading on the ground was made enjoyable by its smooth carpet of moss. Vines and orchids hung on the trees. Occasionally, there were "limatiks" or tiny leeches, sucking blood from our legs. Obet especially enjoyed guzzling water from the stems of bamboo trees cut by one of our guides. On the last leg of our descent, we stopped to chat with a couple of boys who were busy carving wooden ashtrays, with the usual engorged penis protruding on the side, out of timber they cut in the forest.
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Hapao rice terraces
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As the panoramic view of the rice terraces in the village of Hapao spread before us, we were ecstatic that our long 5-hour descent was about to end. We had a refreshing bath and a brief lunch at a faucet fed by a spring on the upper part of the village before we descended on a flight of stairs, agonizing in every step over our hurting legs.
It was late in the afternoon when we left Hapao. We knew then that we would not be able to catch our bus in Banaue but we were happy just the same. At the jeep, we recounted and teased one another on the adventures we had. After a short dinner in Banaue, we had to take a connecting trip to Bagabag to take a bus back home. It was 3:30 Monday dawn when we reached Manila.
Given the remoteness and the difficulty of climbing Napulauan, are we going back? Definitely! I bet that would be our unanimous answer. The place holds a unique appeal for those craving for a different kind of adventure. Looking back, it was not the difficulty of the mountain that enriched the climb, but our ability to laugh after going through seemingly insurmountable odds.
