Mt. Damas... A Must See in Tarlac

Mt. Damas

Location: San Clemente Tarlac

If you want a new mountain adventure, Mt. Damas is a must try. It has so much to offer... the beautiful mountain range of Tarlac which is not frequently explored, the majestic Ubod falls, River trekking and of course a test to your basic mountaineering skills.

I've been seeing this mountain range since I was a kid whenever we visit my father's hometown in Labrador,Pangasinan. I never expected that there is so much to explore and enjoy in this mountains.

Freedom Climb 2012

We picked Mt. Damas as our destination for Freedom Climb 2012. This is the first time that our group, SFC WESTB3C GENESIS 222 Mountaineers, will not just climb a mountain but at the same time will reach out to the little kids at Dueg Settlement and celebrate  the Lord's Day on top of the mountain.

1st jump off is at Camiling Tarlac wherein we are greeted by 2 military trucks.  From this point, you still have to travel about 1 hour 30 mins to 2 hours to the major jump off at DUEG settlement. And mind you this ride is something you would never forget.  We are so jampacked inside the truck, more than 40 people I guess that most of us are standing at the center.  The rough road going to the jump-off is so steep that you may feel that you are riding a roller coaster. Dueg settlement is already on a high altitude which is almost at the same level of Mt. Damas' summit (as mentioned in other blog)




Our Convoy

 


Church in Camiling





What to Expect?

• Unspoiled nature unlike those famous mountain destination such as Maculot
• Very long trek so bring along lots of trail food and water
• You can pitch tent on the summit. May accomodate 2-3 standard tents
• Campsite may accomodate more than 30 people
• Expect to be wet for the Ubod Falls and river trekking because you may want to take a dip after a long walk
• A good sight to test your basic mountaineering skills and trail sign recognition
• Be ready with your rapelling skills. We rappel beside a small falls
• Trail may get slippery when wet. Our guides used their feet as stopper. Since this is relatively a new trail some area don't have ropes to hang on.
• Bringing along a trekking stick is a big help especially during river trekking

 *you must undergo


Our group at Mt. Damas Summit

 


The Lord's Day

   As a member of Singles for Christ community, we celebrated the Lord' Day on top of the mountain for the first time. That makes this trip a bit different because we are having fun but gloryfying the Lord at the same time.



Enjoying Ubod Falls

  *This is supposed to be our itinerary to Mt. Damas. But since we are a long way behind our schedule, the trek to the summit was moved to day 2.

Mt. Damas Itinerary

June 09, 2012

0500 Assembly at Victory Liner Cubao (Bus to Alaminos or Bolinao)

0515 ETD to Camiling Tarlac

0900 ETA, Camiling, buy supplies

0930 ETD to Dueg resetlement

1030 ETA, Dueg resettlement(jump off)

1100 Start trek ( lunch along the trail)

1500 Mt. Damas Summit

1830 Dinner time!

1900 Lord's Day

2100 Lights off.

June 10, 2012   0600 Wake-up call

0630 Breakfast

0800 Break camp

0830 Start trek to Ubod Falls

1100 ETA, Ubod Falls( lunch)

1300 Resume trek to Papaac Camiling

1600 ETA, Papaac,Camiling Tarlac

1745 ETA, Siesta Bus Station Tarlac

Notes:
This is an invitational climb by GAME NEST of Tarlac with P500 fee including rice for 3 meals, kits, guides, id and transportation to Camiling to Dueg. Our contact person is Sir Emman Miclat – 09123517719.

problem, forgiveness and realizations

First quater of 2011 was indeed a challenge to me. I been hotheaded due to flight cancellation, was almost irritated to a certain friend and the worst part??... a relationship problem...
yes in fairness... a realationship problem, but don't get me wrong I'm still a NBSB (no boyfriend since birth)girl. I was lied to, judged by and pulled down by friends whom I thought are the ones who would pull me up. And yes! I was damn angry with them. I was there to forgive, the one has the change of heart, but the other remained the same. And what's worst? when you are trying to fix things in their own story, you became the villain... when in fact your just a victim.
This is one of the worst thing that happenned to me. But what i realized, when someone pushed you down, God will never fail to send someone who will pull you up. In this situation I found true friends who are so supportive, not biased and are there to make you feel ok. I realized that there are more people who love you than those people who hate you.
In a way I am proud of myself that never did I have this revengeful feeling about them. But of course things already changed. Relationship with the people who wronged you changed. Forgiveness is there but also you have to protect yourself. I guess pulling yourself away from people that have a great tendency to push you down is a step for you to gain happiness.
Whatever reasons why these things happned in our life, God has the best answer. We might not understand it now but sooner or later we will discover His greater plan.

Blahness Chuvaness

"hay chenelyn, chuvanela ang uchusero nya ha! Aha! maresbakan nga chaka sya!"

"antok na me cge gtg tc u!"

-mga salitang kanto at gay lingo, mga pinaikling salita (lalo na sa mga text…) uso ito ngayon. Madalas marinig, madalas masambit. At aking aaminin minsan mahilig din akong magimbento ng kung ano-anong kaartehang salita (cuteness meter, in cherness, chuvalooness etc.)

Madalas rin nating ginagamit ngunit minsan di natin alam kung saan ba ito nagmula. Ito ay ilan lamang sa nga aking nadiskubre sana ay may mapulot kayong aral. CHING!

Ang mahiwagang "PED XING" Street

Noong ako’y nasa kolehiyo araw-araw kong nadadaan and kalye ng "PED XING" sa may Espana. Ngunit ako’y nagulat sapagkat pati sa may Baywalk nakita ko pa rin ito. Ano nga ba ang hiwagang bumabalot dito.

Sa unang tingin aakalain mo na ito ay isang pangalan ng isang Chinese hero or something (ang konyo). Ngunit sa aking pagbabasa ng libro (ang libro ni BOB ONG) nalaman ko na sya pala ay hindi tao!… What! sa tinagal-tagal ko sa MAynila ngayon ko lang natuklasan na ito pala ay pinaikling "PEDESTRIAN CROSSING".. hayy na sabihan pa tuloy akong tanga!(anyway minsan talaga hindi ko napapansin ang mga bagay-bagay) Sino kaya nagimbento nito?

RESBAKAN NA!

Syempre alam naman ng lahat na ibig sabhin nito ay "gumanti". Minsan napagdebatehan pa namin kung saan ba nagmula ang salitang ito. SAbi ng aking kaibigan ito daw ay mula sa salitang "Backers" na binaliktad lamang ,eh ayaw naman maniwala ng isa kaya eto niresearch ko na.

Sa aking pananaliksik (hanep malalim to!) ito nga ay binaligtad na salitang "back rest" na sa salitang Ingles ang ibig sabihin ay "ally or comrade".

PALAISIPAN

Ako tuloy ay napaisip

Ang salitang DYOWA ba ay pinaikling "DYOk lang, WAla lang"?

at ang DYOKLA ba ay DYOsang lalaki o DYOK na Lalaki?

-Ang blog na ito ay aking ginawa noong Aug. 03, 2006

The Aliguay Island Adventure

I love adventures… I love exploring… One day me and my friend went to a not so famous island in Mindanao… Aliguay in Dapitan. Before you can get there, you have to rent a boat or look for a resident who will go back home to the island with their supplies (we search for our banca ride at the Port of Dipolog) which is about 2 hours ride.

ALIGUAY ISLAND Photo taken from: girlfromdipolog

There is no fresh water supply in the island. But electricity is available. There are also resorts where you can relax and enjoy the beach.

White sand… unspoiled crystal clear water… not crowded… it’s a perfect spot for relaxation and of course picture taking. We also tried fishing… and voila!!! Not less than 3 minutes we already have our catch! That’s how abundant aquatic life is in the island.

 

To the rescue
Going back, we just hitched on a small family boat on their way to Dapitan proper to fetch their fresh water supply. The adventure??? The motor just stopped in the middle of the open sea. Exposed to Mother Nature… waves…the sun… wind… and salt… plus sitting uncomfortably on a bamboo pole, I think we waited for hours…. (That’s exaggeration maybe its just more or less 20 minutes). But when all the hope is gone (ok this is just a drama), not so faraway, there came a smaller fishing boat. Manong (?) { I never catched his name} hauled us until our motor started running.( In fairness ngayon ko lang naranasan ang ma-tow sa dagat. Ang saya!)
And the exciting moment doesn’t stop there, almost near the main island, it started to rain. Yes! After the sun exposure here comes the rain! So we have to cover up because the waves are becoming bigger and its just splashing directly on our faces. Then near the port, our boat passed under the bridge. But not just an ordinary bridge because we have to stoop down because the headroom is around 2 ½ to 3 feet I guess. I was just laughing the entire time we are under the bridge. This is really an adventure!

Well sometimes, you just have to go out of your comfort zone to experience things like this. I don’t mind getting into this kind of adventure when in return I have seen and experience a beautiful island we can call our own.

Sunset in Aliguay

Conquering Mt. Pulag

Mt. Pulag

The second highest peak in the Philippines. Rising at 2922 meters above sea level.

Me and my officemates launched an introductory climb to conquer this peak.

July 03, 2010 Saturday

From Baguio, we took a 4-hour jeepney ride to DENR office. We attended an orientation. We had a little warm-up then we started our ascend

We took the Ambangeg (the luxury trail) in Benguet. It was really a long walk. And for a Non-mountaineer like me… this is not a luxury trail!!! My heart is pounding so hard that it almost came out of my chest. Catching my breath... as I walk every step up to the camp site. Well, hello?!?! With no exercise before the climb and with limited sleep what would you expect!?!

Around 5:00 it started to rain… the air was chilly. According to DENR temperature in Mt. Pulag will drop as low as -2ºC at winter months (we don’t have a winter season in our country so maybe this is December to February) and as low as 6ºC at regular season. 2 of my colleagues suffered hypothermia.

July 04, 2010 Sunday

We started our early walk, around 4am, up the summit. Oh?!? I'm catching my breath again. I think my heart and lungs was tremendously used-up. I'm not used to get up this early.

But all I can say is that when you already reach the top, you will forget all your struggles and muscle pains because of the breathtaking site and also because of the idea that you were able to push yourself to the limit. The view really makes you proud as a Pilipino. You will be able to appreciate how beautiful our country is.Then making you want to explore more.

I am really delighted I joined this trip. I’m glad I conquered Mt. Pulag

“You will forget all your struggles and muscle pains because of the breathtaking site”

Itinerary to Pulag via Ambangeg trail

Day 1
21:00 ETD/ Victory Cubao/Espana (around P450-480)

Day2
03:00 ETA Baguio/ Purchase return trip ticket at victory baguio

(rent jeepney going to DENR Benguet this will cost you min. of P800 each

but better if you can contact DENR Benguet beforehand so you’ll have a sure ride)

03:30 ETD DENR Benguet
06:30 ETA DENR/ Orientation/ Briefing (payment P200)
07:30 ETD Ranger Station
10:30 ETA Ranger Station-talk to a guide(P?)/porter (around P500)
11:00 Start Trek
12:00 Camp 1
14:00 Camp 2 set camp

Day 3
03:00 ETA summit
05:00 ETD Summit

07:00 ETD Camp site
08:00 ETA Camp Site
08:30 Break Camp
09:30 Start Decent
13:00 ETA Ranger station
15:00 ETD DENR
16:00 ETA DENR/ log out/ souvenir shop/
16:30 ETD Baguio
18:00 ETA Baguio
19:00 ETD Manila

Day 4
01:00 ETA Manila