Pursuing Pinatubo

'A good friend listens to your adventures. A best friend makes them with you.'

Mt. Pinatubo Dayhike 
Sta. Juliana, Capas, Tarlac
January 21, 2017

To those who want to do a Pinatubo dayhike via Sta. Juliana, Capas, be prepared. Prepare for the adrenaline and exhausting 4x4 vehicle ride, prepare for countless river crossing, and lastly, be prepare to the high cost of fees and everything they sold and offer there. The P 700.00 fees collected in the Botolan area is too high, the cold soda sold in the crater cost was also too much. A 500 ml soda cost P 100.00. Yes, I am serious. Even the shower fee was high compared to the usual P 20.00 they collect from other mountains I had been to. 

I was not at all amazed upon seeing the crater lake. I guess it could have been more beautiful five or ten years ago. But now, I think it lost its grandeur. But there are still a lot of local and foreign tourists going there. I went there just to say that I have been to Pinatubo which is near my home town. The main reason I went there was to see and experience what Pinatubo had to offer. The people are nice, our guide was reliable and accommodating, and our 4x4 driver was the best. The problem I see here is the motive of the LGU especially on the Botolan side. They should justify their collection of the P 700.00 fee for the benefit of the tourists and hikers going there. The Capas trail is the easiest way to get to Mount Pinatubo but it proved to be the most expensive compared to the Zambales and Delta 5 trails.

Although I am a native of Tarlac I don’t want to give false hope about how worthy and beautiful Pinatubo is to those who want to go there. I don’t recommend going there especially if you're on a tight budget and want value for your money. Your 2,000 bucks could get you to more worthy destinations. Why not try and head north instead? You might want to consider going to Pulag, Sagada or Vigan perhaps? They’re mainstream destinations but your hard earned money will go a long way and the long trip will all be worth it and rewarding enough. But if money is not an issue to you, go ahead and go to Pinatubo even just for the experience. Moreover, if you’re looking for more adventure, you might want to pursue Pinatubo via the Delta 5 trail which requires 2 days hike commencing in Porac, Pampanga.

After contemplating on all the expenses I had incurred in going to Pinatubo, I realized that I should still be thankful for all the experience. Besides that, I accomplished something that I really wanted to do for a long time. Opportunities began pouring in after my Pinatubo hike with my friends. It was enough reasons to cover up for all my initial frustrations in conquering this mountain. To be honest, I harbor no regrets in pursuing a Pinatubo hike; rather, I was grateful because I was able to spend time with people close to me. Hiking with friends is the most enjoying and rewarding experience of all. In the end, nothing matters most but the moments you spend with the people you love.





































































































Itinerary:

04:00 AM  Meet up at RGH
05:00 AM  ETD Tarlac City to Capas
06:00 AM  ETA Capas. Breakfast
06:30 AM  ETA  Brgy. Sta. Juliana/Tourism Office. Registration
07:00 AM  Board 4×4 vehicles to jump-off point
08:00 AM  End-of-the-road; start of trek to Pinatubo crater
10:00 AM  ETA Pinatubo crater. Explore. Photo ops
11:30 AM  Lunch
12:00 NN  ETD Pinatubo crater to jump-off point 
02:00 PM  ETA jump-off point. 4x4 ride back to Sta. Juliana/Tourism Office
02:45 PM  Arrival at Sta. Juliana/Tourism Office. Tidy up.
04:00 PM  ETD to Tarlac City
05:00 PM  ETA Tarlac City 

 CONTACT INFORMATION:

 Mr. Rojan Santos
Booking Coordinator
Capas Tourism Office
0949-123-9685

 NOTE: This post is undergoing editing.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bakit Ako Umaakyat ng Bundok? (V.2 - Hugot Version)

Image
‘Umakyat. Nahulog. Nasaktan. At nagmahal muli.’ Unang Akyat Napakabilis lumipas ang panahon. Ngayon ay eksaktong isang taon na ang nakalilipas mula nang subukan kong umakyat ng bundok. Hindi naging maganda ang aking karanasan sa una kong akyat noon kaya hindi ko akalain na hanggang sa kasalukuyan ay ginagawa ko pa rin ang bagay na ito. Bagamat ganoon ang kinahantungan ng akyat ko sa bundok Daraitan sa lalawigan ng Rizal ay hindi ako nagsisi at pinanghinaan ng loob. Kakatwa pa nga dahil nasundan pa ang una kong akyat hanggang sa maging sunud-sunod na ito. Naging isang hilig ang bagay na sa simula ay isa lamang sanang libangan – isang paraan upang saglit na makalimot sa stress at pagod sa trabaho. Nagpapasalamat ako dahil nagbukas ng maraming oportunidad sa aking buhay ang unang akyat ko sa Daraitan. Ang mga oportunidad na ito ay nagpabago sa aking buhay ng hindi inaasahan. Una, naging tulay ang pag-akyat ko upang magkaroon ng maraming mga kaibigan. Sa bawat akyat ko ay ma...
Keep reading

Ang Apat na Bundok ng Cawag (Balingkilat, Bira-Bira, Dayungan at Cinco Picos)

Image
‘Naniniwala ako na kung wala kang nagagawa sa kinatatayuan mo ngayon, wala ka rin magagawa sa kung saan mo man gusto magpunta.’ Ang Hamon Paumanhin sa mga mambabasa ng aking ‘blog’ kung sakaling manibago kayo. Sapagkat ngayon ay Buwan ng Pambansang Wika kaya napagdesisyunan kong isulat sa wikang Filipino ang ‘blog entry’ na ito. Bukod pa sa kadahilanang ito ay nais ko din pagbigyan ang hiling ng aking mga kasamahan sa ‘Trail Seekers’ na naghihimutok dahil napakahirap daw unawain ng aking mga isinusulat sa wikang Ingles. ‘Nose bleed’ ba kamo? Isang kabalintunaan marahil na pinili kong magsulat sa banyagang wika gayung kailanman ay hindi nagmaliw ang pagmamahal ko sa ating sariling wika. Kaya upang ipakita na hindi pa rin nawawaglit sa aking kamalayan ang kinagisnan kong lenggwahe ay buong puso kong tinanggap ang kanilang hamon. Nakakapanibago man sa simula ngunit kalaunan ay naging madali din ang lahat. Kailangan ko lamang ilahad ang aking saloobin na walang iniisip na maling...
Keep reading

Misadventures at San Jose Circuit (Mt. Kawayan, Mt. Bungkol Baka and Mt. Tangisan)

Image
‘Never let a stumble in the road be the end of the journey.’ From mountain to police station My San Jose trilogy dayhike climb was memorable in so many ways; but as much as I would like to say that it was in a good way, it’s certainly not. To say that it was also my first home province climb would not ease the disappointment I felt either. My angst about what transpired in scaling the three mountains of San Jose, Tarlac was mainly due to the challenges posed by some unestablished part of the trail, the unreliability of some of our guides, how mediocre the three mountains seemed, and the unfortunate incident involving the local authorities of this town. The latter was an ordeal that I would rather forget. Until this moment, I couldn’t believe how we ended up in a police station after a whole day of trekking three mountains. I consider it as one of the worst days of my life and of my novice hiking career. Still, like in every climb I’ve been to, my journey to this place pr...
Keep reading