Mt. Apo Expedition (Tamayong-Kidapawan trail) Part III

Day 5 - Thursday (March 20, 2008) - Too Much Expectations

At around 7:30am, we started to summit Apo. Crossing past through the lake, we ascended through a wet & muddy path. The view on the way up were akin to typical views of mountains. As we were nearing the saddle, we met people coming from different peaks. There were around 4 peaks around the saddle. With little time, we asked the DENR person manning the area which one offered the good view of the crater lake. He recommended the one on the far right offering views of Kidapawan, Davao, the Kapatagan trail via Digos, the full view of the crater lake & the sea of clouds. Zigzaging through narrow paths, Ronnie, Nehl, Nera, Ricky and I reached the rocky part where the full view of the crater lake laid out on us. It was so cold & the breeze was so strong I had to literally crawl towards the peak. We thought Cecille & the other trail leads were there but we didn't found them there. We figured out they took the other peaks. We reached the peak and saw the "bouldery" Kapatagan trail. I suddenly remembered Mt. Guiting Guiting, another "chilly" trail. Standing on top of the country's highest peak were mixed emotions to me. Mt. Apo, being the highest, was worthy of adulation & reverence of any mountaineer. But there was something lacking in her --- she was short of that unique distinction , that spectacularity that would behold anyone of a mountain. Yes, she was beautiful. But I was not too pleased. The clouds were there --- naturally -- but it was nothing spectacular, unlike the sea of clouds of Mt. Pulag and Mt. Ugo. The crater was big enough yet so simple. Not enough to even compare with the beauty & awe I got from the craters of Mt. Pinatubo & Mt. Kanlaon. I was on top of the country's peak, adored her beauty but quite disappointed of what she could just offer. Not enough to even compensate for the 4 day struggle just to get a glimpse of her. Though quite short of my expectation, she was still something to be revered. After spending some quiet moments, few pictures & videos, the cold breeze hampered our stay. It was time to go. When we reached the saddle on our descent, we caught up with the rest of the group then quickly borrowed the group's banner & managed to snap some photos with it. At around 11am, we started our descent from the saddle. Female soldiers and young porters were common sights on our way down. Such toughness often seen on the mountains. We reached the campsite at nearly 1pm and took our lunch. After taking final photos, the group was dreading to go down. We first logged on the DENR's logbook and weighed our garbages before heading towards the Kidapawan trail. Leaving the foggy camp at around 3:30pm, we expected an easier and faster trail down as we would have on other mountains. I, for one, thought it would not be as difficult and dangerous as that of the Tamayong trail. I was wrong. The way down was steep, muddy (because it rained the day before) and narrow. There were continuous flow of trekkers going up & with the steep and narrow walkpaths, we had to give way, wait & precious time was wasted. From the initial assessment, the trail seemed manageable and less "punishing" than that of Day 1. Yet as we continued to descend, the trails were beginning to be a curse. With an estimated hundreds of mountaineers who have passed through the Kidapawan trail that day alone, the trail was obviously & badly destroyed. The once established walkpaths turned into deadly ravines. I thought we were done with those scary "nothing-to-hold-on-to" ordeal after that initial day we had on Sicao falls. But these were sort of mocking reminders that we're not done yet ----- that the "punishment" was not yet finished. "Good heaven, how long will this punishment last?" All I can do was close my eyes and mutter, "Ayoko nang umakyat." I was crying inside, no longer happy with the kind of adventure I took in. This was not the kind of adventure that spurs excitement & enthusiasm in me. This was the kind that breathes danger and great fear. Unforgiving & punishing the trail may have been, we were still occasionally "entertained" & slightly interrupted with unusual sights of young porters (average of 10-years old) carrying bags & loads heavier than themselves. As if it was not enough to caught our attention, the sight of a toddler carried by her father on his shoulder and less than a year old baby being carried by her mother on the way up to Lake Venado rendered us all dumbfounded and shocked. How could parents expose their children to such risk and danger. Whew!!!! Only in the Philippines... Rappeling via slippery roots and passing through a couple more "nothing-to-hold-on-to" ordeal, we kept on our descent with less or no rest at all (except on cases where we gave way to mountaineers going up). People we've asked on our way down would display some slight disbelief when we told them we'll proceed to Agco, where they thought we would camp out on one of the e-camps before the river. "Malayo pa ang Agco. Gagabihin kayo sa daan." One of the mothers going up told us. So there it was ---- we will surely have another Delta 5 ordeal..... Whewwww.... We passed through 2 camps where several campers were cooking and preparing for the rest of their trek up. With the muddy trail, I again have to literally use my butts on the trail. With the occasional root traps, slips and cuts, the trek went slower as some of us have dimmer headlamps which included me. (Damn, I should have bought a new one) It would have been a great help. Another lesson learned. As we heard the river flows, we sort of heaved a sigh of relief, only to realize we still did not see any flowing body of water an hour after we first heard that tricky sound of water. "Bwisit naman tong river na 'to, ang tagal magpakita." I was beginning to hate this river. At around 9pm, we saw some lights just meters away from us & first heard and felt the real rush of water. The trail leaders Ces, Gladys, Melai, Dan and Jomar (one of the porter) were there waiting for us. Wasted and tired, we took our first real break after leaving Lake Venado. Everyone thought we only have one assault and were out of the Apo's trail. When Ces announced that based on the guide & porter's assessment, we still have more than an hour of river trekking, I was literally crushed. "Oh my. Akala ko after ng river, isang ahon na lang", I quipped. "Sabi kase ng mga porter meron pang mahabang river trekking." After roughly 30 minutes of reconditioning ourselves, we headed for what we thought was a light river trekking. After initially passing through waterless rocks and boulders, we were then led to a series of mini-log crossing ordeal --- where you have to literally be walking across 2 or 3 miniature log bridges, trusting that these logs would hold on to our weight and dear life..... Some crossings were really terrifiying because the river current was strong and some logs were a bit slippery. One wrong move and we either break our heads or drown into the current. After the crossings, there were some gradual walks which seemed to be longer than what we thought of. I knew we were all wasted and hungry but all we could think of at that time were to finish this off early, and as soon as we could. Walking like zombies, we relieved one of the most exhausting treks we ever had ---- Mt. Pinatubo Delta 5 trail, where we trekked in the middle of the night under the bright moon passing along rivers and rocks. This was in fact Pinatubo Extreme. James, who was walking on barefoot now after his shoes and slippers were damaged, assured us it would just be less than 30 minutes before we reached the end of the river trekking (It was his second time on Apo; his first was via Kidapawan trail so he was familiar with the trail). It was not long until another technical trail challenged us all again. For the nth time, this ravine ordeal would still not leave us until the very end of this trail. Mang Jun made a small hole for us to step on as we make another terrifying and fear-stricken maneuver. I felt that even for the last remaining paths we've had, we still had to struggle --- a complete opposite of what others claimed of Kidapawan to be a "walk in the park" trail. Total and complete hearsay. Passing through the last stretch of the river trek, I was relieved the bridge logs were more stable, sturdy & safer than the ones we've had earlier. After the last crossing, we rested again and Kuya cooked some soups & hot beverages specifically for the guide and porters who were equally as exhausted as we were. Gaining some energy after that "dinner", we have one final assault before reaching Agco. After passing through sulfur vents, in an amazing 10 minutes, we reached Agco as quick as we never even realized. When we had the glimpse of the highway, it was one of the most satisfying & greatest relief I had ever felt in my whole 4 years of mountain climbing. From the initial trek starting at 7:30am to 1pm for the summit trek (5.5 hours) and resuming at 3:30pm until we reached Agco at exactly 12 midnight (8.5 hours), we ended Day 5 with a punishing and unforgiving 14 hours of trekking.

Personal Assessments

On board the rented jeepney, wasted and exhausted, we cannot hide the fulfillment and gratitude to the Almighty that despite the gruelling & unforgiving Tamayong-Kidapawan trail, none of us were badly injured and were all safe and sound. Eventhough Mt. Apo did not impress me much, I would say she is still the King (or Queen) of Philippine mountains. She is dangerous, powerful and fearful. And definitely, she is not to be underestimated --- not because she is the highest but because she is capable of giving the most punishing and unforgiving trail that would challenge the human spirit at its end. After "conquering" (I don't feel comfortable using this word) Mt Apo, I have been humbled by the experiences I've had with her. It was a turning point and sort of a reality check for me. I have been climbing for more than 4 years now --- and honestly, I missed out on the very reason I was fascinated with the outdoors and nature --- away from the bustling sight and sounds of the city ---- away from the RAT race. And yet without realizing it, I was still succumbing to the same RAT race principle I have been avoiding. And it's true, I'm one of those egoistic mountaineer who, after climbing the toughest mountain, would feel proud and brag about it ---- without even looking inside me for the things I learned after a tough climb. Yes, mountaineering is full of egoistic self-centered craps who glorified themselves after conquering mountains, competing with other mountaineers, trying to outdo others just to show they were tougher, stronger and faster. Without realizing it, I was swallowed by the same system I have been avoiding for years. And it took me a Tamayong-Kidapawan Mt Apo expedition to be totally knocked off. This expedition was significant because she made me realize so many mountaineers missed. I was grateful for the challenges that she gave me. On a last note, I may not be the fastest "RAT" racer, nor the strongest climber, but I am sure I am a lot tougher now, not because I have conquered the highly technical & toughest mountains but because I have learned the toughest lessons these mountains gave me. For now, I will leave the RAT-racing to those who were not contented with the city version and extend it to the mountains. For now, I will leave the ego-tripping mountaineering principle to those who lacked attention and thought they'll succeed by competing with others. For now, I will leave my own baggages of egos and moved on & hopefully embrace a more meaningful mountaineering expeditions and treks. And this would mean breaking from the old and existing system. It would also mean choosing the right trek that would not require me to speed up like horses being paddled on competitions. So much for the RAT-race, it brings nothing but STRESS. This time, I will make sure I will not be missing out the tiniest details on every trek. From now on, I will start out on a new perspective on mountaineering --- no pressures, no RAT-race, no deadlines, no baggages --- just pure, light, and fun adventure and commune with nature.