Guided Climb: Mt. Ugo, February 21 to 23, 2003
Below are the scanned pages of the July 2003 issue of Metro magazine that featured an article entitled "Conquering A Mountain" written by Tina Jurado, one of the climb participants in the Mt. Ugo guided climb organized by Tey Walde, Bigfoot Yanga and I for the group of Ernie Lopez.
Click on the images to view a larger version of it.
Below is the write up I did for the guided climb.
It was 5:30 PM at the approach to Tey’s Revenge; the sun was slowly fading in the horizon. Low lying clouds have already blanketed the valley below us. It has been 8 hours since we started our trek from Kayapa.
Buko Raymundo - the "barok na sosyal" and a batch mate of mine in AMCI - sought the assistance of Bigfoot Yanga, Tey Walde and myself in organizing the Mt. Ugo trek for his "sosyal na barok" friends.
I wasn’t able to attend any of the pre-climb meetings; I just met them at the Victory Liner bus terminal in the evening of our departure from Quezon City. I was glad to see Chok Martinez, another AMCI batch mate, joining the team.
Bigfoot told me that the group had previously climbed Mt. Pulag via Akiki trail, and that they have followed a workout schedule composed of running and stair climbing for the Mt. Ugo trek. "Okay, panalo!" I told him. He then told me there was a first-timer joining the 3-day trek. It was then that I fell silent.
He knew very well the meaning of my silence. The Kayapa, Nueva Viscaya - Itogon, Benguet traverse route involves a long one-day trek to the summit of Mt. Ugo on DAY 1. The first 3-to-4 hours is through a 726-meter steep and open trail, leveling off at Indupit for an easy 2-hour trek to Domolpos Saddle, and winds up to another 2-hour, 403-meter steep ascent up Tey’s Revenge including an eerie trek through a mini forest before reaching the 2168-meter summit campsite.
I was introduced to Tina Jurado in the bus as her personal sweeper. I didn’t expect her to be the newbie. Earlier, I saw Tina adjusting her Gregory pack, and it never occurred to me that she was a first-timer. Looks sure can be deceiving; her stance and attire didn’t make her out as a newbie at all.
At the trailhead in Kayapa, I briefed her about the day’s trek, on how we will manage our rest stops, etc. I wasn’t worried at all with Tina’s performance during the first 4 hours; it was the final stretch that concerned me the most. Halfway to Indupit, I transferred some of her load to my pack. I also took her camera so that her first climb could be documented properly, and at the same time I can control the interval of our rest stops without her realizing it.
Tina completed the uphill trek to Indupit arriving ahead of some participants. "So far, so good," I said to myself.
She started to show signs of agitation on our way to the third waiting shed. Tina repeatedly remarked on how long the trek has been for a beginner like her. I would from time to time assure her that she could do it; sometimes I would just keep silent allowing her to verbalize the difficulty she is feeling.
The cold weather and the cloudy sky exuded a gloomy atmosphere on the trail. By the time we reached the fourth waiting shed, Tina was no longer smiling. I told her that we are now in the final juncture of the day’s trek, that this was the most critical part of our journey - the trek to the summit.
We rested and ate our trail food while waiting for Bigfoot and Buko to arrive. I advised her to put on her jacket and to bring out her headlamp and spare batteries. Tina was very grouchy when she asked Buko where she could take a piss. I further reduced the load in her pack; Bigfoot and I got her water load.
It was 5:30 PM at the approach to Tey’s Revenge; the sun was slowly fading in the horizon. Low lying clouds have already blanketed the valley below us. It has been 8 hours since we started our trek from Kayapa.
Tina, visibly tired from the long trek quietly followed me up the steep ridge to Mt. Ugo’s summit. Her pacing along Tey’s Revenge surprised me; we completed it in just forty minutes.
We switched on our headlamps at the approach to the mini forest leading to the summit campsite. Again, she surprised me with her excellent pace, she seemed calm almost nonchalant about our night trekking. But I knew deep inside, her emotions were balanced on a knife’s edge. Fear and anger probably filled every recesses of her mind, but she continued to push onwards!
At one point of our trek, I told her I volunteered to be her personal sweeper, and that I would be with her all the way. Perhaps, my reassurance boosted her courage for she further improved her pace. It was already 6:50 PM I could hear the voices of Chok and the others at the campsite. I called out and announced our arrival. They shouted out for joy and came out to welcome us. Upon seeing her friends, Tina broke down in tears.
I was glad she made it to the summit campsite, but I feared the experience had been traumatic for her. My fears quickly vanished when I saw her half an hour later going out of their tent to prepare dinner. Tina has done it! She completed the 1040-meter ascent in 10 hours. The most difficult part of the 3-day trek is over.
We were blessed with very good weather. The summit campsite was bathed with a pearly light by the setting moon as it continued its journey in the pre-dawn sky. There wasn’t much wind, but it was cold nevertheless.
The next two days would be as Buko described it to them - a hilarious and zany walk in the park.
Tina’s confidence was at an all-time high after DAY 1; she was more relaxed, smiled a lot and could be heard singing on the trail, in several instances she even made ratrat.
Tina and the rest of Buko’s friends didn’t just surpass the physical and mental challenges of the trek, nor did they just become witnesses to the magnificence of God’s creation, they have also embarked on a journey of self-discovery.
Tatak AMCI kailan pa man!
~ Carpe Diem ~
Click on the images to view a larger version of it.
Below is the write up I did for the guided climb.
It was 5:30 PM at the approach to Tey’s Revenge; the sun was slowly fading in the horizon. Low lying clouds have already blanketed the valley below us. It has been 8 hours since we started our trek from Kayapa.
Buko Raymundo - the "barok na sosyal" and a batch mate of mine in AMCI - sought the assistance of Bigfoot Yanga, Tey Walde and myself in organizing the Mt. Ugo trek for his "sosyal na barok" friends.
I wasn’t able to attend any of the pre-climb meetings; I just met them at the Victory Liner bus terminal in the evening of our departure from Quezon City. I was glad to see Chok Martinez, another AMCI batch mate, joining the team.
Bigfoot told me that the group had previously climbed Mt. Pulag via Akiki trail, and that they have followed a workout schedule composed of running and stair climbing for the Mt. Ugo trek. "Okay, panalo!" I told him. He then told me there was a first-timer joining the 3-day trek. It was then that I fell silent.
He knew very well the meaning of my silence. The Kayapa, Nueva Viscaya - Itogon, Benguet traverse route involves a long one-day trek to the summit of Mt. Ugo on DAY 1. The first 3-to-4 hours is through a 726-meter steep and open trail, leveling off at Indupit for an easy 2-hour trek to Domolpos Saddle, and winds up to another 2-hour, 403-meter steep ascent up Tey’s Revenge including an eerie trek through a mini forest before reaching the 2168-meter summit campsite.
I was introduced to Tina Jurado in the bus as her personal sweeper. I didn’t expect her to be the newbie. Earlier, I saw Tina adjusting her Gregory pack, and it never occurred to me that she was a first-timer. Looks sure can be deceiving; her stance and attire didn’t make her out as a newbie at all.
At the trailhead in Kayapa, I briefed her about the day’s trek, on how we will manage our rest stops, etc. I wasn’t worried at all with Tina’s performance during the first 4 hours; it was the final stretch that concerned me the most. Halfway to Indupit, I transferred some of her load to my pack. I also took her camera so that her first climb could be documented properly, and at the same time I can control the interval of our rest stops without her realizing it.
Tina completed the uphill trek to Indupit arriving ahead of some participants. "So far, so good," I said to myself.
She started to show signs of agitation on our way to the third waiting shed. Tina repeatedly remarked on how long the trek has been for a beginner like her. I would from time to time assure her that she could do it; sometimes I would just keep silent allowing her to verbalize the difficulty she is feeling.
The cold weather and the cloudy sky exuded a gloomy atmosphere on the trail. By the time we reached the fourth waiting shed, Tina was no longer smiling. I told her that we are now in the final juncture of the day’s trek, that this was the most critical part of our journey - the trek to the summit.
We rested and ate our trail food while waiting for Bigfoot and Buko to arrive. I advised her to put on her jacket and to bring out her headlamp and spare batteries. Tina was very grouchy when she asked Buko where she could take a piss. I further reduced the load in her pack; Bigfoot and I got her water load.
It was 5:30 PM at the approach to Tey’s Revenge; the sun was slowly fading in the horizon. Low lying clouds have already blanketed the valley below us. It has been 8 hours since we started our trek from Kayapa.
Tina, visibly tired from the long trek quietly followed me up the steep ridge to Mt. Ugo’s summit. Her pacing along Tey’s Revenge surprised me; we completed it in just forty minutes.
We switched on our headlamps at the approach to the mini forest leading to the summit campsite. Again, she surprised me with her excellent pace, she seemed calm almost nonchalant about our night trekking. But I knew deep inside, her emotions were balanced on a knife’s edge. Fear and anger probably filled every recesses of her mind, but she continued to push onwards!
At one point of our trek, I told her I volunteered to be her personal sweeper, and that I would be with her all the way. Perhaps, my reassurance boosted her courage for she further improved her pace. It was already 6:50 PM I could hear the voices of Chok and the others at the campsite. I called out and announced our arrival. They shouted out for joy and came out to welcome us. Upon seeing her friends, Tina broke down in tears.
I was glad she made it to the summit campsite, but I feared the experience had been traumatic for her. My fears quickly vanished when I saw her half an hour later going out of their tent to prepare dinner. Tina has done it! She completed the 1040-meter ascent in 10 hours. The most difficult part of the 3-day trek is over.
We were blessed with very good weather. The summit campsite was bathed with a pearly light by the setting moon as it continued its journey in the pre-dawn sky. There wasn’t much wind, but it was cold nevertheless.
The next two days would be as Buko described it to them - a hilarious and zany walk in the park.
Tina’s confidence was at an all-time high after DAY 1; she was more relaxed, smiled a lot and could be heard singing on the trail, in several instances she even made ratrat.
Tina and the rest of Buko’s friends didn’t just surpass the physical and mental challenges of the trek, nor did they just become witnesses to the magnificence of God’s creation, they have also embarked on a journey of self-discovery.
Tatak AMCI kailan pa man!
~ Carpe Diem ~