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  1. #126
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    ^heh

    @chitty - I don't know what your fruit is, but it's not the same plant as the cacao / cocoa plant, Theobroma cacao. The fruit of the cacao plant is used to make chocolate.

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theobroma_cacao

  2. #127
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    My net was &$% earlier, let's try it now. Pics of the ascent...

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_054024-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_054028-jpg

    thanks for reposting...

  3. #128
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    @david48 - thanks for the reposts earlier

    more ascent pics...
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_054321-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_054317-jpg
    more clouds^

  4. #129
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    More ascent pics, taken around 5:30 am

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_055601-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_061017-jpg

    thanks to anyone who will repost

  5. #130
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    At the top, there were more hikers and campers
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_061752-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_061803-jpg
    ^sun was already high, ~6:30 am

  6. #131
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    Campers' stuff... note the Spam

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_062237-jpg

    look for the Spam, Ma-ling & Argentina corned beef. Sorry, no Vienna sausage (shout out to SKKIN!)

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_062223-jpg

  7. #132
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    More clouds
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_061810-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_062000-jpg
    Cheers all!

  8. #133
    R.I.P. Luigi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by katie23 View Post
    ^heh

    @chitty - I don't know what your fruit is, but it's not the same plant as the cacao / cocoa plant, Theobroma cacao. The fruit of the cacao plant is used to make chocolate.

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theobroma_cacao
    Quote Originally Posted by katie23 View Post
    My net was &$% earlier, let's try it now. Pics of the ascent...

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_054024-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_054028-jpg

    thanks for reposting...
    Quote Originally Posted by katie23 View Post
    @david48 - thanks for the reposts earlier

    more ascent pics...
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_054321-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_054317-jpg
    more clouds^
    Quote Originally Posted by katie23 View Post
    More ascent pics, taken around 5:30 am

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_055601-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_061017-jpg

    thanks to anyone who will repost
    Quote Originally Posted by katie23 View Post
    At the top, there were more hikers and campers
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_061752-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_061803-jpg
    ^sun was already high, ~6:30 am
    Quote Originally Posted by katie23 View Post
    Campers' stuff... note the Spam

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_062237-jpg

    look for the Spam, Ma-ling & Argentina corned beef. Sorry, no Vienna sausage (shout out to SKKIN!)

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_062223-jpg
    Quote Originally Posted by katie23 View Post
    More clouds
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_061810-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_062000-jpg
    Cheers all!
    Very nice.

  9. #134
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    ^thanks for the reposts, Luigi.

    More pics from the Mt. Mapalad climb. Hope they load.

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_064354_view-jpg
    ^view at the summit

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_081636_guide_lisa-jpg
    ^Lisa, one of our guides. We had 3 guides: leader, middle and sweeper (~5 pax per guide). We were 16 in the group.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_064354_view-jpg   Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_081636_guide_lisa-jpg  

  10. #135
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    On the way down, we passed by a waterfalls. It wasn't very big, but was still nice.
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_083030_falls-jpg

    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_083346_falls2-jpg
    ^there's a rope at the side of the falls and you can climb it until the middle portion. I have a team-mate up there if you look closely.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_083030_falls-jpg   Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_083346_falls2-jpg  

  11. #136
    R.I.P. Luigi's Avatar
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    There's great hiking up around Chiang Mai K-Pop. Come on up and I'll give you a tour for a few days.

  12. #137
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    More pics of the descent
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_091012_descent-jpg

    Passed by a few streams. This was one of them.
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_091528_stream-jpg
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_091012_descent-jpg   Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_091528_stream-jpg  

  13. #138
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    Katie, great report as always, thanks for taking the trouble to post it. I spent 3 years in Nepal and you spend a lot of your time walking up things, at the time you think to yourself why am I putting myself through this but then you get to your destination and the reason becomes clear. Some of those cross valley shots are lovely.

  14. #139
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    Thanks for the replies, Toot & Luigi.

    @Luigi - yes, CM is beautiful and it would be lovely to hike or explore the surrounds. Was there just this past July. Went to Buatong Waterfalls (and climbed the falls!) and to the San Kampaeng(?) hot springs. So will this tour around CM involve a few dogs, Chihuahuas perhaps? Thanks for the offer, but having been to Thailand this year, it won't be in the horizon in the near future. So our *relationship* will just have to be from afar... sigh...

    @Toot - yes, sometimes I wonder why I put myself to this physical torture, but I remind myself that I need to do these physical stuff while I'm young and I still can! (But I have had climb-mates who are 62 y.o.) I climbed 3 mountains this past October, and have 2 climbs each scheduled for Nov and Dec. With each climb, I feel myself getting better and it, and the muscle pain is less because my body is more conditioned. So far, the mountains I've climbed have 3/9 or 4/9 difficulty level. I'm slowly gearing up for a 5/9 or 6/9 climb. Hopefully, by next year, I'll be ready for it.

    It's a holiday today and I'm at a relative's place, using their free wifi, 55.... that's why I can post pics.

  15. #140
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    One of the pools that we took a dip in... no skimpy pics, sorry... heh...
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_091619_pool-jpg

    Another small pool, downstream
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_094841_pool2-jpg
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_091619_pool-jpg   Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_094841_pool2-jpg  

  16. #141
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    Last few pics of the descent... large boulder...
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_101251_boulder-jpg

    saw some kids playing... these kids have to walk ~1 hour or more to reach the nearest school
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_101336_kids_playing-jpg

    some ricefields near the jump-off point
    Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_103214_ricefield-jpg

    On the way down, I didn't see any electricity lines, so I asked the guide if the people living in the mountain had power. He said that some people had solar panels for power (I noticed only the large-ish houses had them). The poorer ones, in small houses, had no electricity.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_101251_boulder-jpg   Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_101336_kids_playing-jpg   Hiking in the Phils-p_20181007_103214_ricefield-jpg  

  17. #142
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    Just spotted the lunatic at the top

    I always get sweaty hands and feet for some reason watching people about to fall to their deaths

  18. #143
    fcuked off SKkin's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dillinger View Post
    I always get sweaty hands and feet for some reason watching people about to fall to their deaths
    Why do you think she's wearing gloves?

  19. #144
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    Quote Originally Posted by katie23 View Post
    I feel myself getting better and it, and the muscle pain is less because my body is more conditioned. So far, the mountains I've climbed have 3/9 or 4/9 difficulty level. I'm slowly gearing up for a 5/9 or 6/9 climb. Hopefully, by next year, I'll be ready for it. .
    Katie, I find walking/hiking my favourite, it takes some of the chore out of exercising. I can't play footie or rugger anymore as my ankles are shot but weirdly unaffected by walking and with this type of exercise you always get the added benefit of enjoying what you see or come across.

    The issue for me is to stop myself treating the hike as too much of a challenge and then i find myself "Force Marching" head down and forgetting to stop and take in the views or notice small things which is the payback for the effort you put in. Looks like you're enjoying yourself and that is the main thing. For me i get the added benefit of ideas for places to visit once i finish working and the Phils is somewhere i'm embarrassed to say i have never been to so please keep them coming.
    Last edited by NamPikToot; 02-11-2018 at 01:26 AM.

  20. #145
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    katie is that you ^^^with the fancy fingerless gloves??

  21. #146
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    Thanks for the greens and comments

    Yes, that's me with the fingerless gloves. They're not fancy, they're cheap - bought them for Php 50 (~1 USD) at the market. The armsleeves (I call them tricycle driver sleeves, 55) and the gloves are part of my PPE (personal protective equipment). I don't like getting scratches from weeds (thus the armsleeves) and I don't like worrying about splinters (when holding onto branches or rocks), that's why I wear them.

    For the elephant pants lover (heh), I don't wear elephant pants since they're made of cotton and ideally for city walking. The hiking pants and shirts that I use are made of nylon, polyester or other synthetic material, which are quick-dry. Got that tip from pros when I joined a 2-day hike spearheaded by the Ayala mountaineers group some years ago.

    For the "organized day hikes" that I've joined, they usually involve a 2-4 hour hike to the summit, then a stop-over to a river or waterfalls during the descent, which is nice. It's relaxing to take a dip in the river/pool after a tiring hike. For the hikes which are DIY (just organized by me or my friends), it's usually just a hike to the summit, lunch, then descent and back to home.

    Since joining this tour/hike group, I've learned that there are a lot more mountains to be discovered in my country, with various difficulties. As I've said earlier, the hikes I've done are 3/9 or 4/9 difficulty, which are considered as "minor climbs". Next year, I hope to join a 5/9, 6/9 or 7/9, and I want to be conditioned for it. Some of my targets are mountains in the north like Mt. Ugo traverse hike (5/9) and Mt. Pulag Akiki-Amba trail (7/9). Mt. Pulag is Luzon's highest peak at 2,926 meters (info from Wiki), and can be reached by the Amba trail (relaxed hike, 3/9), but I think I want to do the Akiki-Amba trail (7/9).

    I've also learned that each mountain has its own features, like limestone rocks, grassy or woody trail, waterfalls or river, which add to the uniqueness of the experience. Since I'm rejoined hiking (hiked before, but stopped) every hike now has its own challenge and beauty. So far, I don't have that same-same but different feeling yet.

  22. #147
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    Last mid-October, I organized a hike among some of my friends, and it was to Mt. Maculot in the town of Cuenca, province of Batangas. Cuenca, Batangas is probably 1 or 1.5 hours away from Manila, so it's a fairly easy day hike. I chose this mountain since it's relatively easy and near my location.

    According to Pinoy Mountaineer, Mt. Maculot "Rockies" is 706 meters above sea level and has a difficulty rating of 3/9. It took our group around 3 hours to reach the Rockies peak (and view of Taal Lake and Volcano) - we made several rest stops. The descent took me only 1 hour, since I barely stopped or rested. Some of my group made the descent in 1.5h to 1.75h. We just waited for each other at the "mountaineers store". The ascent involves just up-up-up, very few areas with level ground - unlike Mt. Mapalad wherein there were lots of level areas. I was better conditioned for this hike, since it was just 1 week after the Mapalad hike. I also had a bit more time to go jogging and do push-ups to train for the hike, so I felt minimal pain after this hike.

    Some blogs about Mt. Maculot:

    Mt. Maculot itinerary by Pinoy Mountaineer

    MT. MACULOT GUIDE - ROCKIES SUMMIT GROTTO - DAY HIKE TRAVERSE

    Because of some accidents/deaths in the past, the local gov't does not allow guide-less hikes anymore. Depending on where you start off, you have to register at the barangay (village) hall and hire a guide. The guide fee is Php 400 or 500 for a group of 5 ppl (less than 10 USD) depending on where you go to (Rockies or Summit). We were 12 in our group, so we got 2 guides.

  23. #148
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    Start of the pics... view of the mountain as you get off the bus. We used public transport and got off at the corner where there are tricycles going to Barangay (village) 7, the jump-off point for the Maculot Rockies. It's called "Rockies" because well, there are rocks.

    Hiking in the Phils-01_view_from_town-jpg

    After getting guides, paying the "environment fee" (Php 20/ pax), we rested a bit at this store, which serves as the jump-off point.
    Hiking in the Phils-02_store_jump_off_point-jpg
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Hiking in the Phils-01_view_from_town-jpg   Hiking in the Phils-02_store_jump_off_point-jpg  

  24. #149
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    Some signage
    Hiking in the Phils-03_signage-jpg

    You'll walk on cemented road for a bit
    Hiking in the Phils-04_cement_road-jpg
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Hiking in the Phils-03_signage-jpg   Hiking in the Phils-04_cement_road-jpg  

  25. #150
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    Start of the trail
    Hiking in the Phils-05_start_trail-jpg

    Upward trail
    Hiking in the Phils-06_upward_trail-jpg
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Hiking in the Phils-05_start_trail-jpg   Hiking in the Phils-06_upward_trail-jpg  

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