#  >  > Travellers Tales in Thailand and Asia >  >  > Philippine Forum >  >  Mt. Pinatubo trek Feb. 2016

## katie23

Hi all,

A trek to the Mt. Pinatubo crater lake has been on my bucket list, so I'm happy to say that I've been there and done that!  

I don't post my pics or trips on FB, but I'll post some pics here to again encourage Philippine tourism! If ever you venture to the north, and are in the vicinity of Angeles City and its dubious entertainments <cough>, then you may want to do a trek to the crater of Mt. Pinatubo.  It's good for a day trip.

A little bit of history (with help from Wikipedia):

Mt. Pinatubo erupted in July 15, 1991.  It spewed a lot of ash & volcanic material to the surrounding provinces.  Many homes, farms and livelihoods were destroyed in the following months. It also spewed ash to the neighboring US base, Clark Air Base.  After a year, subsequent rains turned the caldera into a crater lake.  That crater lake is a trekking spot & tourist attraction nowadays.

I remember one of my former profs saying that the July 16, 1990 Luzon earthquake (mag.7.8) shifted the tectonic plates and this led to the build-up of steam, pressure & etc, culminating in the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo one year after. 

For more info:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1990_Luzon_earthquake
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Pinatubo

Anyway, on with the pics.  :Smile:

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## katie23

For this trip, I teamed up with some other adventurers: 2 backpackers from Spain and 1 Filipino guy (who has trekked many mountains previously). I was the 4th member of the group.  We were supposed to be 5 in the group, but the other Fil guy (friend of F), backed out.  So we were four. 

It was a DIY trip and we met at the Victory Liner bus station in Cubao, Quezon City.  We took a 2am northbound bus and got off at the McDonald's at the junction in Capas, Tarlac.  We arrived at McD ~4am, had brekky and bought stuff for lunch, then hired a tricycle to take us to Barangay Sta. Juliana (which is more inland). The trike ride took 30-40 min.  Then we registered, paid the fees, etc. 

Aside from a DIY trip, you can also do a Pinatubo trek via a tour agency.  There are many agencies, among them Tripinas, Beatus Tours and Trail Adventours.  I saw some Tripinas ppl during my trip.  The agencies usually have a pick-up point somewhere in Manila.

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## katie23

Upon arrival at Sta. Juliana, we alighted from our tricycle and we were immediately greeted by these kids selling bamboo walking sticks for P20 each.  Since we were all young & fit, then we didn't need those.  Kids asked me to take a pic and I obliged.  :Smile: 



There were many other tourists/trekkers. This was one other group.

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## Davis Knowlton

Should be good, Katie. I was living in Malate when it blew, but drove up to Angeles the next morning to try to recover some very expensive gear from a warehouse on Clark before it got looted. The return trip to Manila took us 9 hours. I flew over the area in a small plane a few days later - unbelievable destruction. Later (a few months) I flew an ultralight out of Clark over all the lahar destruction.

I would have asked you to come along, if you hadn't still been in diapers.....

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## Davis Knowlton

^That just made me feel REALLY OLD......

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## katie23

^ Lol, Davis. I was a bit older than diaper stage when Pinatubo erupted.  :Smile:  But re: the US bases, they're just history for me, since I didn't go there when they were still bases. I've never been to Clark, while for Subic, I've only been there 2x (once was a school trip). My family wasn't really affected by Pinatubo since we lived south of Manila, but of course I know of the devastation & catastrophe that it brought to people in Central Luzon.

Continuing with the story...

When you get to Sta. Juliana, you'll have to register with the tourism ppl (on the left side of the pic), then pay the fees. The guys on the right (in green shirts) are guides.



Here are some "Juans" serving as guides... 


The tourism people said that for every 5 tourists, there should be 1 guide.  I think even if you're a group of 10 or 15, you can't have just 1 guide only.  This is to give jobs to locals who serve as guides (I think).  It's a seasonal job - they only allow hikes from Nov to June (dry months).  During the rainy season, they don't allow hikes for safety reasons.  The guides also only get work mostly during weekends, when the tourists come.

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## Baas Babelaas

Looks nice Kate, more pics to come?

By the way, on the way from Batangas to Manila we passed a nice sized looking mountain to our right - any idea which one it is?

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## katie23

You'll have to ride a 4x4 all-terrain vehicle for ~1 hour to get to the jump-off point.  If you're a DIY group, you'll have to rent a 4x4, which costs P3000. They allow 5 ppl max on the 4x4.  You'll also have to pay P500 for the guide & P450/pax entrance-environmental fees. This is an open-style 4x4.


According to the sign, the crater is 25 km from this registration center.

This was our 4x4, a yellow closed-type one.

That's F, the Filipino guy in my group. 

I initially wanted to be in an open 4x4, but the guide said that a closed one is better. I was thankful for the closed one, because later in the afternoon it got windy with lots of sand blowing about.

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## katie23

@bb - yes, there are more pics. I'm not sure what mountain that was. I'm usually asleep along the way when I travel to Batangas. lol  Maybe Davis knows. 

Some scenes along the way... a tourist bus


Most tour agencies use minivans to transport clients from Manila, but I guess if you're a large group, then they also hire buses.  

This is a public elementary school, if I'm not mistaken

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## katie23

Now comes the wet & wild part.  :Smile: 


I was seated on the left side, behind the driver. PI is left-hand drive (due to the Americanos).  



Water buffalo (carabao) along the way

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## katie23

You'll have to ride the 4x4 vehicle for an hour or so.  This "wasteland" was once filled with verdant pastures before Pinatubo erupted. 

More water buffalo




Grasses trying hard to grow on sandy soil

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## Davis Knowlton

[quote=katie23;3213548]@bb -I'm not sure what mountain that was. I'm usually asleep along the way when I travel to Batangas. lol  Maybe Davis knows. 

Mt. Makiling. In Laguna. 1090 meters.

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## katie23

Some parts are a bit rocky... really bumpy ride in the 4x4.


You'll have to cross some streams too.

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## katie23

After ~30 min, the vehicles will stop so that tourists can take photos. Here are some of the other vehicles.  Lots of tourists that day.


The kids are mostly Aetas (Ita), they're one of the indigenous groups here. They're small in stature and dark, similar to the Aborigines in Aus.

A boy & his dog


According to the wiki entry, the government gave Pinatubo (Zambales side) to the Aetas as their ancestral land. 

Comment from C, one of the Spanish backpackers - he said that in PI, most kids are poor but they are well-behaved.  They don't beg or force you to give alms.  He's been to other 3rd world countries, and said that in another country (Morocco), the kids threw stones at him because he wouldn't give money.

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## katie23

More 4x4 vehicles


Photo ops

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## katie23

That's our guide, E - in dark blue shirt & man-bag.


These are the 2 Spanish backpackers, B & C.  C is prolly 6' or 6'1" and B is ~ 5'9". They've finished their studies (one part) and are doing some travelling before the next stage.  One is travelling for 3 months, the other for 1 month. Kind of a gap year but shorter. (gap months?)

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## katie23

This area sometimes becomes flooded during the rainy season, so they don't allow hikes at those times.


More Aetas

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## katie23

Some great views along the way


Banana plants on the mountain

Some pics are a bit blurred due to the moving vehicle, sorry....

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## katie23

More views

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## katie23

Some amazing rock formations. My pics don't do them justice.

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## katie23

Approaching the jump-off point for the start of the trek


You'll pass some streams again

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## katie23

This is the jump-off point. All vehicles unload their passengers, who then start to trek. As I've said, lots of trekkers that day.  Mostly young ppl in their 20s & 30s, but a few seniors too.  Most were Filipinos, but there were some Koreans and whites too (both young & middle-aged).

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## katie23

This was our yellow vehicle & our driver, R.


On with the trek!


To be continued...

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## Takeovers

Thanks for the thread, Katie

Still looking desolate. I would have thought that nature has come back more after that time.

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## harrybarracuda

Nice thread. I've driven past it a few times on the way to Subic.

I think the desolation is because every rainy season the ash/mud shite shifts. They're called Lahars.

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## beerlaodrinker

Great thread as usual Katie,  I recall after piñatubo blew the govt spent a huge chunk of money building a massive mega dyke designed to counter the flow of Lahar , I'm wondering if it worked ? Or will the locals have to wait for the next eruption to see.

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## fishlocker

Yea nice photo thread. Thanks for the.posts, interesting stuff.

BLD, Funny its not often that the words "blew" and "dyke" wind up in the same sentance. Queer that innit.

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## misskit

Never would I dream there is a place in the Philippines so barren. I too thought the flora would have recovered more quickly with all that ash and and rain. Very interesting. 

Great thread, Katie!

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## harrybarracuda

Some background for your edificeration.

Lahars of Mount Pinatubo, Philippines, Fact Sheet 114-97

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## kingwilly

great work on the thread Katie, I hope it continues.

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## katie23

Thanks for all the love.  :Smile:  

@KW - yes, this thread will continue, but I need to resize & upload more pics. Is there any free software that can do bulk resizing? 

@harry - thanks for the info, very edifying.  :Smile: 

@BLD - I don't know abt the dike/dyke, if it works. I'll ask one colleague, as he's from that area.

@takeovers - you should do a pinatubo trek during your next visit w/ your family, while you're still strong and able.  :Smile:  It's a relatively easy trek (1-2 hours) and safe for seniors who are fit. 

@davis - Maybe you could bring your kids & family for a trek while they're still here (not yet in US for college) and you're still fit? Since your kids are athletic, I'm sure they can handle the trek and pretty sure that they will enjoy the 4x4 ride.  You could also tell them about your experiences in Clark and etc.  You could either get a tour agency (they usually leave at 3am from Manila) or you could bring your car & drive until Barangay Sta. Juliana in Capas, Tarlac, then hire the 4x4 & guide. Cheers! 

@misskit, fishlocker & baas - thanks for the luv!

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## kingwilly

> @KW - yes, this thread will continue, but I need to resize & upload more pics. Is there any free software that can do bulk resizing?


Often your email programme will do that. Select a bunch of pics and email them to yourself. 

Or microsoft have a picture tool that allows that (I forgot what it is called)

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## Baas Babelaas

> @KW - yes, this thread will continue, but I need to resize & upload more pics. Is there any free software that can do bulk resizing?


Fotosizer: Fotosizer Batch Image Resizer - Image resizing made easy

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## beerlaodrinker

> Never would I dream there is a place in the Philippines so barren. I too thought the flora would have recovered more quickly with all that ash and and rain. Very interesting. 
> 
> Great thread, Katie!


yes, it looked like a moonscape after that nothing but Lahar covering everything, quite horrific, the Aeta people that Katie speaks about are already in a minority and sadly they were mostly in the surroundings when she let go, don't think they can estimate how many died. I turned up 1 week after it popped  heading to Angeles to see my mates but the plane still couldn't land in Manila due to to much ash in the air, got diverted to Cebu then went overland. Had 20 kg of prime Aussie steaks and about the same in sausages because I was planning on stayin a few months( still did) I gettisoned the goodies and gave it to the staff in the hotel, hope they got a grin out of that but for me I was simply on a mission to reach Angeles and didn't need to cart around my vitals, anyway. Bottom line got to AC and found my buddies all on the roof of the bar with shovels. At first glimpse I thought they had taken to many pharmaceuticals , but no it turns out that Lahar keeps raining  sand and that roof was gonna collapse anytime, . Interesting times.

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## beerlaodrinker

You would probably have to be there to believe it,but that was some serious shit. Unfortunatelyt I all coincided with the base agreement. Sad state of affairs indeed

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## Baas Babelaas

Back in April!

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## crocman

Nice thread as usual Katie looking forward to the rest.

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## katie23

Thanks for the replies, crocman, kw & baas.

As BLD & Davis had mentioned, it was serious stuff during those days. I remember going out of our house in the morning and wondering why it was all white outside.  At first I thought it was snow, and as a kid, I was glad that there was snow (have never seen snow by that time).  Since then, I've experienced snow & winter. But anyway, I thought that it was snow, but when I touched it, it didn't melt and it was just ash! My parents turned on the TV and we found out that Mt. Pinatubo erupted and saw the devastation it had brought.

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## katie23

Continuing with the trek...

I wonder why this 4x4 was able to continue farther, while ours (and most others) were already parked. Maybe because the gals were in shorts?! lol  



Need to pass some rocky roads

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## katie23

More rocky roads




A stream

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## katie23

At some point, we were on single file and I felt like we were doing the Bataan Death March.  There's a death march memorial in the town of Capas, Tarlac.

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## katie23

From wikipedia:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bataan_Death_March

The Bataan Death March was the forcible transfer Saisaih Pt. and Mariveles to Camp O'Donnell by the Imperial Japanese Army of 60,00080,000 Filipino and American prisoners of war which began on April 9, 1942, after the three-month Battle of Bataan in the Philippines during World War II. About 2,50010,000 Filipino and 100650 American prisoners of war died before they could reach their destination. The reported death tolls vary, especially among Filipino POWs, because historians cannot determine how many prisoners blended in with the civilian population and escaped. The march went from Mariveles, Bataan, to San Fernando, Pampanga. From San Fernando, survivors were loaded to a box train and were brought to Camp O'Donnell in Capas, Tarlac. The 60 mi (97 km) march was characterized by occasional severe physical abuse. It was later judged by an Allied military commission to be a Japanese war crime.

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## katie23

More views... during this time, there wasn't much talking, just trekking...

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## katie23

At this point (nearer to the crater), the stream was yellow, due to precipitation of sulfur from the volcano.


There was also a shack selling refreshments... at inflated prices  :Wink:

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## katie23

There were rock enclaves with some Aeta kids chilling around


As I've said, many tourists that day

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## katie23

More trekking


At last, I see the huts!

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## katie23

This is a rest area provided by the government or tourism board.  The hut on the rightmost contains restrooms with western toilets. 
No pic of the loo, sorry.  :Sad: 


More refreshments

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## katie23

Where do you belong?  :Very Happy: 


Time for a group pic....  (this was another group, btw)

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## katie23

On to trek the last km to the crater... single file again




Our group took ~30 min from the signpost, since there were lots of tourists and you couldn't go fast, even if you wanted to, because of the narrow trail.

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## katie23

Some wild fruits(?) along the way. Btw, this is supposed to be upright but I wasn't able to fix it before uploading to Photobucket. 


Giant ferns

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## katie23

This part was a bit tricky, so watch your steps


Only a few more steps to climb

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## katie23

And then you are rewarded with this view  :Smile:

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## katie23

Again, there are enterprising individuals. You can buy juice, beer, soft drinks, instant noodles, etc.  :Wink: 


But please, no littering

I'm glad to say that the place was very clean. There were trash bins & people disposed of their trash responsibly.  :Smile:

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## Dapper

I'd be smashing the arse out of that terrain on me weebuck
 :Smile: 

Great pictures, good thread.
Thank you Katie  :Smile:

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## katie23

The views are breathtaking and for me, totally worth the exertion & expense to get there.  My pics don't do it justice.

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## katie23

@dapper - what is a weebuck? I'm afraid I don't know enough Brit slang.

To continue, the govt made a mini-park in the place, which is nice.


Many ppl vying for photo op on this sign. I took this in between group photos.

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## katie23

There are steps leading down to the lake. My group didn't go all this way to not reach the finish line, so down we all went!

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## katie23

Until a few years ago, you could hire boats to take you around the lake. Now it's not allowed anymore, so the boats have been retired.


Also, some years ago you could swim in the lake. Now it's also not allowed. Aside from safety reasons, the water is now more acidic (I think).

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## katie23

Close up of the ash-covered crater

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## katie23

Many tourists - mostly local. Some whites & Koreans.  
I hope the Chinese don't come to this place to destroy the beauty & cleanliness.  :Sorry1:

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## katie23

After the ppl have taken their jump-shots, selfies, group-fies, etc for their social media profiles   :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):  
I was able to take a serene shot of the lake.


The water changes in color from green to blue. Color also varies during the time of year.

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## Davis Knowlton

Well done, Katie. I've flown over the whole area in an ultralight, but never done it on foot all the way in. Nice to be young.

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## Dapper

Weebuck is Thai for Off Road motorcycle
 :Smile: 

Know what you mean about pictures not doing it justice.

A camera is a camera and the human eyes and soul are a little different.

Point is, YOU actually saw it
 :Smile:

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## terry57

Some nice pics there Katie.

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## katie23

We had lunch by the lake.  After ~1 hour of chilling, it was time to go up and head for the 4x4 vehicles.

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## katie23

Time for a group pic before leaving.  :Very Happy: 

To be continued...

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## crackerjack101

Lovely thread Katie, Thank you.

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## Baas Babelaas

Awesome Katie. You were pre-destined to be a travel writer/blogger.

One day you'll be milking it - free first class flights, accommodation in all the best places etc.




> I hope the Chinese don't come to this place to destroy the beauty & cleanliness


Agreed. Thankfully the Philippines is not a major destination for them, as the perceive your government to 'hate' them. I like it that way - they add nothing as visitors.

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## callippo

_PI is left-hand drive (due to the Americanos)._

it is true the Philippines drive on the right side, because of the Americans. Prior to the Napoleonic conquests, the Spanish always drove on the left side. The hated fascist foreign occupiers always do that. Hitler made the Czechs and Hungarians drive on the right side for the first time. The Argentines did the same when they were occupying the Falklands for 3 months too.

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## fishlocker

Refreshing to see they take the litter seriously. Far to many places get trashed by the man.

Your thread reminds me why they call it "the great outdoors." Funny that a few days ago I fell through the ice while exiting the pond. kinda scary as it was just me and the dog. I'm going back out today. Don't care what the GF says. Later,      fish.

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## Airportwo

Nice thread Katie - well done!

Bought back memories! The last time I was up there was shortly after the eruption, I rented a trail type motor bike and went up there alone one afternoon, when I got up there I still remember thinking "what the hell am I doing here" there was no greenery, just desolate sand, and no other people!
The people I rented the bike from were not happy as the lahar? destroyed the chain and sprockets on the bike as it is very corrosive & they had to be replaced.

Another memory of the time was talking with the guys in the bar where we use to drink (Garfields) they were there when the eruption happened, being survival experts! (they were all ex military) they knew the essentials so they loaded up with water then went to McDonald's and bought everything they had and headed out of town - they all lived to drink another day, most are sadly not with us anymore having drunk themselves to an early grave!
Thanks for the memories!

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## PeeCoffee

Terrific thread Katie. Thank you for sharing your trek. Great pics.
If you enjoy volcano treking you might enjoy Mount St Helens ( Washington State, US) , the islands of Maui and Hawaii whenever you're visiting those areas...just to name a few. I'm sure Mt Kilimanjaro is considered a grueling volcanic trek.
It's great to be young at whatever age one feels young. Safe travels.

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## beerlaodrinker

You've just reminded me what a lazy barsteward I am, all those years I spent warming a barstool in Angeles (some of that in garfields)and I never bothered to go have a look see. After the eruption. Fantastic shots and good to see locals making a dollar from the tourism, Would of been a blast flying over it in an ultralight to.

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## Davis Knowlton

> Would of been a blast flying over it in an ultralight to.


It was indeed. Like you, I was warming a bar stool and got chatting with an old mate I hadn't seen in a year or two..an Angeles guy. Turned out his newest venture was ultralights, and that he ran the local ultralight club.

So, off we went. I'd never been up in one before - in fact, had never seen one.

The desolation was staggering...just miles and miles. Hard to believe without seeing it yourself.

And a lot easier than hiking it, like tough gals like Katie.

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## Headworx

> Another memory of the time was talking with the guys in the bar where we use to drink (Garfields) they were there when the eruption happened, being survival experts! (they were all ex military)


They were indeed all ex Military, Special Forces many of them too (John Hollis, Bo, Black Fred, George Buck, et al). I too use to enjoy a drink in Garfields, we'd go at least once a week to be knee-deep in grenade pins just listening to the conversations  :Smile: . Great bunch of guys though and unlike 90%++ of the "Special Forces" guys you meet in this part of the world, they _were_ the real deal. 

When Pinatubo tipped its lid I was living in AC, had a house in a compound. By sheer luck a few of us and our girls took off down south to a golf resort 2 days before the event. We planned on being away 5 days but it was about 3 weeks before we got home, we knew there was no power, water, or shops with stock so why the hell would we saddle up for home?. My house survived and turned into an evacuation center for some other expats in the compound whos houses roofs caved in. What was happening was the lahar was falling at a great rate, and there was typhoon grade rain falling at the same time. So the gutters would fill up with what equated to wet concrete then the water would run back inside the roofs so your best case scenario was everything in your house was water damaged, and the worst case was you had a flat-ish roof which didn't allow for run-off so it would cave in. Luckily, a few neighbors figured this out and pulled all the guttering down around my house (which had a high sloping roof) so the lahar would just wash off it. 

Fast forward almost 3 weeks when we finally did get home - after something like 10 hrs in a mini van from Manila and ending up completely lost out the back of Mt Arayat at one stage - my house an contents were all ok but there was a 2m wall of lahar surrounding it that had a walkway shoveled out to get to the front door!. The house girl had fled on day 1 (and I don't blame her) but the people who'd moved in temporarily while their houses were repaired had taken good care of everything, and covered things like tv's and VCR's with tarps just in case. 

I too flew over the carnage in an Ultralight from the flying club not long after and got a heap of photos. Jesus H, what a train wreck, one memory that really comes back was an Iglesia ni Cristo church that only had the top meter of the roof and the steeple above ground. Can't imagine what would have been in that area before the volcano but would have needed to dig down at least 5 meters to find out. 

As for the photos, like nearly all the pics I took back then I'd post them to my Mum who's since passed away. They'd all still be in boxes of her personal belongings at one of my brothers houses and I must dig them all out some time. 

Anyway Katie this is a brilliant thread and clearly, it brings back memories for quite a few members. So thank you for that.

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## beerlaodrinker

Great post headworx , that really sums it up.we didn't realise the weight of that Lahar at first but after hearing a couple of roofs collapsing nearby we decided to go buy a dozen shovels ( at inflated  prices, can't  blame for em  taking advantage, just business) then we all took turns on the roof of my mates bar Bigbird from the 8 ball bar  shoveling that Lahar of the roof as fast as it rained down we were well stocked up on piss and tucker and settled in for the long haul , the place looked like a moonscape, and even after the initial eruption we would still get earthquakes that would make the house girl nervous and hide under D bed, would make me nervous to , but I countered that by drinking Tanduay to the point where you can try to go to sleep,but can still see through your eyelids. On week 2 we ran out of ice and nobody was producing anymore, faark. Never mind. Shit happens? a cold drink was the last of the problems got used to drinking it warm

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## Baas Babelaas

Just watched the series on YT about the eruption - bloody scary stuff.

Is it still active?

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## callippo

yes. volcanoes cannot become 'de-active' as little as 25 years after what was one of the top 2 erruptions of the 20th century.

there's about 50 of them in the Philippines. Mayon in Bicol is the most active one. Still trekkable with a guide. Some even go right to the crater - at their own risk.

other active volcanoes on the Philippines tourist trail :  Hibok-Hibok in Camiguin. That's more accessible. You don't even really need a guide for that one. Also Mount Kanloan near Bacolod. 4 tourists out of a group of 24 were killed when Kanloan errupted without warning in 1996.

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## Davis Knowlton

Too bad we don't attract more new posters like Katie. I hope green blobs are descending on her. A relative newbie, one of our very few female posters, and in a bit over a year she has carved out a niche even though, like me, she's not from LOS - and she's mastered the intricacies of posting photos. Well done! Let the blobs flow!

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## danno5

thanks for the great report Katie, and second to Davis' comments!

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## terry57

^^

I might bump her thread into a 5 star.  On Ya Katie.  :Smile:

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## katie23

Thanks for all the replies. And the bumps & greens. How does one see the greens anyway? I want one of those gold stars. Can i exchange them for cash in Ongpin (chinatown here)? Lol In future, i will start a TD crowdfunding site to pay for my next trip. Lol. Will upload pix later, am posting frm fone. Cheers all!

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## Davis Knowlton

Click "User CP". Click "User Control Panel". Will show you your most recent five.

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## harrybarracuda

> Too bad we don't attract more new posters like Katie. I hope green blobs are descending on her. A relative newbie, one of our very few female posters, and in a bit over a year she has carved out a niche even though, like me, she's not from LOS - and she's mastered the intricacies of posting photos. Well done! Let the blobs flow!


Good point. Green on its way.

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## harrybarracuda

> Click "User CP". Click "User Control Panel". Will show you your most recent five.


I think reds are for Pooves.

So blow me down if ENT hasn't sent me one.

The big Poof.

 :rofl:

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## beerlaodrinker

Green blob duly sent

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## bsnub

Greened. This post makes me think of the time as a kid when Mount St. Helens erupted. I never saw something so high in the sky the plume of ash was seemingly endless.

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## Baas Babelaas

The eruption/s, and destruction P1 and P2:







Hardcore stuff.

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## callippo

the Philippines has a large number, of active volcanoes. It is not like Thailand. It really is on the Ring of Fire. A megathrust earthquake, could almost happen at any moment. It is certainly not like Thailand, in that way.

if you are a Filipino, then you are going to know about volcanoes. It is a part, of the Filipino identity.

but if you are Thai you won't know anything volcanoes and earthquakes. There are no active volcanoes and earthquakes almost never happen in Thailand. In the Philippines there is 50 active volcanoes, and enough-to-notice earthquakes happen all the time.

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## Baas Babelaas

The Philippines really gets the worst of it - volcanoes, typhoons, earthquakes, flooding.

Thailand - flooding, drought (?), and the vacuousness of its people.

It aint right.

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## katie23

Thanks for all the posts, greens & 5-star rating!  :Smile:  I can't post pics yet, as my net is weak & PB can't load.  The remaining pics will be somewhat of a denouement (sp?) since I posted pics of the crater already. 

As Davis has said, I'm not from LOS but I have visited it, and I also visit this forum. I don't post much, but I like the travel threads and sometimes read the news.

Re: typhoons & flooding - anecdote from a colleague. I've a colleague who lived in Thailand for 2 years (I think). She lived there during the time when there was flooding in BKK (what year was that - 2005? 2006?). She said that since the Thais aren't used to thunderstorms, when a strong thunderstorm happened, the Thais got very scared.  She just laughed it off, since she's used to much stronger storms here in PI.  :Smile:  

Re: volcanoes & earthquakes - yeah, they're a part of life, just like typhoons. Last year (Oct or Nov?) there was a mag. 4 or 4.5 earthquake due to tectonic movement in the Manila trench. It was around 10 pm, and I was in bed already. I felt the bed shake a bit, wondered (was that an EQ?), shrugged it off and went to sleep.  I didn't bother to go online to check if there was indeed an EQ. lol  But I did check the news the morning after.  :Smile:

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## callippo

There was a 3.8 quake in Cebu the other day. About 3pm. Epicenter Carmen, 40 km north of the city center.

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## Baas Babelaas

I'm back next month, and touch wood, it'll be as good as last time. 

Although it is summer season..

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## grasshopper

Bugger!Great report Katie. Informative and I add, well written. You written english is superior to a lot of native speakers IMHO. Not meaning to be patronising, BTW.

Joined an aerial tour in a monoplane flown by a guy from USA living in A.C. Plane was all silver colour, polished aluminium I think. Picked us up in his pink Cadillac convertible, Eldorado was it? Flew over the crater and did a general tour of the area. Top value!

Think I took pics and dowloaded them to a CP which subsequently crashed. Camera dont work any more either. Sob!

Any hoo, Will now find yr last post 'n green ya!

Bugger! TD says I must spread the love around before greening you again! Apologies maak maak!

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## katie23

Thanks all for the love.  :Very Happy: 

What I like about these picture threads is how people would reminisce or share their stories of a certain place or event.  I wasn't old enough to explore Pinatubo or its surrounds when it erupted, so it's nice to hear/read these stories.  

Now, I have an image of a younger (and thinner?) BLD shoveling lahar from a rooftop & drinking Tanduay, lol, and a younger (and more debonair?) Davis warming a barstool and flying over the devastation of Pampanga & Tarlac during those times.   :Smile:  

@headworx - great post indeed! 

@grasshopper - no offense taken.   :Smile:  Well, I'm glad that my English lessons were learned and I can make my English teachers proud! I remember that in kindergarten, we were required to speak in English by our teacher and I was reprimanded for speaking a Tagalog word.  Then I remember reasoning out, "Teacher, I was speaking English naman, eh!"  ("Naman" is used in Tagalog for emphasis, and "eh" is used similarly to the Canadian "eh", but pronounced "eh" as in elephant.)  One of the weird things I remember from my early childhood.  :Smile: 

edit/post-script: One of the reasons that I do a pic thread is that it captures my thoughts or feelings about the trip, especially if it was a recent one. I don't have a blog (too lazy to make or maintain one) but sometimes I write on a journal.  I'm taking a cue from something Terry57 said in one of his threads - that someday when he's old, he'll look at his pic threads & reminisce.  :Wink:

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## katie23

Anyway, continuing with the trek back to civilization... 
(yes, I spell stuff the American way & not "civilisation" like the Brits do - blame it on American colonialism)  :Wink:  



As an aside, thank goodness for Harry Potter & company, that I can now understand British English.  
Used to be so hard, but now I know that Ron Weasley is "wicked" and Hermione is "mental".  :Wink:

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## katie23

In some parts, the sulfur (sulphur?) precipitates were really bad (or good, depends on your outlook)




I liked this girl's outfit... quite a fashionista for a trekker.  :Wink:  And I loved her backpack!

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## katie23

After seeing these pics on the comp, I had the feeling that we (as humans) are so small compared with nature...

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## katie23

We are smaller than dust in the universe...


Take note of that little guy who's walking with F (in the blue shirt).

Keep moving forward, don't look back...

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## Davis Knowlton

And this post makes this a century thread!

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## katie23

I liked the reddish hue of these rocks.


At last, the vehicles are in sight!

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## katie23

These little kids are siblings. They both sold iced sweets to tourists. At first, the lil guy walked along with F (who was a few meters ahead), then stopped and walked along with me.  He was selling "ice candy" (milky iced sweets wrapped in plastic), and he begged me to buy one.  At first I resisted, then eventually gave in.  :Smile:  His winning line - so that he could have some money for school the next day.  I don't usually buy from vendors, but I guess I'm a softie sometimes.  :Wink: 



When we were near the vehicles, the girl asked if they could catch a ride with us (in the 4x4) back to the base camp. I agreed (since it's a 1-hr ride and if they don't ride, they would have to walk the whole way) but I said I needed to ask my companions first.  Since all of them agreed, the kids hopped on the back of the vehicle. They were asleep on the way back. Cute kids.  :Smile:

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## katie23

It rained a bit in the afternoon, so the ride back was wetter (but not necessarily wilder).  :Very Happy:

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## katie23

Back at Sta. Juliana, it was very quiet when we arrived around 2:30 pm, as most of the tour groups have come & gone.


There are toilets & showers that you can use, for a small fee. Toilet use is P10, shower fee is P50. 

Here's a small sari-sari store if you want to buy some stuff.

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## katie23

This is Wendell Mercado's store.  According to a blog, he's the president of the Pinatubo 4x4 wheelers club.  If you'll do a DIY trip and want to reserve a 4x4 (the vehicles can be fully booked during peak season or holidays), you can check out 

www mtpinatubo4wheelersclub dot com. 

Tel nos. +63 919 608 4313, +63 977 403 8271, +63 932 419 6814
The numbers were on the tarp so they're public knowledge.  If it's prohibited to put phone numbers here, please delete it, mods.

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## katie23

This guy's work is done for the day...


Those were my trek buddies. 

I think, by now, the 2 Spanish guys have finished Sagada & Kalinga (the north) and they're now in Palawan, enjoying the beach.  F is back at work (but had a scheduled trek the weekend after the Pinatubo trek).

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## katie23

We hired a tricycle to take us back to town, back to where we started - McDonald's.





There's a Mini Stop (convenience store) and a nearby 7/11 if you need to buy goodies along the way.  There's also a nearby Jollibee if you don't like clowns.  :Smile: 

Most tour groups have a stop-over at McD or Jollibee for take-out (take-away/to-go) breakfast and/or lunch before they start the trek.

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## katie23

McD is right across a Caltex station, so you won't get lost.



By this time, the 2 backpackers had boarded a bus to go farther north (to Baguio), while F and I rode a bus to return south, to Cubao.  There are lots of buses heading for Cubao or Pasay.  

That's it for this Pinatubo thread. Hope you all enjoyed. Thanks for "watching"!  :bananaman:

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## Black Heart

*Nice thread, Katie.*

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## beerlaodrinker

Fantastic loved  this thread

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## katie23

Thanks for the bumps, BH & BLD.  :Smile: 

I'm glad that I did this trek in Feb, when it was still cool. Now, summer has arrived  and it would be scorching hot to do that trek. For those interested, it's best to do this trek from Nov-Feb, during the cool months.

If you're in Angeles City or surrounds, you can still join a tour group. You just need to specify that you'll come from AC and they'll arrange a pick-up point. Tour groups coming from Manila leave at ~3am from Mall of Asia, St. Francis Square or other meeting places. 

If you don't want to join a tour group but would like someone to share the 4x4 ride with, you can just go to the base camp in Barangay Sta. Juliana in Capas, Tarlac during a weekend. I'm sure there are other hikers who are just "winging it".  When my group went there, we came across 2 French girls (backpackers) who were looking for companions for the 4x4 ride.

Cheers!

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