(like always, feel free to click on the pics to get a bigger picture)
Mt. Natib located in Orani, Bataan; 1, 287 meters above sea level
Climbed the highest peak in Bataan last weekend! This has got to be the longest, most difficult yet most fun climb I have ever been.
I don't have time to give a blow-by-blow account as to what transpired so I hope you guys don't mind if I just post pictures. (Mas gusto niyo nga yun eh!)
At the registration area near the foot of Mt. Natib
Walking distance lang yun!
This area is called "pinagbutasan" because of the hole in the wall. Right behind us is the summit of Mt. Natib hiding in the clouds
Definitely not my most fashionable outfit, hehe. Stopping to rest and take pictures. The breathtaking view and the cooling wind during the first hour of the trek makes you forget about exhaustion
The steep ascent to the summit is probably my favorite part of the climb--because of the rock walls! We had to pass through 2 low walls (about 10-12 ft. high), another very slippery and difficult low wall and one very high one (about 20-25ft, I'm really not sure). I had a blast rock climbing and I'm seriously considering making another sport out of it. Montalban, here I come!
We were at the summit by 9pm, took us about 4-5 hours to get there. Not bad, really. We even got lost for a few minutes and had to take a back trail.
My new Pest Friends I have finally come face to face with limatiks aka leeches (Natib is limatik-infested. As in they're everywhere!!!). I used to be soooo scared of them but they don't hurt. You won't even feel that they're already there until you see a part of your body bleeding with a worm-like creature attached to it. Doesn't hurt, really. In fact, its better to not pull them away from your skin if you see that you're bleeding and that they're already fat from the blood coz when they're full, they'll just stop and wiggle away. These guys are so sneaky, they can penetrate through your socks, pants and shirts. Got bitten by 3 of these creatures and the one on my toe is actually starting to itch just now.
The Day After
Just before leaving camp
I love love love my experience in Mt. Natib. So many firsts for me:
-first time to get bitten by a limatik
-first time to rock climb (i soooo love it!) -first time to go to Bataan
-first time to get totally drunk in a mountain!!!
-first time to do number 2 in a mountain, too. (HAHAHA! Too much info!) -first time to actually not feel exhaustion even if the the climb took really long.
Basta, I had loads of fun and for some weird reason, I felt physically stronger during this climb. Does that mean I'm getting better at this? Yehaaayy!!!
Bunny @ Tuesday, October 12, 2004
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about moi
Loves the beach, wishes she had more time and money to travel, recently got hooked to
climbing mountains, reads anything she can get her hands on, frustrated writer, adores her
3-year-old Lhasa Apso, Tashi,
constantly needs caffeine, wonders when she'll quit smoking, and will most
likely die due to liver complications from drinking too much (if the cigarettes
doesn't get to her lungs first). Can't live without accessories especially
big, dangling earrings, shoe freak (aren't we all?), sucker for discovering
hole-in-the-wall restaurants, will ingest anything spicy, enjoys giving and receiving
massages, addicted to Friends, Sex and the City and CSI, goes gaga over kids, dreams of
being alone with Jim Morrison and smoking a joint with Bob
Marley. Would love to party with Gwen Stefani, shop with Patricia Field, write poetry with
Maya Angelou and have Sting, Nelson Mandela, Mark Twain and Bono over for
dinner.
