Mt. Pulag Skyrun

It's a chilly morning of November 27, 2010 and the wind's nipping. Checking my gears again and still yawning. Looking at my old, rusty watch, my PSA (Philippine Skyrunning Association) friends are coming any minute soon. This will be my first skyrun since i arrived from Indonesia and my first to skyrun Mt. Pulag, unofficially the second highest mountain in the Philippines. It's 2,922 meters high (9,587 ft.), perfect for a high altitude run. Kian, who's always been the leader of our pack will be bringing in some of his friends. I tried to invite some runners in my city but i wasn't so lucky. They turned me down, one in particular but that is like saying i was wishing for the moon. Ouch!
A few minutes before 6am, they came in a monster jeepney, i say. I felt glad being reunited with one of the nicest running friend of mine, Kian. I got introduced to Jules, Jay and Rome. They all looked great and hungry for a skyrun. I bet they all trained better than i. I didn't get to do any conditioning. I admit, i got lazy with this weather,. So i silently prayed that i would survive this skyrun. I didn't have any drive at all. The motivation was missing. Ouch again.

And so we went. The drive was more than two hours from Botanical garden to Kabayan. I felt nauseous at the back and so were the others. The ride was really bumpy. I hit my head here and there. One of my running friends opted to go top-load. I wanted that too but i just felt dizzy at that time. It would've been an adventure being up there. Finally we arrived at a town restaurant nearby a dirt road. Everybody was hungry, except me. Rome surprised me, he ordered a whole chicken for his hi-protein diet. Kian had his usual vegies-only. Jules and Jay had adobo for breakfast (I think), while i had my usual brewed coffee for that kick. The restaurant was kind of full with other trekkers from Manila, i suppose. They were mostly members of a mountaineering club in their company. As i sipped my coffee, i felt alone again. I was supposed to be with other running friends but i guess they were busy. I couldn't turn down Kian's invite; i wanted this skyrun so bad. I haven't done this for a long time, making me feel a delinquent in skyrunning.

Of we go, we loaded up and the journey continued. Another fourty five minutes, we arrived at Ambuclao. It was great seeing the old Ambuclao Dam, which served the people of this region for decades. We stopped and took pictures of the group. Only then i knew that Rome was dizzy and was having a bad tummy. Good thing he didn't "let go" of that thing inside! Then we drove again and arrived at the DENR in Bokod for registration and briefing. The briefing was hilarious! thanks to Ma'am Tammy (but we shouldn't call her that anymore...long story). Our group had a good laugh and we wanted more of her jokes. As everybody was laughing, i was weeping and laughing silently as i cannot make a sound.  That was too much for me! Because of her, our group got the brunt of jokes but we didn't mind at all.We enjoyed it. We just can't stop laughing. We miss her already.

Once we paid for our registration and haggled for our jeepney, we proceeded to Kabayan. For most trekkers, they would take "Ambangeg trail" but for us, we wanted to take the "Akiki route". We planned to traverse Akiki to Ambangeg in one day. In Kabayan, we checked-in at a small lodging house. Since it was a Saturday, it was market day and it also happened to be their foundation day. We went around, saw the town's museum, visited a cave with skulls, ate halo-halo and ate dinner. Dinner was great. I had beef broccoli and a lot of rice. Rome had his usual whole or half chicken and no rice, Kian with his vegies, Jules and Jay also had vegies and meat. While we ate, we planned our run. We leave before six in the morning and walk to the jump off point. We bring only the essentials like: water, gels, trail food, packed lunch... as simple as that. At the lodge, we were met up by some French tourists. One of them wanted to join us for the traverse. The group welcomed him to join us.

It was past six in the morning. Breakfast came late for the restaurant opened late. I just had coffee, i still felt full of yesterday's gorging. My friends got their packed lunch and went to get ready. We finally left at around 6:40. Walking to the jump off point was fun. Rome kept babbling with our French guest. I can't help but overhear their stories about their travels abroad. Nice.

I wore my red rain jacket, over my favorite running shorts and black dry fit shirt. My feet were protected by my Merrells. They're old but very reliable. It never failed me in all of my trail runs. It had a good grip especially in wet, slipppery grounds. I never lost my footing.

As always, click here, click there. It wasn't enough. Smiles were all over our faces. Though i was missing my motivation, i loved this day. I just love the people i'm running with.

I could feel the air is thinning as we're going up. The trail wasn't gentle. It was ruthless. I knew it wasn't going to be that easy. I felt the burn creep up my legs and thighs and i'm already soaked and red as a tomato. Just like the others, i had to walk up. It was impossible running this type of vertical. It's a killer; reminds me of Mt. Kinabalu. I hummed to myself and kept saying, "love the pain...love the pain". And i embraced it. There was no "wall".

Everyone welcomed every compression stop for a recharge. At the "hellipad" stop, we saw a rainbow. That was refreshing, like a promise of better things to come. Snacks were great and fun. Jay shared to me this delicious Indian rotti bread with stuffing, and it tasted great. I promised to go hunting for it when i go to Manila. I was craving for it ever since. Then later, he gave me almond nuts which i enjoyed with such delight.



Several times, we ran and passed by a number of trekkers. In a way, we felt guilty because we weren't carrying big loads of implements like they did. They looked at us with envy. Kian, who was our lead, lauded them and humbly told them that we're only running the mountain and so no need for the heavy packs. I don't know what they thought of us when we left them to rest.
The vertical was endless and so was the beautiful view. Tall grasses spread before us, combed by the strong, cool wind. The pines stood proud looking down on us. The sea of clouds looked like beds of cotton, i wanted to sleep. From where i was, i could see a part of Baguio and Sto. Tomas. I sat there and took it all in: the beauty and wonder of it all...i wanted to cry.

 My legs were starting to hurt a bit but the pain was manageable. We've been running for more than five hours when Kian checked his watch and told us we'll be at the summit around noontime. We've endured the rainforest part of the ascent, and we were so relieved to reach the grassland. The summit was just over there, covered by the mist and was teasing us. Kian egged us to run it. Jay and i went for it. Jules chose to keep it slow as she was feeling that stubborn cramp in her legs. Jay and i kept running and walking. We passed by campers and i could smell their food! Sausages, ham, tuyo, and coffee filled the air...you name it! My tummy was screaming for a stop and grab a bite. I can be thick when I'm hungry!

In one of our stops, Jay and i had no idea, we were just 10 feet away from the summit. The summit was covered with fog so we didn't notice.  I was the first to summit at 12:21pm, then Jay followed close by. We sat as we waited for the fog to clear out and the others to arrive. Just as Kian predicted: we were there noon time.

From the summit, we could see the campers. We took endless pictures of us and the view. Everyone congratulated everyone. Jules was contagious with her jump of joy photo shoot. We all did a jump shot! It was fun. As we rested for a few more minutes, we talked about the run down to Ambangeg. Everybody felt energized because we're going home. This time, i ran with Rome, his strides were long and heavy and fast. All of us ran and ran and ran. We stopped for several times to wait for the others. We met trekkers on our way and again, we got that "look" and we answered them with a smile and a "hello".

Finally, we reached the rangers' station. We were so hungry. I ate all the eggs from Kian's "purse" (which i had a difficulty opening!). While the others ate, Rome went for a very cold shower and came back numb and shaking. He was the only one who smelled good amongst us.






The drive back down was bumpy. What's worse? the jeepney we were on had no front lights. We were blind. It was pitchblack. The driver did his best with the wiring and we were back on the road. That was a relief. A second night in the cold and dark was not part of our plan. We wanted food, a soft bed and wanted out of our grubby clothes and shoes.
The trip back to Baguio was quiet and calm. Some fell half asleep. It was almost eight in the evening. I was busy looking at the stars, like a child making a wish, hoping it would come true. That moment i thought of my missing motivation. Maybe it wasn't meant to be or maybe another try would do it. I asked Kian about the next skyrun. Another run after Christmas was possible, he said. Then bling! my brain got busy, finally a second plan's in tow...a second chance for me. I silently made my wish again. Here comes another shot at the moon...
Parting ways with my friends was kind of sad. I miss them and can't wait to see them in our next skyrun. To Kian: thanks for being such a leader..you gave us the "push". To Jules: thanks for the jump shots and the girly talk .Jay: thanks for the food, especially those nuts that you gave me! Yummy!, and Rome: thank you for the stories of your travel and your brand of music. You  guys are wonderful. See you in June.