Mt. Ulap 2017 (Reverse Traverse)

 'Yung friend mong, "Ge, bahala na."
Ako ata 'yon. :))) Well, ako nga 'yon. Malakas ebidensiya. HAHAHA! 

I've been wanting to go to Mt. Ulap because I saw the picture of the rock (Happened to be Gungal Rock) on a sponsored in Facebook but back then, I didn't have hiking buddies yet. Be careful what you wish for talaga. I was blessed with hiking buddies. Ako na ang umaayaw but the mountains keep calling pero hindi ako nagre-reklamo, akyat lang ng akyat. <3


I don't do my research whenever I climb. My climbmates do all the searching/itinerary-making. Ito na nga, Mt. Ulap daw. Kala ko Mt. Ulap 'yung bato. Hindi pala. Research, research din kasi. Lakas mo mag blog, di ka sumoporta. Hahahaha. Nags-search naman ako kaso maliban sa kung anong difficulty ng trail, wala na kong tinitignan kasi kinakabahan ako. :)))) 


We arrived here at the Barangay/ Registration and there was an ongoing wedding reception. They offered us dinner which we were more than glad to accept. May they live happily ever after ganyan.

We were asked which trail we are taking, the normal traverse or the reverse traverse which will be steeper but will take shorter time.

If you are also doing a night hike, reverse traverse will be the best option for you so 'cause I don't think we missed that much view.


Didn't know really that "Mt. Ulap" Hike is a hike through a ridge and that there are going to be three summits in one day. 

The reverse traverse was from Sta. Fe to Mt. Ulap (campsite) and then we spent the next day trekking the rest of the ridge.


Pictures from the night hike.

I am for night hikes. I am for Cordillera Hikes. <3 I am so inlove with you, CAR pero super minsan ko lang mapuntahan. Haha. Sa susunod talaga, Banaue at Sagada!


We stopped by the Burial caves to rest for a bit and they started building their zen stones again. Something beautiful but I don't have the patience for. 


This was from the wedding. I didn't know they handed out take outs too. Haha! That night was also the first time I drank Emperador lights. Had to daw kasi malamig. And yes, beshyyyy, di ko masyado naramdaman 'yung lamig saka ang himbing ng tulog ko. :)))


We went here a few days after the supermoon so the moon was bright.


We saw some stars that night but it was too chilly to stay out of the tent. I slept soundly that I didn't notice that it started drizzling sometime before dawn. We were supposed to wake up at 5 AM so we could trek Mt. Ulap before sunrise (around 10 minutes from the campsite) but since it rained, we had to wait... char! Di ko alam na we had to wait. Tulog ako. HAHAHA


From the campsite, Mt. Sto. Tomas the one with "big electric fans" was visible. Gusto ko pa naman puntahan 'yon kasi dun daw malapit 'yung Cafe in the Sky. Keri lang, napuntahan ko naman na 'yung adjacent mountain. 


There wasn't a sea of clouds in Mt. Ulap but there was in other mountains visible from the top of Ulap.


Gatorade session in the morning.

I used to forego bringing energy drinks on hikes and just drink water but I was told that it's essential since muscle cramps occur when salt in the body isn't replaced. Sports drink can replace mineral losses and rehydrate your body so don't think twice and bring your own bottle of energy drink. I am not being paid to endorse Gatorade but I am accepting donations. CHOS! HAHAHA


Di ko talaga alam bakit ang dami kong picture na nakapikit ako. Di ko naman sadya 'yan. HAHAHA. Feeling cute, ganern.


Darating ka rin.
'Yung sasama sa'kin hanggang dulo.
Ako muna ngayon, mag-isa.
Ikaw na muna ngayon, mag-isa.
Mag bahagian na lang tayo ng kwento sa hinaharap. 
Sa tamang panahon.
'Yung handang handa na tayong dalawa.  
Sa tamang panahon, 
Babalikan natin ang mga bundok at lugar na pinaka-nagustuhan natin
Pupuntahan natin ang mga bundok at lugar na pumukaw sa ating atensiyon pero hindi pa natin napuntahan dahil gusto natin kasama ang isa't isa.

Oo. Balang araw magiging handa tayong dalawa.
Walang takot tayong gagawa ng mga bagong kwento... kwentong punong-puno ng saya, pag-ibig, at tiwala. 


Pinakamagandang view so far!!!!

Chill climb pero sobrang ganda ng view. <3 View ah. Ang ganda ng trail. Best sunrise ko pa rin sa Mt. Pulag. Hehehe!


Ito mga daan na ayoko. HAHAHAHAHA!! Hindi ko alam pano ko bababa. Buti na lang, kuya guides and ate guides are always there. 


Ang tarik, bes!!





The places we've been.
The places we'll go,
Kapit lang, shoes! <3 hahaha




'Yung bandang left na bato, 'yun 'yung sikat sa Mt. Ulap na Gungal rock pero sobrang haba ng pila kaya di na kami nakipila. Naghanap na lang kami ng alternative sa paligid. 



While waiting and resting at this part of the ridge, clouds slowly rose. 


May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. May your rivers flow without end, meandering through pastoral valleys tinkling with bells, past temples and castles and poets towers into a dark primeval forest where tigers belch and monkeys howl, through miasmal and mysterious swamps and down into a desert of red rock, blue mesas, domes and pinnacles and grottos of endless stone, and down again into a deep vast ancient unknown chasm where bars of sunlight blaze on profiled cliffs, where deer walk across the white sand beaches, where storms come and go as lightning clangs upon the high crags, where something strange and more beautiful and more full of wonder than your deepest dreams waits for you -- beyond that next turning of the canyon walls.


ALL MY NATIONAL PARKS DREAM ENCAPSULATED IN THE QUOTE ABOVE. <3

Ang ganda!!!

Will forever have a thing with clouds and fogs.


On the way to the first peak which was our third.


<3
Much love for pine trees. 


Yaaaaay! 
End of trail. 



Overall, I can say that Mt. Ulap is a beginner friendly hike especially when you're doing the regular traverse. Just make sure to pack light because even if the trail isn't that challenging, walking with a heavy backpack will exhaust you faster. 

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