HIKE, SWIM AND EAT IN THE MOUNTAIN

July 3-4, 2010

To start my story, I would like to take this moment to say thank you to all of us (Happy Hikers and AMCI Friends) for having a super fun weekend at Papaya River in Mount Mariveles. Pressure is out of the game and fun stayed on the right track as we trek to the highlands of Tarak Ridge.

It is important that joining in any physical activity like mountain climbing, preparation is key to success without hurting yourself and people that you are with. The basics of frequent jogging, running, ramps and stairs exercises is wonderful way of starting your journey to the mountain. But this is not enough to conquer your excitement to see green nature, it will be always a combination of both physical preparedness and emotional mindset.

Our journey started with a roller-coaster ride to the city and indeed the passengers can only say, that was a fast one!. Our goal is to reach the river first which took us five hours because of numerous stops along the trail. As we sweat ourselves with the uphill climb, these were replaced by monikers, jokes and stories that made us energetic all the time. My favorite names Mister Malaria and Boy Kweba.




After pitching our tents, we prepared our tacos merienda and after that we dip in the cold river. It was bath time while taking underwater shots courtesy of Mister Incredible, sometimes we call him the younger brother of Sergeant Almont. We really believe they have the same father. After the refreshing swim, we are now preparing our dinner, Kare-Kare with Puso ng Saging coupled with Ginisang Bagoong and Stir Fry Chickens with Black Sesame Seeds. It was a success story that we had cooked our planned recipe for the night. We had also a taste of Fruit Salad coming from our Chinese lady friend.

Our lady mountaineers went to their beds early while we stayed until all had enough. An early wake-up call since we will still do a summit attempt. No rice for the morning, instead we prepared pancakes, egg, hotdog, sausage and bread. Some took straight to the summit while others stayed only at the ridge. It was a fulfillment to see the panoramic view of Bataan on top of a mountain cliff. After that, we rushed down as we are expected to a dip again on the cold Papaya river.

In the campsite, we prepared our lunch namely Spaghetti on Red Sauce and Paste on Spanish Sardines with Olive/Basil Toppings. Both were topped with Parmesan cheese. While pasta was boiling in hot water, we took a dip and had another run of underwater and river shots. Yum Yum Yum lunch indeed!



To summarize, it was an achievement to fulfill the promise of fun, enjoyment, and not so ordinary mountain foods. This will not be successful without the help of the organizers in terms of food management and making people realize to train and endure pain before the climb date.



Just want to share this quote:

Some Miss Out On the Beauty Because They Are Afraid of Falling Off, Other Try to Climb Too Fast And Cause Their Own Fall, Then There Are The Few That Secure Themselves Before They Start Climbing and Make It to the Top

More Power to the Happy Hikers!