Traversing a  muddy trail for two hours  just to see the beauty of Palati Falls in Libertad is more than worth it. It was only a week ago when we hiked to Palati Falls, but I have to hike there again for the second time around on July 28th.

A second hike was planned and organized by one of the members of RBM after he failed to come home early from Manila and wasn’t able to hike with us, so I have informed my cousins and neighbors about the hike. They have asked me when will be our group returning to Palati Falls hence they were interested to come with us upon seeing the photos I have uploaded in my Facebook account.

Unfortunately, they were not able to go because it is a workday, but my younger first cousin was very interested that he keeps asking for the event time, so I told him to be ready at 5:30 in the morning because the group will leave at 7 o’clock from the meeting point in town.  I didn’t take him seriously because I thought he was just kidding, and that night I accidentally trampled in the hollow-blocks while feeding my cats resulting to laceration in one of my toes so I really have no plan to hike again to Palati Falls, but my cousin showed up early in the morning with his swollen eyes while I am still asleep, I am about to tell him that we are not going but my mother and sister says, I gave my cousin hope last night so I shouldn’t cancel it, so I told him to get ready because we are leaving soon, I just have to prepare my bag and I have to bath.

Well, I could easily tell my cousin that I can’t go, but I feel bad about it. He doesn’t feel good and he isn’t looking good, it was last night when he passed by our yard going to their house crying like crazy, my Uncle or his father told us that his son’s girlfriend broke up with him without apparent reason, according to some chit-chat outside the girl found another guy.

Anyway, he patiently waited for me with his father, whom I think very much concerned for his well-being. We went to town using their motorcycle, I have to buy food in town for my lunch since I wasn’t prepared for this hike.  We waited a bit for other interested hikers before heading to Sitio Boliganay in Panique.

The road to Boliganay wasn’t that muddy like a week ago since it didn’t rain frequently anymore, we used the same trail. If we are 18 hikers a week ago, this time we are only 7 people making our pace quicker. My cousin was already feeling tired when we started going upward the hill,  he keeps stopping and drinking his bottled water. I wasn’t able to ask him to take photos of me because he keeps complaining he is too tired to do it (lol).

Unlike my previous hike where I felt too tired and slow, on my second hike the trail was already easy for me, I am able to run upward without getting tired, I wonder if it is because I used different bag and shoes. My hiking bag was too heavy to carry so I have used a school bag making everything lighter, I took my shoes off when we are already in the stream heading to the falls, and I jump along the large rocks like a frog.

The wound in my toe was hurting especially when we are going down the slope because it is hitting against the wall of my shoes, but I have no time to complaint nor cry about it.

There was a clearing, the sky wasn’t gloomy and within less than two hours, we are able to reach Palati Falls but it was a downer because there were no twin falls, there was only one falls.  We took some photos, create a vlog, ate our lunch and rested a bit before going down, we traversed the same path again last week, we headed to the stream to find our way home.

One of my mountaineering friends (RJ) shared an event on Facebook and it caught my interest because RBM already went over there and unfortunately I wasn’t able to go because of the bad weather.

Well, I was caught in between which event should I go with, because my training class (Tourism Promotion Services or TPS)  had planned to do round Tablas on the same day (July 21th), but I got help from above when Sir Gab had a prior commitment in the morning so the whole plan of TPS will not materialize.

As planned, the group meets up at Children Paradise at 6:00 AM. I was a late comer, but they waited for me and while preparing to hit the road, a classmate and friend (MJ) from TPS went near me, it turns out she went to the training center, but it was closed and she happened to see me, so I asked her if she wanted to go with us. She’d like to, so I informed RJ about it, and they find someone from the group for her to back ride.

Brgy. Libertad is subdivided into four sitios, and one of them is Palati, which was my destination the day after my TPS group visited Mainit Falls, it is the most interior part of the Barangay and its name means second growth forest. Palati Falls is located in Libertad, but our jump-off was in Sitio Boliganay of Brgy.  Panique, a barangay after Libertad if you are coming from the town. The road to Boliganay is under-construction so as expected, it is muddy during the rainy season, if you don’t want to be stuck in the mud you really need to drive carefully.

When we arrived at the jump-off, we did only a short prayer and there was no stretching because the young guys were saying not to stretch anymore. We started walking up hill, gladly MJ went with me or else I have to walk a little bit slower to walk with the sweeper who’s accompanying the hikers that were a bit slow.

The trail was muddy, it is combined of uphill and downhill. There was no clearing so you can’t appreciate the view that much, the sky is gloomy. Nevertheless, all of us enjoyed the abundance of water in the streams, as well as the presence of guavas along the way.

MJ and I were in the middle together with two highschool students who are just a few meters away from us, ahead of us were my fellow RBM members.  We reached the point where we are not able to see the first group, we have waited a bit where the two highschool students met us, and since MJ and I were  both impatient waiting for the last group so we head on and followed the trail leaving behind the two young girls.

(MJ #feelingtired)

We reached a place where there are three houses, where we have asked where to go, the woman in the last house informed us that there was a path going to Palati Falls behind the smokehouse, so we did and I carefully examined the mud, and I was sure it was the right path since I am seeing fresh footprints of shoes in the soil and when we climb upwards, it was all grass and the footprints were gone, I looked around and found an almost hidden path behind the thick cogon grasses. We traversed it and we both realized where moving away from the sound of swift flowing water, we end up to a small shaft with a pig tied in the yard and dogs barking at us.  We called out, but no one is answering so we decided to return to the smokehouse, and there we found two paths. One is going to the left and the other one is going upward, but we are sure when we passed by at that point that there was no other path other than the path we took. You know, what is bothering me, when we passed by a coconut leaf fell from the tree on the left side, I don’t know what does it mean. If someone tried to warn us that we are heading to a wrong path or someone blocked the left path so we will choose the path upward?

Anyway, we decided to try the left path and we end up in a rocky stream, I have told MJ that maybe if we follow the stream we will not be lost, since the water will be surely coming from the falls. Maybe due to fear and excitement, I slid on the rocks not just once, but twice, and the second one was almost fatal because I slid into the water with my phone.  It scares the hell out of me because I don’t know how deep the water was, as we continue to walk the rocky stream I have seen people ahead of us, giving us a relief that we are on the right path to the falls.

When we are nearing RJ meet us half-way, he said they just arrived as well and he is about to look for us because he didn’t see us around. I have told him, we got lost.  The first group ahead of us were sorry that they left us when I told them we are just behind them, they also said they also almost get lost and they asked one of them to check the path upward if it is the right path or not, I didn’t inform them anymore about the coconut leaf that fell because my mind is not on its proper place, I was feeling scared, nervous and unwell for my phone. It is the second Asus Selfie phone I accidentally dropped in the water, the first one died after it swam in the salt water when it was not a year old yet and this second one is just less than two months old and it swam in the water too.

We reached Palati Falls for about over two hours, including the time where MJ and I got lost. If you walk faster you can reach Palati Falls in one and one half hours.

Palati Falls was on its beauty when we decided to visit it, there was a lot of water because of non-stop rain on the past few days. We rested a bit and decided to eat our lunch together, afterwards endless photo shoots.  We stayed for about an hour and descended together. We took a different trail going home, we traversed the river heading to the dam site where heavy rain fell on us, making us all soak.

Palati Falls isn’t for the frail of heart, but seeing  it with  your own eyes is very fulfilling so you must see it once in your life .  You can hire a motorcycle from downtown town and it is up to you to haggle, but ₱40-₱50.00 is enough to reach the Barangay Hall of Libertad, where you can ask for help or guide, or if you need someone to guide you, don’t hesitate to contact me I can maybe help you to find one depending on the availability of my fellow mountaineers. The jump-off is located at Sitio, Boliganay of Brgy. Panique, Odiongan, Romblon. You must remember that hiking to Palati Falls takes about two hours,  the trail is slippery when raining so wear proper shoes to avoid meeting an accident.

This is a long overdue post but since life has been so busy and my laptop broke it wasn’t so easy to blog again.  It was on January 28, 2018 when I climbed again with Romblon Baktas Mountaineers it was my second climb with them. I wasn’t able to go with them at Mt. Payaopao revenge climb because of some circumstances, no driver and bad weather.

Climbing to Mt. Puting Bato was a rush decision, the day before the climb I wasn’t sure if I want to go. I didn’t prepare my bag, nor the things I have to bring, I did it the morning of the climb. I have asked my father to be my driver, when I reached the meeting point as if I was the only one they’re waiting because the group left after a short prayer.

It was already past 8 AM when we started trekking to Mt. Puting Bato, it took so long because we have to wait for other members and we did stretching and short information drive on what to do and what not to do while trekking or in the summit.

There are a lot of new faces on Mt. Puting Bato but I was glad to find familiar faces, I trekked with them and it wasn’t a bad decision because we have so much fun.  We have to walk passing through a small village and a small farm in the upland. I hyperventilate when we are going up a hill, it was very sudden. I think I am feeling anxious of the other hikers behind me, what if I am walking so slow and I am making them wait, I decided to stop and let them pass and when I arrived at the top of the hill I am literally grasping for air, my heart beat so fast and it was hard for me to breath. One of the members told me it happened because we talked so much while walking little did he know I am hyperventilating because I am feeling anxious of the people behind me or maybe there is other reason unknown to me.

The trail at Mt. Puting Bato isn’t a joke, it was bushy, narrow and there was a lot of sharp stones and rocks. Just one wrong step and you hurt yourself, it was scary at first, but once you get used to it, it became easy to walk and find your step. It was surely a lot harder than the hike at Mt. Ope.

We found a small cave along our hike, around lunch time we reached a point the senior hikers called 90 degrees, you have to climb at the top of the tree using a rope and your skills. There was a long line since you can’t stay longer in the tree because it cannot accommodate lots of people, I have tried it, but I didn’t able to reach the top because I wasn’t able to fit myself in the small open space so I could climb backwards, instead of trying harder I went down to avoid getting into an accident because it feels like something is stopping me to do it. Honestly, I have wondered why I didn’t try harder because it wasn’t the normal me, I usually don’t turn my back to a new thrill

We did some experimental climb at the adjacent small cave for the sake of pictures, it was easy going up, but going down was a bit scary because one wrong move and the cave or soil will collapse on top of us.  We continue, walking with the help of our local guide, the road is becoming steeper and higher. We reached a point where some members were resting, but then we are told we missed the viewing point, so we have to go down to climb at another point god thing I brought a walking stick with me, it was already drizzling at the time, we are starting to be soaked in the rain.

We stayed there for about 30 minutes and we started walking again, it was already raining hard and our clothes were already wet when we decided to have lunch since some of us were already starving, the first group was already ahead of us.

We had lunch together and with the help of some umbrella we are able to make our food safe from rain water. We didn’t take long, after we ate we started walking up and down. It wasn’t easy because the trail was already slippery, along the way we saw giant flowering taro into my amazement. Then our guide shows us a cave down below, with the help of an unstable pole they went down to see the cave, I tried it, but I was very scared because it doesn’t feel right, the pole wasn’t that strong and it was quite high and slippery. At that moment, I don’t know but I have remembered my biological grandfather.

Only five of us were left to stay to wait for them, we are already soaked and cold but those who descended was taking their precious time below (lol).  To cut it short, we started walking again, descending the mountain from the other side and since it rained really hard already and the path was already used by the first group, it was really slippery I can’t remember how many times I fell down or slid maybe because I am wearing a running shoes with me. I removed my shoes and wear my slippers, but when the slippers were full of mud I started to slip again so I walked barefooted, it hurts and its killing my sole.

If there was only another way to go down the mountain I will gladly choose it because the path going down isn’t getting any better, slippery and full of sharp rocks. It was a good thing we have a young member who helped us a lot and offer his hands for us to hold on when there was nothing to hold on to.  There was one moment I can’t forget when I fell down because I made sure that everything is good before I stoop down but then I still fell down breaking my hiking stick, it was like a flat line or a feeling that someone was gone. We are the last one to descend the mountain or should I say I was the last one to go down. Our shoes, clothes and bags were full of mud.  I didn’t take a lot of photos because it was very dangerous, my phone might get broke from being soak in the rain or it might broke every time I slid and fell down.

Want to hear a sad story? The next day, I have found out that my biological grandfather died while I keep slipping and hurting myself while descending Mt. Puting Bato, he was frantically rushed to the hospital, but he didn’t make it, he died of heart attacked. I have wondered that maybe when I started hyperventilating and my heart is beating so fast  my grandfather is fighting with his life. I am not able to talk yet with my grandmother what time he had an attacked and died.

One of the things I want to do is to climb mountains and see things from above, I am fascinated of seeing the sea, the city/town from the peak.  Way back in Korea I was able to hike three mountains, two in Seoul (Dobongsan in Bukhansan National Park is at 740m and Seoraksan at 1,708m, we did the Yangpok Course), and one in Jeju which is Hallasan (1,950m) the highest peak in South Korea, we hike around March which is spring season but Hallasan is still in a blanket of snow and fog.

[Hallasan Peak, Jeju]

I have been asking my family for a long time if we could hike a mountain, but they keep saying if I like it so much I must do it alone, they found it tiring and since I don’t know where to start and how to do it alone because if you don’t know yet mountains in Romblon isn’t like those in Korea or in other countries, there are no developed trails, in Korea they are fully developed and made it to a park where a lot of hikers and mountaineers where doing a day hike to the peak.   What else should I expect when I can’t even dragged them at DIWA (Gabawan Vista Point).  To ease my itchy feet for an dventure they tour me around to different towns and do road tripping around Tablas. Gladly, I was able to find out through my sister’s friend about Romblon Baktas Mountaineers, a group of enthusiastic  people who climb mountains in Romblon for adventure and for a cause (tree planting activity). I was able to go with them on their third climb as a group at  Mt. Ope (433m) located in Camili, Alcantara, Romblon.

As an introvert, it was been a long time since I went out of my comfort zone, I was anxious how to deal with different people I am going to meet on the scheduled climb, I don’t know if it was anxiousness or excitement, but I wasn’t able to sleep the night before our climb, I was wide awake the entire time.  We scheduled to meet at 4:30 in the morning at Children’s Paradise and while we are there I have found out my shoes were not in good condition. I have used it only once and it was being stocked for a few years, gladly I have a pair of slippers with me because going back home to get a new pair of shoes isn’t possible since we are about to leave.

We left Odiongan at 5:30 in the morning, one hour passed from the agreed time, we reached the town of Alcantara after an hour or so, while waiting for the others everyone made their self busy, registering and submitting the application form and etc. My application form was already crumpled being in my bag for a very long time, as I have looked back at my old posts years ago, it seems I had a mistake in it.

Bad luck, as you may call it, something happened to my loose pants when I used the flooded comfort room, I was uncomfortable with it so I asked my sister/mother to buy me a new one at the town market, so they did.  I don’t know if it is just coincidence, but I have noticed there is something stopping me to climb because days before the climb I accidentally step on the stand of mosquito coil which resulted to a wound in my sole, then my left feet feels weird after a minor sprain which I didn’t tell my family because they will not surely allow me to go on hiking, furthermore a day before the hike my toe nails swell and then my shoes broke before we could even leave the town and before going to the foot of the Mt. Ope I ruined my loose pants.  Weird isn’t it?

After a few minutes of stretching we started walking, the trail isn’t that great, it was like a dry river full of large stone and boulders, it looks like waterways, when it rains the water from the mountains passed through it. Since, it will be my first climb after so many years and without gym activity I felt tired, especially I am carrying a large and heavy hiking bag with me, I perspired a lot, so I removed the jacket I am wearing.  The trail wasn’t that hard, you will not get lost because it has been just a straight road without going left or right.

We rested a bit on top of a hill and then we continued hiking at the adjacent higher elevation which is already the Mt. Ope, everyone went busy creating memories, pictures here and there and of course a group picture will not be forgotten. After which, we stayed in a shed where a raffle takes place and getting to know each other. If you asked me what did I say, I also forgot what is it aside from introducing my name and being stuck for a few years at home and wanting to do an adventure, I was very tense, it was my first time again  to interact with many people after long years being surrounded only by people I have known since my childhood, I would like to say more, but someone says I already speak too long, I felt slightly offended but I shrugged it off and laughed with it because I already expected to meet different types of people.

The scenery from the peak of Mt. Ope is breathtaking, it was beautiful and scenic, you can see the beauty of Alcantara at its best. It was like the sea was just one fly away from the top, thanks to my sister’s friend I was able to have solo pictures and thanks to self-timer and monopod as well I was able to take my own photo. We stayed for a bit and decided to go down for lunch, we initially agreed to have lunch at the peak, but some of us already went down ahead so we followed. We rested a bit at the house of our guide and have photo opps with her and we descended and rest a bit again in a store to drink a cold cola.

We had lunch at the place where the vehicles were left. It was a bonding moment, sharing each other food and eating while sitting in the grass. I didn’t know the names of the people around me aside from 2-3 of them, but it wasn’t a problem at all, after lunch a short meeting takes place deciding where to climb next and it was voted and agreed to climb back to Mt. Payaopao (665m) as others included me wasn’t able to climb the peak.

Mt. Ope is a good place to hike for beginners, it wasn’t that long to reach the peak, it was only about one hour and 30 minutes, but if you are an expert climber/hiker you can maybe reach it in less than one hour. It was very short compare of my hiking experience in South Korea, where it took me 3-4 hours to reach the peak, honestly, most of the RMB members felt disappointed on the short hike, they wanted more.

As I have heard from the experienced hikers/climbers at RBM Mt. Guiting-guiting is the real deal in Romblon maybe because it was the highest peak in the province, as I have searched the Mt. Guiting-guiting summit it is about 2,058m which is only 108m high compare to Hallasan.  Ahm, I wonder if I could hike it without panting or catching for my breath, well, we did Hallasan in one snowy day so maybe yes or maybe no I could make it at G2 summit someday.