AFTER TEAM ADRENALINE ROMANCE wrapped
up Segment I of the Cebu Highlands Trail last February 25, 2018, it is expected
that their next target would be Segment II. Unlike Segment I, Segment II is not
divided into two sub-segments. It starts from where Team Adrenaline Romance
left off last time for its first day and goes all the way south to Mantalongon
Barili on the second day. Hopefully.
We choose May 18th, 2018 as the first day. The blogging couple, Gian Carlo and Sheila Mei, were there in the early hours at the Cebu South Bus Terminal. They were joined by Apol and Halourd. We left Cebu City at 05:30 bound for Lutopan, Toledo City. By 07:30, we were now at Lutopan and took a quick breakfast by the roadside. We hardly rested after and decide to proceed slowly at 08:15.
We followed down this highway to a corner where there is a feeder road to Bunga, Toledo City. It is already 08:32 and we are behind schedule by twenty minutes but it is not a big deal. No need to hurry. We checked our things for the last time before proceeding at 08:40. Remember, we finished Segment I in just a leisurely pace and got rewarded for that by bettering our itinerary by 30-90 minutes.
So, on we went, following this road in Bunga under the brunt of the sun, paved most of the time, but we were rewarded with native flowering trees growing along the road, since May is the month where almost all tropical plants became productive. The ricefields, which used to be Lake Bunga, are bare. Further up ahead, we stopped by to see the smaller Lake Poog, which still has water.
After a 15-minute rest we continue over the rolling terrain until we came to a vantage point where we could clearly see Canlaon Volcano without its ever-present mantle of clouds. Ahead of us, the road tilt downhill for a good half-hour of walking but awed at the limestone rock formations which are good spots for rock climbing, especially at a monolith I referred to as “King Kong Rock”.
This same road, I walked during the tenth day of my Thruhike of the CHT last January 2017, but in reverse, which was about 45 minutes from the bottom to the top. I had carried much heavier load then. It was harsh but it was necessary. Repeated again during the fifth day of the Camino de Santiago last July 2017. My load were the same as today but, just the same, it was harsh, even without.
Anyway, we were approaching Lamac, Pinamungahan. We passed by a local resort at 10:30 and stopped to rest and rehydrate with water and soda drinks. We did not tarry long for we were a half-hour behind schedule. We did not even enjoy that sight of a wonderful waterfall dropping from out of a cave. We followed the same road but, this time, many of it unpaved.
It is a rural area where swamp buffaloes lay half-submerged in streams amidst the flat fields of rice whose tops are heavy and ready for harvesting. This rough road of dirt and gravel ended on a grassy meadow where there is a big tamarind tree bearing many fruits. We were now in Sibago, a very remote village of Pinamungahan. We decided to stop under the shade of the tree at 11:45.
Since it was very warm, we decided to stay for 15 minutes to recover our strength because it would be uphill this time. A trail would pick up our route where the road ended. Halourd, Sheila and Apol, meanwhile, made themselves busy picking tamarind fruit from the drooping branches heavy-laden with fruits.
Where the road ended, a trail picked up our route. The path goes up winding among big rocks. A few trees afforded shades but we pushed on. Despite the heat of the mid-day, we were consoled by a beautiful view of Lamac Valley from a higher elevation. We arrived at a road and crossed it and we are now in Bugho, San Fernando. Time is 12:30, good enough for lunch.
After that much needed rest and a good dose of soda drinks, Team Adrenaline Romance went on with new vigor to finish the day starting at 13:30. We are still a half-hour behind schedule despite the many and long rests and the deliberate slow pace we churned. A trail opened before us but this one was different. It was carved by the sleds of so many generations of swamp buffaloes.
Welcome to the “Carabao Highway”. It goes on a roll over easy rolling terrain with magnificent views of the valleys of Magsico and Anislagon. We were traversing on a long ridge and you could feel that you were in the middle of Cebu. Both Tañon Strait and Bohol Strait could not be seen as these were totally blocked by hills east and west of us.
We arrived at Tubod, San Fernando at 15:15, our campsite, and I immediately set out to the task of making a courtesy call to their village head. After finding their head unavailable after a lengthy walk, I proceed to look for the nearest residing village councilor. Fortunately for me, it was the next house. I got the lady councilor’s consent and I walked back another kilometer and set up our shelters.
Tubod’s location is very remote. What it has is the elevation which gave you magnificent views of two valleys and a refreshing natural spring which gave the village its name. The water source is the center of the village where a community stage, a basketball court and a chapel are constructed nearby. I have slept here just once during the exploration phase of Segment II last March 2012.
While we were in the middle of our
cooking for our early dinner, a village official arrived and opened their
chapel for our use. We were welcomed! I transferred my hammock inside the
chapel as well as that of Apol’s. The chapel was big enough to accommodate the
tents of Halourd and that of Gian Carlo and Sheila. We ate our supper at 18:00
and observed taps at 19:30. It rained at 23:00.
I woke up to the crowing of the cocks at 04:30 of the second day, May 19th. Sunrise was early but our location was wrapped in fogs. Sheila, Gian Carlo and Apol gets busy with our breakfast while Halourd tinkers something from his kit. The mist begun to dissipate as the sun lorded again the skies and then I heard a familiar noise of a drone which I never thought would be found here. It was Halourd’s.
It rose over us and moved forward then right and left in a semi-circle. It remained steady for a few seconds then it slowly went down guided by remote. In mid-air, it wavered and slapped a branch of a tree and crashed on the concrete basketball court. Pieces of it separated and we retrieved all, except one. There was a glitch in the software. Nevertheless, it provided a most magnificent footage of Magsico valley.
We took breakfast at 06:30; then we broke camp. We bade goodbye to the residents at 07:30 and proceed on the second half of Segment II. We followed a road that goes on a long and winding way among hills and picturesque farms. We passed by Balungag, San Fernando and took a brief rest to rehydrate. Over rolling terrain, so remote and unmarked by humble homes for long stretches, we find solitude where only the songs of birds broke the silence.
We arrived at Calidngan, Carcar City
at 09:15 and, here, habitations were now grouped and, for just short stretches,
another community. Here, we walked concrete pavements again which added to the
warmth of the day. In Buenavista, Carcar City, we stopped to rehydrate with
soda drinks. Motorcycles and Suzuki multicabs compete for road space and you have
to give way.
We arrived at Valencia, Carcar City and decided to eat our lunch at 12:10 on a family-run eatery on a road junction. We enjoyed siesta for an hour and resumed our Segment II walk at 13:15. The world seemed to be on fire. Heat bounced off the concrete pavements producing glare and sweat-rimmed eyes. By the time we reach a place called Tapal, we took rest. Here, breeze were plenty.
The road, this time, was unpaved but lacking in shades for most of the way. On a bare stretch, we found refuge underneath a water apple tree (Local: tambis) and, here, Halourd, Apol and Sheila took their fill of its fruit just like yesterday’s tamarind. We cannot combat the heat of the day but make light of it by foraging fruit and enjoying it.
As the sun reached mid-afternoon, the shady places became scarce. Then I noticed something moving up ahead and it was gone when I focused my attention on it. Then there it was again and it was a blur of yellow. A bus! We are now on the verge of approaching the Carcar-Barili Highway but it is still far away, maybe two kilometers more to walk.
The presence of the highway consoled everyone that we are now ending our journey in a matter of a half-hour, maybe less. Everyone were suffering from feet blisters and they felt that they not make a fuss out of it; shoulder aches from carrying too much load; and that unrelenting warmth of a mid-afternoon. The more pressure we placed on our strides the nearer those buses whizzing by up ahead.
We reached a road corner and we are
now on the national highway. It is 14:30 but it is not yet over. We have to
walk to Mantalongon Public Market, to claim the pennant of Segment II, which we
did at 14:45. We waited for these buses which, an hour ago, have been calling
our attention from a distance, tempting us to walk faster so we can have our
dream ride. In reality, they have no seats for us!
We hired an empty tricycle, thank God, and it brought us to a bus stop in Carcar City. From there, we were able to ride but we found ourselves standing along the aisle. By and by, some passengers disembarked, Sheila and Apol first got the seats; then Halourd, then Gian Carlo. Last was me and it was already near the Cebu South Bus Terminal. Loser’s luck!
Segment II was not an easy route despite it being walked on roads most of the way. Some of these roads were trails when I explored it in 2012. Although the terrain is rolling and scenic, there were parts where there were hard uphill climbs. It has an approximate length of 47.81 kilometers. The terrain, the climate and the distance is the least of your challenges. The biggest challenge is you.
Team Adrenaline Romance, toned by
Segment I, developed that stamina and discipline and that mindset which only
long-trail hikers could understand in Segment II. They now ratcheted a total of
112.41 kilometers for Segment I and Segment II and claimed 25 percent of the
Cebu Highlands Trail. They were not in a hurry but the CHT is a bucket list and
they are committed to claim that bragging right sooner than you would expect.
Gian Carlo and Sheila Mei wrote about their Segment II experience on their Adrenaline Romance Blog under two installments:
