DIY Mount Manalmon
MT. MANALMON
San Miguel, Bulacan
Major jump-off: Sitio Madlum, Brgy. Sibul, San Miguel
LLA: 15°15.11'N; 121°1.22' E; 196 MASL
Days required / Hours to summit: Half-day / 1 hour
Specs: Minor climb, Difficulty 2/9, Trail class 1-2
Source: Mt. Manalmon - Pinoy Mountaineer
October 28, 2012
Our call time was 4:30am and ETD was 5am from Baliwag Transit Terminal in Cubao. We rode a Cabanatuan-bound bus and told the conductor to drop us off at Brgy. Kamias in San Miguel, Bulacan. We alight from the bus and ate breakfast while waiting for some of our friends to arrive. Once everyone was ready, we hopped on the tricycle to bring us to Madlum River. We were supposed to hire a jeepney but I think the tricycle drivers didn't allow us so we were sort of "forced" to hire a tricycle. Tricycles can be readily hired at the place where the bus dropped us off.
Mount Manalmon was a pretty easy climb perhaps because in essence it's just a hill and so you wouldn't have a hard time reaching the top. Aside from it's easy trail, it has a rewarding view at the top which makes the climb worthwhile. Crossing the river through the monkey bridge was also one of the memorable parts of this trip basically because I am afraid of heights but I was able to cross. Once you're up there, you'll realize that it's just between you and the wires. You just have to push yourself to reach the other side. Spelunking the Bayukbok Cave was my first caving experience and of course, you will never forget your first. :)
In a nutshell, visiting Manalmon is really satisfying. It is budget-friendly, relatively near Manila and has a river, a mountain/hill, and a cave that you can explore all in one day. What more can you ask for? :)
Practical tips:
1. During our climb, it was a bit cloudy and it drizzled a little which made the trail slippery. Make sure that your footwear will be able to endure this kind of path.
2. Pack light so that you will climb the mountain easily.
3. Bring enough food. The place is not that commercialized so it may not be that easy to find food.
4. As much as possible, waterproof your things.
5. Bring only your headlamp/flashlight and probably your camera when spelunking Bayukbok Caves. It's very muddy and slippery inside, you might have a hard time.
Credits to Ron, Elmer, John and MJ for some of the photos :)
Total expenses: 549.50
Bus from Cubao to Brgy. Kamias, San Miguel Bulacan - 117
Breakfast - 10(lugaw) + 20(sandwich)
Tour guide - 72.50
*Guide costs 300 for 5 persons
Balsa - 5+5
Head lamp - 30
C.R. - 5
Dinner - 34+14
Trike - 60*2=120
*Tricycle ride costs 240 for 4 persons.
Bus - 117
San Miguel, Bulacan
Major jump-off: Sitio Madlum, Brgy. Sibul, San Miguel
LLA: 15°15.11'N; 121°1.22' E; 196 MASL
Days required / Hours to summit: Half-day / 1 hour
Specs: Minor climb, Difficulty 2/9, Trail class 1-2
Source: Mt. Manalmon - Pinoy Mountaineer
October 28, 2012
Our call time was 4:30am and ETD was 5am from Baliwag Transit Terminal in Cubao. We rode a Cabanatuan-bound bus and told the conductor to drop us off at Brgy. Kamias in San Miguel, Bulacan. We alight from the bus and ate breakfast while waiting for some of our friends to arrive. Once everyone was ready, we hopped on the tricycle to bring us to Madlum River. We were supposed to hire a jeepney but I think the tricycle drivers didn't allow us so we were sort of "forced" to hire a tricycle. Tricycles can be readily hired at the place where the bus dropped us off.
Upon arriving at the site, you will already see the very still Madlum River.
One of the highlights of our trip was the Monkey bridge where you'll have to cross the river through cable wires. You can also cross the river by riding the balsa but being the thrill-seeking people that we are, of course we opted crossing through the cable wire.
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| Balancing and conquering my fear of heights |
This was the registration log book for that day and there were a total of 16 participants in our group. I think registration is required for each climb.
After registering, our guide told us that we will cross the river again because the trail to the peak was on the other side of the river. So much for crossing the monkey bridge and conquering our fears. Haha. Here we were again crossing the river but this time through a balsa.
This was our trail to the peak, muddy; and the rocks were slippery as well. Extra caution was needed.
I can't remember exactly how long it took for us to reach the peak (maybe 1hr?) but we were at the "summit" by lunch time where we had our lunch.
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| The girls doing a jumpshot! |
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| Mt. Arayat peeping through |
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| Me at the edge of a rock at the summit |
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| The panoramic view at the summit |
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| My friend doing his signature pose on top of a rock |
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| The breathtaking view of the river below |
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| Mt. Gola |
After eating and taking pictures at the summit, we went down to the foot of the mountain to explore the Bayukbok Caves. It was actually my first time to go spelunking and I was really thrilled to venture on it. According to our guide, the cave was categorized as a technical one hence we were advised not to bring anything with us as we explore the cave. I did not know what "technical cave" means until I experienced it.
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| Us rappelling down to the cave |
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| Small holes where we'd have to squeeze ourselves in order to reach the other side |
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| Here we were at the music room waiting for our turn to climb the ladder. Good thing this ladder was created however, it was still very muddy and slippery making it a bit challenging to step on. |
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| Finally, we were almost on "the other side" of the cave |
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| This was how we looked when we got out of the cave! Everyone was full of mud! hahaha! Talk about getting dirty! :p |
After caving, we went back to the river and capped off the trip by taking a dip in the river. :)
Mount Manalmon was a pretty easy climb perhaps because in essence it's just a hill and so you wouldn't have a hard time reaching the top. Aside from it's easy trail, it has a rewarding view at the top which makes the climb worthwhile. Crossing the river through the monkey bridge was also one of the memorable parts of this trip basically because I am afraid of heights but I was able to cross. Once you're up there, you'll realize that it's just between you and the wires. You just have to push yourself to reach the other side. Spelunking the Bayukbok Cave was my first caving experience and of course, you will never forget your first. :)
In a nutshell, visiting Manalmon is really satisfying. It is budget-friendly, relatively near Manila and has a river, a mountain/hill, and a cave that you can explore all in one day. What more can you ask for? :)
Practical tips:
1. During our climb, it was a bit cloudy and it drizzled a little which made the trail slippery. Make sure that your footwear will be able to endure this kind of path.
2. Pack light so that you will climb the mountain easily.
3. Bring enough food. The place is not that commercialized so it may not be that easy to find food.
4. As much as possible, waterproof your things.
5. Bring only your headlamp/flashlight and probably your camera when spelunking Bayukbok Caves. It's very muddy and slippery inside, you might have a hard time.
Credits to Ron, Elmer, John and MJ for some of the photos :)
Total expenses: 549.50
Bus from Cubao to Brgy. Kamias, San Miguel Bulacan - 117
Breakfast - 10(lugaw) + 20(sandwich)
Tour guide - 72.50
*Guide costs 300 for 5 persons
Balsa - 5+5
Head lamp - 30
C.R. - 5
Dinner - 34+14
Trike - 60*2=120
*Tricycle ride costs 240 for 4 persons.
Bus - 117
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