MT. ULAP ECO-TRAIL
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Location: Ampucao, Itogon, Benguet, Philippines.
Trail: Tomtombek-Sta. Fe Ridge traverse (or backtrack).
Contact Number: 0928-483-1133; 0921-729-2726; 0946-340-4561.
Registration Area: Ampucao Barangay Hall
Registration Fee: Php100.00 per person.
Guide Fee: Php400.00 (max of 10 persons per
guide). This will double to Php800.00 if you decide to camp for a night.
How to get there:
·
From Baguio City. Take a PUJ
bound to Samuyao or Ampucao. The loading station is located behind Jollibee
Magsaysay and beside Orion Drug. There's a couple of tarpaulins indicating “loading
area for Mt. Ulap” posted near it. Fare as of April 2016 is Php31.00. Just
inform the driver that you need to drop at the Ampucao Barangay Hall for the
Mt. Ulap hike registration. PUJ fare from Sta. Fe to Baguio City is Php50.00.
·
From outside CAR. Take a bus
bound to Baguio City. Follow above information.
Description
A newly formalized hiking
destination, Mt. Ulap Eco-Trail, a less-than-an-hour drive from Baguio City, offers
six stations which boast majestic views of Cordillera mountains, pine forests,
grassland ranges, man-made stone stacks, picturesque boulders, and a faraway
glimpse of the San Roque Dam and Philex mining area.
Mt. Ulap Eco-Trail is
in close proximity to Baguio City unlike other popular hiking destinations in
the region such as Mt. Ugo and Mt. Pulag. Travel time would be about 45 minutes
depending on the traffic at the central business district. En route, you will
pass by Camp John Hay, Philippine Military Academy, and Texas Instruments.
Don’t get confused with the arch indicating Ampucao Elementary School at the
drop-off area. Both the elementary school and barangay hall are located in the
same compound. There is a table for registration with logbooks for Baguio City
and NCR hikers attended by an officer. You will pay here the registration fee
and guide fee. You will be assigned a guide according to the local queuing. An
environmental orientation by your guide is a must before leaving the barangay
hall. There are foods and bottled drinks peddled in the area, so don’t get
nervous when you forgot to buy bottled water for the hike. There’s clean
comfort rooms in case you need to attend to nature’s call or change clothes
before the hike.
There are six stations
along the trail. Tomtombek, the first station, is an easy walk from Ampucao
Barangal Hall. A raised metal welcome board showing the stations marks the beginning
of the upward assault. The next station, Ambanao Paoay, a 1,788 mASL peak, is
adorned with man-made stone stacks. You may add your own design in here.
Careful however not to erect it along a footpath. Camping is allowed at the
lower portion of this station. Also, along this station, a portion of the San
Roque Dam and Philex mining area can be seen. The third station, Gungal, at
1,814 mASL is characterized with rock boulders. Some tourists say that this
part is the highlight of the trek. Taking a solo shot at the famous,
pentacle-vandalized, Gungal rock seems to appeal to most hikers, thus making
this the most populated station during the day. The fourth station and the
1,846 mASL summit, Mt. Ulap, is covered with grass. A concrete marker is seen
in its highest point inscribed with the name of the Engineer who surveyed the
area. Most of the campers favour this area than in Gungal. For campers, the
magical sunset and sunrise is often sought here. There is a store and two open
pit comfort room near the camping area. The fifth station, Pong-ol burial cave,
is now closed to the public. Desecration of the sacred place as well as
dangerous path are the reasons for its closure. Midway along the downhill path
to the fifth station is a barricaded burial rock left. However, only a few
bones were left by mummy thieves. Sta. Fe, the sixth station, marks the end of
the trek.
Officially launched on
31 October 2015, hiking through Mt. Ulap Eco-Trail now means paying standard
fees and adhering to its rules and regulations. According to a local guide,
tour guide fees costs about Php500.00 before its official opening. Environmental
prep talks is not done thus vandalism as well as desecration of the sacred
burials areas is uncommon. As of April 2016, the Pong-ol Burial Caves is now
closed to the public.
Reminders
·
Practice the Leave-No-Trace
(LNT) principle when visiting and camping.
·
Do not vandalize the stone and
tree trunks.
·
Closing of registration at
Ampucao Barangay Hall is 2:00PM. If you are a slow hiker, register before lunch
or earlier if you don’t intend to camp for the night.
·
The fees including the guide
fee are standardized. There’s no bargaining for lower price. Take note that the
fees are lower compared to other eco-trails.
·
During holidays and weekends,
registration starts as early as 4AM. However, to make sure of the availability
of an officer at the barangay hall, It doesn’t hurt to inform the Tourism
Council through the numbers listed above.
·
To those who are not regular
hikers, take time to prepare yourself physically and mentally.
·
The foot paths are slippery
during rainy season. However, you still need to be vigilant during summer
because the dried soil easily crumbles under when stepped on.
Gallery
The metal signage that
marks the start of the six stations.
These are the sic
stations of the Eco-Trail. However, to protect and preserve the sacred burial
site, the Pong-ol Burial Cave is now out of the regular trail offering.
The trail is slippery
during rainy season but the danger is as much present during summer. You need
shoes that can conquer the dry, brittle and pebbled footpaths. Sprained ankle
is one of the most common injuries to hikers during summer.
These are gates for
cattle. Never open and pass through these gates; use the wooden makeshift stairs.
This is the first boulder
along the trail where you can have a glimpse of the picturesque Itogon, Mt.
Ugo, and even the mountains of Pangasinan.
A typical yet
enthralling view of The Cordillera.
Pine trees and more
pine trees but you’ll never get tired of it.
A corral for cattle
branding.
Notice that most of the
trunks are scorched. During summer, the dried pine needles are very
combustible. Please be responsible not to cause fire during your visit [to any
mountain].
A patch of pine tree saplings.
You will notice a lot
of fallen trees. This was caused by previous tropical storms.
Cattle herd near the Ambanao
Paoay peak.
Ambanao Paoay, the
second station, is adorned with man-made stone stacks. This peak and its neighbour
peak are cluttered with rocks, thus, often named as twin peaks.
The trail ahead as it
snakes along the side and on top of the mountain as seen from Ambanao Paoay.
Pinit (Rubus niveus Thumb.), an
indigenous wild berry in Cordillera, are commonly seen along the trail. This
wild berry is edible.
Grassy sloped and
sometimes dotted with pine trees is but one of many of what the Eco-Trail can
offer.
Even the dead pines
trees have their own charm.
Grass-covered mountain
top.
Pine trees and
grassland: a perfect duo for the eyes.
You’ll love this more
with a clear blue sky background.
We’re not there yet.
You need to be
sure-footed.
Survivor pine tree.
Of ferns and stones.
Those seconds when you
just want to sit and marvel at the beauty of the mountains.
Another boulder for
photo ops.
Another angle of the
previous picture.
Let’s continue the
trek.
Further along the
trail.
Like walking at the top
of the world.
Grace even during
death.
And we are at Gungal
station!
The famous
pentacle-vandalized Gungal rock, where the heaviest hiker traffic happens. When
taking a selfie, dangling your feet at the edge is now prohibited.
The trail out of Gungal
station.
A closer look at the
grass that covers the mountains.
Grassland ho!
More grassland.
The lines seen in the
photo are actually cattle paths made for
years.
Never pull sapling when
heaving your body upwards along difficult trails.
A downhill path before
the upward assault to the summit.
These fences either
denotes the boundary of land ownership or serves as safety barricade for cattle.
Another indigenous
plant along the trail.
A mossy area near the
summit.
The marker at the
highest point at the summit. Engineer Lagman is the first surveyor of the then
known as Pong-ol mountain. However, he forgot the name and just wrote what he
saw, obviously, ulap (clouds).
The summit—Mt. Ulap.
Start of descend from
the summit.
More cattle!
Cattle close up.
Another angle.
A glimpse of where we've walked.
The camping site.
A stall selling
refreshments near the campsite.
The camp site has a
nice flat surface.
Parts of the downhill
trail were steps made with pine branches.
Shower areas,
refreshments stalls and souvenir shops are available along Sta. Fe.
Concrete foot paths
near the road.
