The Friday group ventured out to Philseco on the far side of Subic and walked the back way to Castillejos. We hadn’t made this trip since April last year, so it all felt pretty fresh. And then we took a different route up into the hills and came down quite a bit further out of town than usual. That long walk back to Castillejos after a climb was an ass-kicker for me. We finished at almost 10K, which is tough for me even on flat ground.
Walk this way!Out of the Jeepney and into the fireLet’s do this!Strolling on Philseco roadHeading for the hills.Roadside food vendorsLeaving the pavement behindScott on the rocksNow what? This road was under construction last year, and little progress has been made since then. Hey, it’s the Philippines.We used to take a trail from here down through the valley.But this time, we decided to follow the new road and see where it leads.No valley? Um…It wasn’t steep, but it was a LONG climb up the road.The view from hereCows in need of a pasture.Jim’s an old farm boy from South Dakota who wasn’t taking any bull…We asked these folks about a way down, and they said to keep going to the top of the road.What? We have to climb more?The way behindThe way aheadSome nice rock work to reinforce the embankment.I’m coming, I’m coming!Summit achieved and the trail down was on the other side of this drainage canal. The rest of group jumped it. Scott and i chose prudence over potential disaster.Heading downThe group ahead of me and Scott kept taking rest breaks for some reason.Slow and easy. That’s how I avoid rolling.A view from the journey back down.Even on the pavement there was beauty to be found.Still going downI like this better than dodging trafficKeep on keeping on.Almost downA short rest at the bottom.And then a long-ass street walk commenced.It was hot and I was tiredA message from God to keep goingOur normal route would have taken us on the edge of this valley and cut a few kilometers off our hike.On and on we plodded.When we came upon these trikes, I was all-in for riding the 2K left to go to the highway. I was outvoted.Where does that Mango?Almost to the highway.Arriving at Mad Willie’s, our lunchtime destination.Ah, that hit the spot!
After lunch (the chicken wings were good), I caught an aircon bus back to Barretto. I took a much-needed nap, blogged, and then got ready for my Friday night at the SOB dance competition. Swan joined me there. When the show was done, we headed home and engaged in our “Shameless” ritual before hitting the hay.
It was a pretty good day, by my standards.
And so ended another day in the life. Tonight, I’ll be going on a double dinner date on SBMA. So, you can look forward to something a little different in tomorrow’s post.
This is one of “my” old jokes. It’s always weird to find one in animated form.That’s a fair question.I want to be cremated, so I won’t need one at all.
This Moody Blues classic came up on my Spotify playlist during my morning walk. It had been quite some time since I’d heard it, so I wanted to share it with my readers here. I was a big fan back in the day. The Moody Blues was the second LP I purchased as a teen (the first was a Doors album). When you are making $1.35 an hour at the car wash, a record purchase is a big deal.
2 thoughts on “A long slog”
Now, that looks like my kinda walk!
I’m coming, I’m coming!
I’m trying to understand why you’re walking in the rocky part and not over to your right, where the road is smoother.
When we came upon these trikes, I was all-in for riding the 2K left to go to the highway. I was outvoted.
I know the feeling: at the beginning of a walk, 2K or 5K is nothing. But at the end, when you’ve run out of gas, and you’ve got another couple K to go, those distances can feel like forever. That said, it’s only 2K, so I’d have voted for walking, too.
Arriving at Mad Willie’s, our lunchtime destination.
Speakers of the King’s English will read “Mad Willie” as “Crazy Penis.”
I caught an aircon bus back to Barretto.
The term “aircon bus” is evocative. I guess this distinguishes them from regular buses with no A/C…? There are A/C-less shuttle buses in Seoul, even these days. They have hand fans hanging off the inner walls… for passenger “convenience.”
re: “gynocologist”
Love that spelling.
Hey Kev, I’m walking on the rocky side of the road in that photo because I’d just taken a picture of that impressive rock wall. I was back on smoother ground quickly afterward.
RE: the trike vote. Yeah, it is usually a matter of pride with me to finish what I start on foot. But I was exhausted; it was a boring road walk, and those trikes appeared as if God had sent them for us. No one wanted to join me, so I sucked it up and finished. In retrospect, I’m glad I did.
Well, despite the name, we were the only dicks in Mad Willies.
Transport options from Castillejos back to Barretto: hot and crowded Jeepney: 25 pesos. Derelict non-airconditioned bus (still much more comfy than a Jeep): 35 pesos. A Victory Bus luxury liner: 50 pesos. I planned to take the first thing that came along; I got lucky when the Victory bus came by with a few seats available.
Now, that looks like my kinda walk!
I’m coming, I’m coming!
I’m trying to understand why you’re walking in the rocky part and not over to your right, where the road is smoother.
When we came upon these trikes, I was all-in for riding the 2K left to go to the highway. I was outvoted.
I know the feeling: at the beginning of a walk, 2K or 5K is nothing. But at the end, when you’ve run out of gas, and you’ve got another couple K to go, those distances can feel like forever. That said, it’s only 2K, so I’d have voted for walking, too.
Arriving at Mad Willie’s, our lunchtime destination.
Speakers of the King’s English will read “Mad Willie” as “Crazy Penis.”
I caught an aircon bus back to Barretto.
The term “aircon bus” is evocative. I guess this distinguishes them from regular buses with no A/C…? There are A/C-less shuttle buses in Seoul, even these days. They have hand fans hanging off the inner walls… for passenger “convenience.”
re: “gynocologist”
Love that spelling.
Hey Kev, I’m walking on the rocky side of the road in that photo because I’d just taken a picture of that impressive rock wall. I was back on smoother ground quickly afterward.
RE: the trike vote. Yeah, it is usually a matter of pride with me to finish what I start on foot. But I was exhausted; it was a boring road walk, and those trikes appeared as if God had sent them for us. No one wanted to join me, so I sucked it up and finished. In retrospect, I’m glad I did.
Well, despite the name, we were the only dicks in Mad Willies.
Transport options from Castillejos back to Barretto: hot and crowded Jeepney: 25 pesos. Derelict non-airconditioned bus (still much more comfy than a Jeep): 35 pesos. A Victory Bus luxury liner: 50 pesos. I planned to take the first thing that came along; I got lucky when the Victory bus came by with a few seats available.