A successful afternoon going up, over, and down the other side of Easter mountain. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as hard as I expected and remembered. That could be a manifestation of the Hares having found a more hiker-friendly way to the top. Which is not to say the climb was not difficult–it was. The steep downhill may have even been harder than the up; it was certainly more potentially treacherous. I slipped a few times but never lost my feet. Since I lived to tell the tale of my adventure on Easter mountain, let me get to it. And since a picture is worth a thousand words, this post will be almost book-like. Only better!
Given the special nature of the hike and the length and difficulty of the trail, the start time was moved up one hour to 1:30. And since the “sane” group always gets a headstart on the hardcore guys, we made arrangements to leave at 12:30. Since the VFW is right around the corner from Sit-n-Bull, I figured grabbing some lunch before the ordeal was a good idea.
I’m not a big burger eater these days, but this big burger was on the specials menu at a reduced price of 350 pesos (normally 420).It loaded up nicely.
Wolfed that burger down and then headed over to the VFW and loaded up in the Hashmobile for the ride out to the trailhead.
The trail. I did the Easter mountain portion, then hoofed it to our On-Home in Calapadayan on the road. The crazy Hashers did a second climb and some extra distance.Offloading at the start of the trail.Our sane group is ready to tackle the mountain.“This way everyone!”The fun is just beginning.Onward and upward.A rest break and photo op.The view from here.What lies ahead. If you look closely in most of these photos you can spot the Hashers on trail ahead of me. Their size provides some perspective on what we are dealing with.Making progress.A pause to refresh.Keep on keepin’ on! I wrote about the big fires on Easter mountain a few weeks ago. Turned out to be a blessing in the sense that we didn’t have to fight our way through tall thatch grass.Getting closer, but the hardest part is still ahead of us.It was a very well-marked trail. Good job, Leech My Nuggets, and Vienna Sausage!A look back down at where I came from. If you look closely maybe you can see a couple of stragglers still making their way up.Looking up to where I need to be.Crash Test Dummy experienced a bout of acrophobia. He eventually made it to the top though.That’s the way to go!Getting it done, step-by-step.A nice view of Naugsol from here.You comin’, 14 Kilo Ass?Almost there!I’d actually forgotten that there is sort of twin peaks up here. That’s the one I want over there. Made it!A view from the top. That’s Black Rock mountain dead ahead.Another view. Here’s one of me if you are looking for documentation that I achieved the summit.That concrete slab is a bit of a mystery. Not sure what it was for, but damn, getting the materials up to construct it must have been crazy hard.Not much to see up top except the graffiti…There used to be a shrine for the Virgin Mary here, but it is no more.Here’s something I didn’t want to see. Who litters in a scenic spot like this? Good Friday is when a lot of the locals come up here and picnic. I guess carrying their trash back down is too much work. This compunction compulsion to litter is one aspect of Filipino culture I don’t like or understand. I see it everywhere and no one, rich or poor, seems to give it a second thought. Time for me to head back down.It was a steep motherfucker.Be careful!Looking back up to the top from whence I came.Caught up with one of our newer Hashers, Liv (no Hash name yet), and wound up walking the rest of the way back to the On-Home with her. Interesting person. Danish gal who has been living in Manila for several years, having just recently made the move to Subic. She said she had hiked the entire length of the Camino de Santiago in Spain. Impressive!Still going down but not so insanely steep.Quite pleasant, actually.Passed by a runner (don’t know his name).Back down on the Govic highway. That’s the Hash truck waiting to take anyone too lazy to walk back to the On-Home. I was feeling surprisingly strong still, so I did the 3K+ walk but stuck to the roads. I had my fill of mountains, thank you very much!On-Home was at a place called Jurrasic. It was the first time the Hash has used this venue. Everything was new and pleasant, and the bay views were nice. They weren’t really prepared for 50 Hashers and ran out of food early on, but otherwise, it worked out well.The Hash circle in progress.We made Hash cake for the birthday girls.And the sun goes down on another day in paradise.
But wait! The fun wasn’t over yet.
It Doesn’t Matter got invaded by a horde of drunken Hashers. I’m sure the owner appreciated it. After all, his wife received her Hash name last night. Welcome to the Subic Bay Hash House Harriers, Gangster Bitch!
And just for the record, I have confirmed that the mountain we call Easter is in reality known as Mount Batulao. You’ll always be Easter to me though.
UPDATE: Forgot to post the Relive video. Here it is:
https://www.relive.cc/view/vNOPoQgrKYv
6 thoughts on “I came, I saw…”
Which Camino did Liv do? I think the longest and most popular of the nine is the so-called French Way (el Camino francés), which is about 800 kilometers. My buddy Mike is thinking he and I should do the final 100K of the French Way, which is enough to earn our compostela (official stamped certification) for the trip. I think Mike needs to think bigger, but he’s never done any real distance walking, so 100K sounds enormous to him.
This compunction to litter
Pretty sure you mean “compulsion,” as a compunction is a hesitation.
Yeah, that’s how my brain seems to function these days, I’m thinking one thing and writing another. Compulsion does work better, but I was thinking of the context WITHOUT compunction. That’s what I intended, but obviously missed the correct way to use it, i.e. “they litter without compunction”. Good thing I’m not the President!
I didn’t get into details with Liv on the Camino de Santiago trail–I heard her say she walked the entire length…some 900 kilometers. I’m not sure if it was all at once, over a period of time (years?) or just BS. Seems like quite the undertaking…
Depending on where you start the Camino francés (usually in France, then you cross through the Pyrenees and Basque country, then finish in Spain), it could be around 900 km, so it sounds as if that’s the trail she took. I don’t think any of the other routes are nearly as long. If 630 km in Korea takes me a month to do, at my slow pace, then 900 km in France and Spain could be at least 1.5 times that… but if Liv is super-athletic, and if she exceeds 30 km a day for every day of that trip, she might get the whole 900K done in a month.
A movie called “The Way,” starring Martin Sheen, offers some beautiful cinematography of the Camino, including the eateries that serve as a temptation when you find yourself in this or that town. I really need to rewatch and review that movie.
You should ask Liv to show you her compostela. People usually consider that a pretty meaningful souvenir.
That Jurassic is one of the best places I have seen. Is it a restaurant or resort? Absolutely amazing 👏
“You should ask Liv to show you her compostela”
I don’t know, she has a boyfriend…I don’t want to start any trouble…
James, technically we were on the grounds of a hotel called Subic Seaborne. It’s next door to Jurassic. That outdoor pavilion is newly constructed and has couches, beanbag chairs, and hammocks. It is indeed very nice.
Good job John. A worthy goal to climb Easter mountain every year.
Which Camino did Liv do? I think the longest and most popular of the nine is the so-called French Way (el Camino francés), which is about 800 kilometers. My buddy Mike is thinking he and I should do the final 100K of the French Way, which is enough to earn our compostela (official stamped certification) for the trip. I think Mike needs to think bigger, but he’s never done any real distance walking, so 100K sounds enormous to him.
This compunction to litter
Pretty sure you mean “compulsion,” as a compunction is a hesitation.
Yeah, that’s how my brain seems to function these days, I’m thinking one thing and writing another. Compulsion does work better, but I was thinking of the context WITHOUT compunction. That’s what I intended, but obviously missed the correct way to use it, i.e. “they litter without compunction”. Good thing I’m not the President!
I didn’t get into details with Liv on the Camino de Santiago trail–I heard her say she walked the entire length…some 900 kilometers. I’m not sure if it was all at once, over a period of time (years?) or just BS. Seems like quite the undertaking…
Depending on where you start the Camino francés (usually in France, then you cross through the Pyrenees and Basque country, then finish in Spain), it could be around 900 km, so it sounds as if that’s the trail she took. I don’t think any of the other routes are nearly as long. If 630 km in Korea takes me a month to do, at my slow pace, then 900 km in France and Spain could be at least 1.5 times that… but if Liv is super-athletic, and if she exceeds 30 km a day for every day of that trip, she might get the whole 900K done in a month.
A movie called “The Way,” starring Martin Sheen, offers some beautiful cinematography of the Camino, including the eateries that serve as a temptation when you find yourself in this or that town. I really need to rewatch and review that movie.
You should ask Liv to show you her compostela. People usually consider that a pretty meaningful souvenir.
That Jurassic is one of the best places I have seen. Is it a restaurant or resort? Absolutely amazing 👏
“You should ask Liv to show you her compostela”
I don’t know, she has a boyfriend…I don’t want to start any trouble…
James, technically we were on the grounds of a hotel called Subic Seaborne. It’s next door to Jurassic. That outdoor pavilion is newly constructed and has couches, beanbag chairs, and hammocks. It is indeed very nice.
Good job John. A worthy goal to climb Easter mountain every year.