Mt Kallugong is just my neighbour. Perhaps it is the most popular mountain in La
Trinidad, bordered by (or should I say within the boundaries of) barangays
Balili, Tawang, Camp Dangwa and Cruz. It
is not a high mountain. But it took me
three tries before I finally said I reached the apex. Here’s my journal of those tries.
The First Try
On a Sunday morning, after that uplifting
climb to nearby Mt. Yangbaw, I decided to go up the smaller and nearer Mt.
Kallugong. This was a mountain I see
every day and heard of the beauty to relish up at its peak but I had never
climbed it. Some more than ten years
past, my ex-girlfriend (now my wife) and I tried to ascend to that portion
where there is what appears to be a cave when one sees it from the foot of the
mountain but was not successful. Instead,
with some imprecise directions we got from friends and some folks at
Tabangaoen, the sitio at the foot of Kallugong, we wandered at a sayote
garden. And from then on, that desire to
climb that mountain has taken a backseat.
This time, my sisters who recently had an
afternoon walk to that rocky mount gave sufficient directions. I walked up past the Benguet State
University (BSU) Men’s Dormitory (after the Tabangaoen new bridge) and turned
left following the road above the dormitory.
There are several flight of steps that leads up towards the residences at the
mount but my sisters told me to take the one nearest the end of the road. The steps seemed to lead me directly to doors of
big houses but I simply went on until I reached the last house where that one
which seemed to be a cave can already be seen.
A rugged foot path is also very visible, and although tall grasses
shrouded it, it is obvious that many pass through it regularly.
When I checked my time as I reached that
seeming cave, it was some fifteen minutes past the while when I was at the BSU
grounds. There was a group whom I thought was a family having some picnic when I arrived. That place features a shallow crevice
(appearing down the mountain as an opening to a cave) and a flat that provided a good
viewpoint of the Strawberry Farm. I later gathered from conversation with the
family that the place is a private property.
They were the owners and are actually there to clear the grass and at
the same time those litters that uncaring (not to mention uninvited) guests
have left.
At that point, I would say I was already
satisfied of my view of the valley. But
I reminded myself that I won’t say I was successful of climbing Mt. Kallugong if I
won’t sit on top of that stone formation which looked like a kallugong (hat in
the local tongue) at the peak. I climbed
up and it was more amazing up there.
There were rock shapes, designs, and
arrangements that are so wonderful. At
that height and with no roads in sight, it is so easy to believe that it is not
man or his great inventions of heavy equipment that made such. It is a Great Unseen, an Almighty One that
has put those rocks into such configurations.
There are formations that looked like animals. I saw one that looked like the remains of a
dinosaur; another seemed the head of a pig; and another looks like the beak of
a bird. There are formations too that
looked like man’s great innovations. One
looked like a helicopter; and another assembly formed a void
which at one angle looked like the famous coca-cola shape.
What struck me most though is the uppermost
rocks that seemed to be the heads of human figures. And among them is a pair that looked like babies. I sat on an edge thinking, am I in the Heavens, which is the source of life… of babies? Or the
baby figures aborted fetuses that the divine has lifted up for special protection?
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| The rock formations that looks like animal and human heads and the clear blue sky are too impelling for a photograph. |
After some moments of rest and reflection,
I wanted to proceed further to other rocks, to discover more beauty, and to the
kallugong, and perhaps find answer to my reflection questions, but there was a
fence. I remembered what I was told
beforehand by some friends that a promenade to Kallugong requires some entrance
fee. I am still glad though that there
is a “free” portion of this mountain of beauty and to me now a mountain of
mystery.
I
wanted to find the way around to the entrance but I
realized that I had been clambering from one rock formation to the other for
almost two hours already. Thinking of a
noontime appointment, I started going down but hoping to climb the mountain
again to be at the kallugong.
The Second Try
Thinking of the previous unsuccessful
attempt to Mt Kallugong, a statement I heard several times in different
contexts came to mind: “It is not because you saw a mountain that you have to
climb it.”
I can still remember a village elder, who
once gave advise to us youngsters then to literally and figuratively seek other “mountains” not anymore
the mountains we see in the village. He said, “Adigapu ta dakol di tigonyuduntug
hi nunlini’idanhitunbobleyahiyaygahinanhan hi umekayaton” (It is not because
you see many mountains around the village that it is them that you should
climb.) He explained that there are a
lot more opportunities in other occupations than simply tilling the mountain
for sweet potato.
On another occasion, a friend who perhaps
has not found interest in mountain climbing said in jest to mountaineering
friends, “it is not because you saw mountains that you need to climb
them.” Our mountaineering friends
explained their purpose such as “to be closer to nature”, “to appreciate
beauty”, “for personal health” and many other noble purposes but still this
friend insisted on his premise that the existence does not justify climbing
them as the purposes can be achieved in some other ways.
I almost agreed to this reasoning. I almost conceded that it is not because
there is kallugong that I have to get there.
But on Monday, I looked up Mt Kallugong and saw how the sunset made the rocks yellow green and how thick fog would conceal the peak then reveal it again. The scene was amazing and the mystery I was
contemplating up there the previous day flashed to my mind. I felt an urge to climb it again.
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| At a certain angle, this hollow created by a rock assembly would look like the famous coca-cola shape |
After
office hours the next day, I took off my barong for a shirt more comfortable for a climb and scrambled up the same route I took the other
day. It seemed that I was alone climbing
up and the sound I could hear were the rustling of a soft wind against the tall
grasses and the chirping of birds playing with the bushes and rocks. It was Mother Nature making melodies. At a juncture up where the rocks are, I went
left, got past a garden and soon found a road and the gate where a big
signboard is welcoming me to Mt. Kallugong.
Unfortunately, the gate was closed. I supposed business hours were
over. I was looking for a guard to
inquire about the place but there was no one.
My thoughts went back to the adage, “It is not because there is a
mountain that you have to climb it.”
I followed the
road down. After fifteen minutes, I realized
that I was at the main road in Cruz. It was already going dark then. I saw the signboard of a familiar bar and
decided to get in for a bottle or two of beer.
The table
available was behind the table of some youngsters, probably college students,
who were talking about some girls. One
of the boys asked his companion, “Apay kunam girlfriend mu ni ____,
ngem haanku pulus nakita nga nasallabay mu?”
(You said ______ is your girlfriend but I never saw you holding her on
her shoulder?) Their other companion
replied, “Ay adi gapu piman ta waday girlfriend yan kasapulan ay akbayan.”
(Well, it is not because you have a girlfriend that you need to hold her
shoulder.)
I was smiling
alone on my seat. Perhaps that is one
practical and wise application of the maxim that it is not because there are mountains that
one has to touch them.
The Third Try
I have told about my adventures to Mt Kallugong to some friends whom I assume were more familiar of
the place because they grew in La Trinidad.
One suggested that I take the Mt. Tayawan route. That would be great, I thought. I have also read Mt. Tayawan in the official
website of La Trinidad as one good viewpoint and going to Kallugong via that
mount would be like shooting two birds with one stone. And so in the afternoon of that weekend, I
resolved to reach Kallugong.
I was given
direction to simply go Central Tawang, and find the trail that leads to
Kallugong. I rode a passenger jeepney to
Tomay and alighted at the Tawang junction.
Reaching Central Tawang by foot , I saw a signboard put up by NSTP
students of a certain school pointing to the Mt. Tayawan Viewpoint. I followed the trail, walked past a cemetery,
and up to the summit. I noticed that
there was also a fenced portion with a house on it but there was a visible
footpath that runs parallel the fence.
Presumably, the fenced portion is also owned by the same owner of the
fenced portion of Kallugong as there is a long zipline from this portion up the
hat-shaped rock formation.
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| NAME THE FIGURE... Along the trail from Tayawan and within the compound of Kallugong are unusual rock shapes that would make one believe that these must home of or are themselves supernatural beings. |
I continued
walking until I reached a shed, the Tayawan viewpoint. It is so refreshing as both sides of La
Trinidad (two valleys) are visible. One
is where the commercial and heavily populated district along the stretch of
Kilometrers 3 to 5, and the other side is a valley filled with greenhouses
amid residences too. Kallugong was
amazing as it seemed to be amidst pine trees.
I walked past several rock formations. At one juncture, I stopped to
explore around a big rock that has what seemed to be a the opening of a cave at the middle. At the side was a deep gutter and around were
bushes and vines. Rustling of dead
leaves made the place eerie that I left at once.
Soon I was on
Kallugong grounds as declared by a big signboard nailed to a pine tree. The rock with a hat-formation became more amazing
as I got nearer. I was little bit tired
and was wet with sweat but the cool air provided a refreshing feel. I noticed the picnic ground, some swing and small
cabins which made me understood why fees are collected. It haven’t seen any patron yet though. In fact I can see no one. As I drew nearer, a dog came out from under a
cabin and started barking towards the direction I was at. I actually am scared of dogs especially this
particular one as it is big and the fangs were long but got some self-assurance when I saw that it was firmly tied. As I approached the yard,
a woman got out from the cabin. She said
the usual “Umalikayo” (the equivalent of “Welcome” here in the
Cordillera). She explained that there is
a fee in entering the compound. I
appeared to be surprised even if I knew beforehand that there really was. She showed me a logbook where in the opening
page, it was explained that the fee is for maintenance of the park.
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| An unobstructed view of the Strawberry Farm and the valley from KM 4 - KM 6 is a reward upon reaching the pick of Kallugong. This particular afternoon I went there, fog and dark clouds provided the twist. |
She showed
immediately the path to the rock with the hat-formation. She also pointed other places of interest
such as the native Cordilleran huts, a trail up to a view point of the other side
of La Trinidad amid fully-grown pine trees. She offered that if I need assistance, I’ll
just ask from helpers around. I asked if
there are other guests walking around, and she said there were a lot earlier in the
day but perhaps most have left already.
Indeed, I was
alone when I got to peak where the kallugong is. The view of the valley was another amazing
experience even if it was the nth time I viewed the Strawberry Farm. Mt. Yangbaw was also a great view with the repeating scene of fog
covering the peak the showing it after a while.
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| Gate of Heaven? This was the first thing that came to my mind when I reached this point within Kallugong. |
I took time to
get around the rock formations and they too are as amazing as that on the other
side of the fence where I previously went.
At one point, I thought I have found the “gate of heaven” as at one
angle of the camera, it seemed to be a road that leads directly to the
sky. There too are rock formations that
resemble animals or their parts. There
was also one that seemed to be a cactus in the dessert. And at the middle of the rock garden was a
rock that has both the human reproductive organs. At a clearing, there were some men and women probably employees of the eco-park cutting grasses perhaps preparing it for a sweet potato garden. Circling around the rocks led me back to where the hat-shaped
rock is.
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| Riding a Rhino atop the mountain. |
One needs to be
careful in walking around. Aside from
possible dangerous reptiles lurking beneath the stones, a misstep on some of
the rocks can lead to fatal accidents. I
almost fell down a gap when I miscalculated my step. Strong shoes are also recommended. The sole of my shoe fell off after
negotiating through those rocks. It was
good that my laces were long that I used to bundle it up so it wouldn’t fall of
my foot.
As soon as I got into the yard where the huts
are, I realized that I spent almost two hours among the rock. I walked to the forested area for the view of
the other side of La Trinidad but the afternoon fog caused zero
visibility. I was satisfied though
having sat a while back, finally, on the kallugong. That great feeling stayed with me as I
negotiated the familiar road back home.
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| Sitting at the peak of the "hat." On the background is Mount Yangbaw also known as the Little Pulag. |
