Daraitan

Located within the boundary of Tanay, Rizal and General Nakar, Quezon province. a small town known for its clean rivers. It offers many outdoor activities, there are Mountains to climb, caves to explore and the river i for kayaking, rafting and water trekking. Daraitan is definitely a hidden paradise that is yet to be explored.

We went here last January 29-30, 2011 for a friend's two day birthday celebration. Going to Daraitan takes about 4-5 hours at least. from Parklea at Crossing, Mandaluyong city Philippines. we're supposed to take a jeepney to Tanay market then from there board another to Daraitan which is the usual way getting there.

Luckily we were offered a trip straight to Daraitan for PHP 100.00 per head, (We were 21 by the way).

We left Parklea at around 12:30pm, after two hours we reached Tanay market  were we stopped for a while to buy supplies. on our way now to Daraitan some of us rode at the top of the jeepney including me, it was fun.

The bridge to barangay Daraitan

We reached Daraitan at around 5:00pm, we were also asked for a registration fee of PHP 10.00 per person.
the locals offered guide service but we chose not to get one even though this is all our first time here, just to spice up more adventure on our trek not knowing where should we go.the trail is straight forward its just that it rained making the trail muddy and slippery. after an hour walking in darkness we reached an area where we can set up a camp, it can accommodate at least 5-8 tents. after dinner and a couple of drinks we slept.

View from where we camped

My friends began exploring first thing in the morning, i was too sleepy to come so i don't have any pictures of me of the places they've been.
here are some pics,

After we had our lunch we started swimming, the water is clear and cold. i tried going to the middle and i was surprised that the water was just below my chest, there were many rocks under that you can step on but still you have to be careful, your feet may be stuck between some rocks. there are spots that the current are strong. given that the water's  cold and it's windy we didn't feel the heat of the sun but still after we finished swimming some of us got sun burned.

We head back to Manila at around 5pm, and we still rode on the top of the Jeepney. we got to Manila at 9pm.I wasn't able to upload more photos of this place because my camera's memory card got corrupted.



I'm looking forward to go back to Daraitan to explore more of it.
- Daraitan January 29-30, 2011


How to get to Daraitan,


From Parklea in Crossing, Mandaluyong city, Take a jeepney to Tanay
Then from Tanay Market take another jeepney to Daraitan

* Prepare a PHP10.00 registration fee at Daraitan's barangay hall.

Pico de loro

 Summit's view from the campsite

Mt. Palay-Palay a.k.a Pico de loro Located approximately 85 kilometers southwest from Manila,not a bad destination for a weekend getaway. getting here takes just about three hours. Me and my friends usually go to Mt. Romelo but we since we've been there for almost 10 times so we decided to try a different one. on our way here we didn't go to any bus terminals, we were told that we can just catch a bus in Baclaran, just in front of the Baclaran church to be exact.

In the bus off to Ternate

After almost three hours we've reached Ternate, Cavite. We went to the market to buy food, water and last but not the least is liquor haha. then off we go to the jump-off located in the magnetic hill. on our way there we passed a bridge that offers a good view of the river and sea, locals here said that salt water and fresh water mixes here.
here's the picture,

 Right side view from the bridge if you're bound to the magnetic hill

Left side view from the bridge if you're bound to the magnetic hill

We just took a tricycle (trike) to get to the DENR (Department of Environment and Natural Resources) station where we need to register first. there are many tricycles in Ternate that proactively offers to take you to DENR even stopping by to a market to buy supplies. they also give their contact numbers so they can be contacted to take us back to Ternate after our hike.

Tricycle

Road to Magnetic hill

After almost twenty minutes we reached the DENR station, registered first before we climb, we paid P10.00 for registration fee. we now then distributed the weight of our supplies in each of our bag then head on to the jump-off point which is i think 100+ meters away from DENR station.

Jump-off point, just on the side of the road.

The trail is straight forward so we chose not to have a guide. after almost an hour hiking we reached the base camp 1 which is a nipa hut that we also need to pay a registration fee of P10.00 or i think maybe a donation for the family that lives on that hut, since they help maintaining the cleanliness of the place and manages garbage disposal for our convenience. You can also buy cold softdrinks here. there's also a water source for us to fill up our individual water containers.

We continued hiking then after about 45 minutes we passed by a small wooded gate that leads to a trail that is divided but not to worry since there's a sign that shows the way to summit.

To Pico de loro

The left trail leads to a waterfall then the right trail leads to the summit. its already 4:30pm when we reached this sign board so we decided to camp near the waterfall then will proceed to the summit first thing in the morning.
we then pitched our tents and went to the waterfall to get water and freshen up. The trail to the waterfall is steep and very similar to the steep trail going to Buruwisan falls in Mt. Romelo. The waterfalls would be much better to visit on a rainy season.

This is located before you get to the waterfalls

Refreshing cold water!

After we freshen up, we head back to our camp then cooked our food then finally drinking session under the moonlight with cold winds hahaha. We slept at around 1:00am then woke up at 7:00am, we cooked breakfast then prepared ourselves to assault the mountain's summit. the trail to summit is steep.i forgot how many times we took a rest, some parts of the trail is about 60 degrees that we cling to roots and rocks to climb. it's really important to have at least 3 liters of water for each person us to keep well hydrated. the picture below is the only one i got of the trail. I got so tired and  forgot to take pictures.

Tired and excited :)

It took us at least two hours or more to reach the campsite near the summit from where we camped. there's this field that has a lot of bamboos, it almost looked like a panda's natural habitat.

:

Thrilled  :)

here's some pictures of us at the campsite,

Near a cliff

Same cliff :p

at the edge

Then off we go to the summit, it's just 10-15 minutes away from the campsite. it's a good thing that the weather on this day is on our side, if not we probably encountered much difficulty assaulting the summit. the trail has loose rock that we still did hold on to grass and some roots to maintain balance.

On our way to the summit

At last the summit, standing 664+ MASL, they said that this is the highest point in Cavite. it gave us a fascinating 360 degree view where in you can see Cavite, Batangas (Nasugbu) and the South China sea.

The campsite on where we at 15mins ago, viewed from the summit.

Sitting on Cavite's highest point

and of course the famed rock tower,

The monolith

The winds at the summit is strong, there were moments that we stayed low while walking to keep our balance.
Not all of us tried scaling the rock tower since it's pretty dangerous. I dont want to try it also but come to think of it,.. Hey we're already here, we planned scaling this weeks ago, definitely we should well it a try. one of my friends joined me scaling the rock tower. the others stayed on the summit to take pictures of us when we reach the top.

To scale or not to scale? :)

We successfully reached the top. its somehow scary when we're doing it because there's this part on the rock that we need to crawl and if we fall, then its goodbye. there's a rope to hold on to near the top of the rock tower, must have left by previous mountaineers or DENR for the convenience of other climbers, kudos! :)

start

Yes this is fun but the hazards are so damn real haha

The summit, viewed from the top of the rock tower

An hour passed, it's time for us to head back to manila, we're supposed to try to traverse to Nasugbu, Batangas but we're really not familiar with the trail to get there. we then proceed getting back to base camp 1 (nipa hut) where we had a refreshing buko juice. Now, off we go now to the DENR station, there we took a shower for P10.00 per head. they also sell soft drinks, i think its P20.00. After tidying up, the local tricycles are already waiting to take us back to Ternate, from there we just waited for a bus bound to Manila.

On our way back to DENR station

Boarding a tricycle back to Ternate

The hike was tiring but definitely worth it and enjoying!
-Pico de loro December 11-12, 2010

How to get to Pico de loro,

--This is how we did it. you guys have the option of going to bus terminals or renting a jeep from Ternate going to the magnetic hill.--

Go to Baclaran in Pasay city, in front of the Baclaran church south bound road, board a bus bound to Ternate,

* Bus to Ternate, Prepare P120.00 (just an estimated amount since the fare do change sometime)

From Ternate, take a tricycle to the DENR station in the magnetic hill.

* We we're charged P100.00 for the tricycle, 3 persons = P100.00, you can ask the tricycle driver to stop by the market where you can buy supplies.

Registration fees:
P10.00 for DENR station
P10.00 for Base camp 1 (Nipa Hut)


Just do the same thing above if you're heading back to Manila,
also, locals in Ternate told us that the last trip for buses bound to Manila is 7:00pm.
If you weren't able to make it at 7:00pm, What they advice is to go to Maragundon or Naic, Cavite to catch a bus back to Manila.