Mt. Manabu... the itch, dead nails and Bulalo

The plan to climb Mt. Manabu was hatched buy a loveless Happy Camper. She was bored to death by the loooong Holiday and managed to convinced some of us that the best way to scratch the itch is to climb. Mt. Manabu is perfect considering it's proximity to Manila and the ease of the trail. It only took us just over an hour to reach the peak and met some young Filipino-Chinese friends. Now we are assured of "tikoy" and "hopia" come January 26.

We did not stay long at the summit because there's not much to do. After we ate our lunch and some pole dancing, we are on our way back.



The climb did not take away Marge's itch, we took turns scratching her back 'til a tattoo rises from her butt.


Descending is quite easy... not for Sophie's nails though. Well, she's a Queen, and queens should have dead nails.



A Bulalo meal is how we end our day. I am surprised to see young, slim and pretty ladies devour the meat. I hope they don't eat raw as they claim... Happy Campers in Manabu!

2009 Mountains to Climb

This is not our climbing schedule for year 2009...

It will be 2009 mountains before we'll stop climbing. If we can climb 20 in a year, that means it'll take about a hundred more years before we call it quits. If you doubt it, just logged on to this blog 'til 2109 alright? Bwahahaha!

Many doubted our group will ever reach the summit of Mt. Daguldol in our first climb last year. They thought we are physically unfit and too old to become mountaineers. Whoa, we did not only climbed Daguldol but we also did Pulag, Amuyao, Dulang-Dulang, Manalmon, Pinatubo, Mabilog, Maculot, Batulao, Arayat and some small cute mountains that come in pairs.

Hey, no doubt about it, we are the Happiest Campers in the Philippines and probably the world. For every misadventure we encounter during our climbs, the best of us always come out... smiling, laughing, wetting. Anybody interested to join us in our future climbs are welcome. Just be sure to bring your rain gear if it's sunny, your winter jacket if weatherman forecast a hot day and most of all wear a SMILE :)

2009 more mountains to climb? 2009 more reason to be HAPPY!

Happy Campers in Mount Everest

The Board during it's year end drinking session have decided that Happy Campers Pilipinas (HCP) will send a team to Mt. Everest in 2010. In a resolution witnessed by a bottle of brandy, 2 bottles of scotch, 5 bottles of red wine and dozens of assorted beer... Cho and Tita Merly will lead the fund raising activities which include prosperity dances in leading public markets nationwide. Kick off activity netted HCP a couple of thousand pesos courtesy of market vendors in Clover Leaf Balintawak.

Interested members who would like to be part of Happy Team Everest please signify your intention by posting on the comment section below. It will be an all expense paid trip for qualified aspirants plus a complete DVD dance instruction of Material Girl. Good Luck!

Mt. Batulao... Happy Campers' Lechon Party!

It was meant to be an induction climb for some of us, but it turned out to be a party.

We started our hike by choosing our would be guide amongst the young boys waiting at the jump off. Melvin 9 years old proved to be the perfect guide. He was courteous, knows the trail well and can even turn a mountain flower into a musical instrument. So while we huffed our way through the rugged trail,he was making sounds from a flower that reminded us of a bird chirping or a cat in heat.

Happy Campers tried the "new trail" and the view is magnificent. We also met some interesting people along the way but we'll never forget... the future Mayor of Batulao.

The campsite just below the summit is a good place to rest. The view...superb! One of us could not resist the cool mountain air and dream his way to the summit.

Climbing Mount Batulao is fun and rewarding.... crispy lechon and cold beer on the house!

Mt. Amuyao Night Trek

Night Trek in Mt. Amuyao is not only a possibility, it's a reality! How did we do it? here's our story...

We were booked on a 9:30pm autobus but missed it. We were hurled like sacks of potatoes on the next bus squeezing ourselves on it's center seats. From Manila to Banaue we were threatened not to move nor breadth because doing so will cause a dangerous weight imbalance to the bus. For 10 long hours we kept still, managing only to blink ones a while and smile :) ....thinking that one of us will get the shocked of her life we she find out that we are going mountain climbing and not to some beach resort in Zambales.

Reaching Banaue with sored butts and numbed limbs, we managed to have a hearty breakfast in Las Vegas Restaurant. Here, we met the jeepney driver that will take us to Barlig (jump off point). Funny, but this driver and his know-it-all assistant have not seen Barlig in their entire life. Tough Luck!

Since our guides are clueless to our destination, we stopped more often than not to ask for directions. One of the girls could not control nature's call during the trip, so we made an emergency stopover for her to take a leak. Next time we saw her she was wet all over and has to change clothes right in the middle of the road. We took some pictures of her while she undressed in front of us but could not post it here. Those interested to see her pics can buy Maxim and FHM magazines next month and look for the article "Slipped and Stripped".

It was already raining when we started our ascend around 4pm. We have about an hour and a half of daylight before darkness sets in. The steep trail are so slippery we crawled our way up. Mountain Crawling....anyone?

Nobody quit in Amuyao. Our sweepers reached the summit at 3am. Tired, wasted but Happy. The hot and delicious pork "sinigang" was a treat!

Is a night trek in Mt Amuyao possible??

Happy Campers Did It!

Happy Camper of the Month... Queen Sophie

Sophie is a Queen. You can tell it in the way she handles her food in the wilderness. A royal blood... always prim and proper. She uses the center seat of the autobus when traveling from Manila to Banaue, and has sore butt to prove it.
Leeches love to suck her dry. It's the sweetness of her royal blood that they like. Commoners do not have to fear leeches again when they are in a company of an Aristocrat like Sophie. These parasites hate sweaty skin.
Our Queen recently climbed Mt. Amuyao. The dead nails on her feet are proof that she enjoyed it. She swears that she likes mountaineering than golf. She's selling her golf clubs to pay for the badly needed nail replacement.
We all want to see you in our next climb Sophie. May your nails Rest In Peace...
Long Live the Queen!

Happy Halloween...ooops Happy Camper of the Month

Who would think that this 55 year old granny can still climb mountains? Naysayers said she's just too old and should stick to cross stitch and her rocking chair. Hell NO! The First Lady of Yokogawa Philippines recently climbed Mt. Dulang Dulang... the second highest mountain in the country. When her doctor told her to stop what she's doing because of lumbar problem... she made sure to get another doctor and slapped him. Our Happy Camper does not need a porter to carry her bags. She needs a good looking porter to carry her during climbs. She's 'very energetic and can even make KC Concepcion run for her money.
She swears she'll never climb Mt. Cristobal because it's the Devil's Mountain. Me thinks she'll drive away all the evil spirits in the mountain when she sets foot on it. Tita Merly is a woman who's always in a hurry... to buy souvenirs. She arrives early in the meeting place well ahead of everybody. Occasionally, she'll arrive one day ahead. I just dont know if it is the early bird mentality or alzeihmers catching up on her.
Keep smiling Tita Merly because you are our Happy Camper of the Month!