Hiking Adventures #22: Pico De Loro Dayhike - The Revenge Climb

Now it's 2016! Another year to be filled with adventures and memories. 2015 was really a great year for me because almost all of my plans has been accomplished like climbing mountains every month (and sometimes twice a month). Another reason what made 2015 a great year is because I landed a new job.

Mt. Palay- Palay (Pico De Loro)

I am now working in Deltek Systems (Philippines). It's a new year, new work for me, and new friends to have. On my first week in Deltek, my new teammates have a scheduled dayhike in Pico De Loro or Mt. Palay-palay and they invited me as I've told them that I climb mountains. So I decided to join them and it will be my chance to catch up and chance to finally seeing the summit and the monolith.

We left in Makati at around 4:30 in the morning. Since we rented a van for this trip, we arrived early as expected in Maragondon, Cavite. I'm expecting few hikers in the jump-off since we arrived early, but to my surprise, there are already vast number of hikers in the jump-off.

The Monolith

The author at the monolith with the summit at the background

I already expected this before we go here as Mt. Palay-palay is now one of the mainstreams for beginners. The first time I climbed the mountain, it's not overcrowded, maybe because the trail is much harder than today. Yes, they've change the trail and make it more easier. I'm not saying that I don't want beginners to try mountain climbing at ease, but the coordinators must provide proper regulations to protect the mountain.

However, I still enjoy the climb with my new officemates. I finally saw the summit from the campsite which was not visible during my first visit. As expected it was really crowded. The mountain really looks different from the first time I visit almost 2 years ago. The trail going to summit is very wide due to massive impact of vast number of hikers. I understand that Mt. Palay-Palay is famous because it is easy to climb and it has great views from the summit, really great a weekend trip. But the mountain must be closed to recover.

DTM Team at Pico De Loro

Here's the like of my first climb in Mt. Palay Palay: Hiking Adventures #2: Pico De Loro Climb

You might also like to visit:
Hiking Adventures #13: Mt. Maculot Climb 2015 - Sunny dayhike to Awesome Rockies
Hiking Adventures #6: Mt. Batulao - A Day Trip with 12 Peaks