20 March 2021 | Hugely deprived of the outdoors & of seeing old friends for nearly over a year spelled for a perpetual thrust for reunion climbs. Come February, easily did four consecutive weekend hikes the moment travel bans were partially lifted and lockdowns were eased, cutting some slack for a rare opportunity to do extra normal things like mountain climbing; of course, with utmost care not to catch the deadly coronavirus, trusted that the mountains are among the safest of places. This Mt. Talamitam climb is unique in such a way that this climb does a lot of telling on how it's been for me in the last few months – some mountain meets reality moment, that is.
I had seen Mt. Talamitam's exquisite beauty and secretly dreamed of conquering it from afar during a Mt. Batulao Climb in 2013. Since then, zero attempts were actually made to make it happen until this year.
There is this thing I have known all these years yet the idea of trying it out never occurred to me until lately. I watched, admired, and celebrated people going their way down this road in the past years. And I'm glad it's finally now my turn. There really is a time for everything.
Eight years later, I finally had the chance to experience Mt. Talamitam's grand, up close and personal. It was a mix of tropics experience stitched with wide-open trails leading to a prized peak. The journey itself is exciting given the variety of what the trails have to offer despite the hardships brought by blazing heat directly from the angry sun.
I recently made this bold decision to take a leap of faith. The experience, so far is a combination of thrill and bloody effort, given the list of requirements, monetary considerations, and the paperwork that comes with it. It was wildly pleasant but calls for a lot of hard work. But the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel is now in sight, just need to get this over with.
At the beginning of the climb were all trees offering much-needed shade against the furious sunny heat. The hike was all, exciting walking yet another familiar trail in gradual uphill slopes and shady comfortable trails. This prelude of the hike lasted for a while until that point leading to an entirely different part was reached.
I was living a safe and routine life. And everything was working just fine. Until some welcomed news of me clinching a prized opportunity presented itself. I needed to decide if I should give it a try, though deep inside I knew this is an inevitable path I need to go.
At the end of that foresty comfort zone portion of the trail was an open track overlooking the distant peak, with views so exquisite, though subject to a long walk under the scorching heat.
It was a crossroads in a sense but with an obvious logical choice. The news signaled a major change in course, and so does the amount of effort that needs to be done, the price I had to pay, and the length of time of uncertainties were unfortunately and inevitably all part of the process. The opportunity’s gold but the odds to realize it was equally great.
From that point of the trail, the peak proudly sits at a distant end inviting a glorious trek across green slopes and rolling fields enveloped in talahibs overlooking the vastness of the Batangas province. It was quite overwhelming given the contrasting beauty of the trails, the thought of reaching the peak, and the tiring part of the entire hike progress.
For months, I have been silently eyeing, eagerly preparing, and hardly working towards this major move of embarking on a journey painstakingly taxing which I deeply hope will be worth it in the end.
