Almost Canlaon Day 1

It took me a while to finally decide to write about our adventures in Mt. Canlaon. So  much has happened that I thought it would be better to just keep it in memory. But then...is there any better way of keeping a memory than write about it? Hmmm! I figured people will stick to what they know best.

September 21, 2012
Call time at Citilink was 4:00 AM. Congratulations to the boyfie (and I) for being early...I must say, super early. The van left the terminal around 5:00 AM, as planned. The trip was fast that we reached Toledo earlier than expected. So far...everything was GOOD.

At terminal while waiting...

Just before the ride!

Ohhhh! We look like turtles, carrying our home in the backpack. :D 

The trip to San Carlos City was once again good. The sky was clear. It's as if the gods were in our favor. Yay! Considering the "super me" weather, I didn't forget to say my usual prayers.

It was scorching hot when we reached our destination. Our first stop was the nearest mall of which I forgot the name. Haha! We reached it by "trisikad*". After leaving our backpack  on the counter, we had brunch. After the meal, the grocery followed. Then off we went to the terminal bound to Canlaon.

Hmmm!

The terminal was crowded. No bus bound to Canlaon. We had to wait 30 minutes. When it arrived, people got busier. I figured I must put an extra effort if I want to find a perfect spot on the bus. And of course...I found the perfect spot. I was tired so I opt to doze off instead of sightseeing. 

When we reached our stop in Canlaon, Kuya Cocoy, completed the group. He picked us at the Canlaon Terminal then off we went to the office of Canlaon Nature Park. We waited for a while there for the Russian joiner to arrive. The Russian didn't arrived on the target time so we started the journey without him.

The drop off point was still 30 minutes away from the office. On the middle of the ride to the drop off, it drizzled. Then comes the rain. Fortunately, the rain left when we reached  our destination. Yay!

Team Complete!
From Left: Musni, Florence, Dea, Cocoy, Pong, Glian, Mwah, Boyfie, Alistair, Dave

And the boyfie had to ask Pong to take this pic. And yes...I was surprise. @_@

And the journey started!

Up...up..UPPPPPP!

The view.

The starting trek was on a field. The view was captivating. Unfortunately, it was so steep, I had to stop every 5 minutes. And my new bag is killing me. I had a hard time breathing on the heart strap. Then my head started to ache. My knees trembled. All I could think is how near the drop off point was. I wanted to go back and stop. Even asked myself, what on earth I was doing there?! Then the monologues in my mind started. Blamed myself for not jogging, for eating to much "pungko-pungko" and all the laziness and indulgence I had.  I figured it was payback! And even if I wanted to back out, I can't. There's no going back. I don't want any of my companion to hate me if I did. So I persevered. I thought of how nice it would be if we reached the campsite. Keep thinking it's just 2 hours away. I've survived Talinis. There's no way I wouldn't survived the 2 hours. All I have to do is to keep thinking I can do it. And of course...my will power never fails me. Every damn time! :)

Our tent. I was inside changing my clothes and settling down. I was so tired I forgot about pictures.

The campsite ached my heart. It kept reminding me about our lost Camera.