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MOUNT TAPULAO (HIGH PEAK)
LOCATION: Zambales Province
ELEVATION: 2037 meters above sea level
LEVEL: Major, Level II, Strenuous
JUMP-OFF POINT: Dampay Salaza, Iba Zambales
INFORMATION:
Mt. Tapulao is located at Iba, the capital of Zambales Province
and the birth place of former president Ramon Magsaysay, is
87 kilometers away from Olongapo City. Mt.Tapulao is also
known as Mt. High Peak. It’s prevalent in the Philippines
for mountains to have two or more names since there are names
given by early explorers (outsiders) and the names used by
the locals living near the place. Tapulao belongs to the "2000
mountains" having a height or 2,037 meters above sea
level. The mountain was once featured in a local newspaper
as the "super cool mountain" since the recent expedition
led by the mayor of the locality claimed the place as cooler
than Baguio (he haven’t tried climbing other mountains
before that’s why he thought it as unusual).
The existing trail being used to go to the summit is an old
miner's trail. The mountain was once a site of a large-scale
carbide mining operations. In fact you will be surprised to
see mine pits on the summit as well as other related structures
along the trail. Views from the summit are awesome, with 360
degrees view point vista. From there you can see Lingayen
Gulf and South China Sea, Pundaquit and the Zambales lowlands-
all are feast for the eyes.
Dampay Salaza, the jump-off point, is a resettlement area.
The wide trail begins from this small village all the way
to the summit area. The trail is really wide, in fact you
can drive your way up to almost half of the entire trail.
If for not the recent landslide, you can even drive your way
to the campsite area, where old rusting tractors, a sign of
the busy mining days, rests on its grave. Be cautious though,
since it is only advisable to bring 4 wheel drive vehicles.
The trail is interesting, from an ordinary typical Philippine
rainforest mountain trail, you will suddenly enter a different
world as if you are in one of the Benguet high mountains.
Very much Benguet but less the mountain tribes. The destination,
the summit, is at the rear end of the mountain which explains
why you have to trek that far. There is however, a continuing
trail, which according to rumors goes on the other side, to
Tarlac/Pangasinan via a 5 day trek. The area is nestled in
between mountain ranges, very much isolated, as mentioned
without any local tribes. The place also offers different
action adventures, compared to other mountaineering destinations,
wherein you can bike, drive and even kayak (yes there are
white water rivers- explored by one familiar expat- Steven
Rogers).
Generally, Tapulao is not your ordinary mountain. You will
have to trek on a continuos uphill trail, 17 kilometers in
length, 6 hours of trekking time. The trek will test your
limits and will truly separate the boys from the men.
LEGENDS:
The story of Olongapo is derived from a colorful legend about
a well loved chieftain called Apo, whose headless body is
one day found at the beach of the fishing village. A long
and ardent search ends when his missing head is found impaled
atop a bamboo pole. The announcement of the discovery becomes
a rallying cry for unity for the demoralized tribe. So "Ulo
ng Apo" or head of the Chieftain became the name of the
fishing village on the shores of lovely Subic Bay.
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