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Located in Nasugbu, Batangas. Approximately 811+ MASL (meters above sea level) and with the difficulty of 4/9, the peak of Mt. Batulao offers you the scenic view of the coastal towns of Batangas.

Last September 04, 2013, me and my colleagues have tried to climb one of the most beautiful mountains within batangas. From Pala-pala Dasmarinas, Cavite, we rode a van bound to Nasugbu, Batangas. Good thing is we have 14 participants so the seats is just exactly for us. The sun is almost rising when we arrived to Evercrest Golf Course, and from there you can ride a tricycle or just walk going to jump-off point for short briefing and registration.

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We started our climb around 7 to 8 in the morning. The first kilometers is just an easy walk because the road is already cemented. Its good for warming up your muscles before the actual test of your strength. There are two trails on Mt. Batulao - the old trail and the new trail. We chose the new trails because its easier route than the old one, although some part of it also requires rappelling that adds spice and challenges.

Mt. Batulao is considered as a begginers mountain because the trail is very visible and easy to follow. So in our case, we chose not to hire a guide for us to feel the true adventure for entering places that is new to us. And for the record, I considered Mt. Batulao as my mother mountain, for it is my first time to try mountaing climbing.

For preparation, the thing is I don't know what to bring when going to hike. And addition to that is we also have work the day before the actual climb. So its a quick preparation for me. I just grab whatever clothes I saw in my cabinet, put it in my back pack and go. At the back of my head, my mind is shouting "bahala na si batman". For food? Well, fast food and supermarket just save my day. What's important to me the most is water. Bacause I know that climbing will dehydrates your body.

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We reached the highest peak in about 2-3 hours climbing. The scenery on top is breath taking. The feeling of fullfillment, the joy of conquering your weaknesses and the beauty of nature itself, heals me. After a few minutes of photoshoot, laughing and storytelling of how each one of us reached the peak, we decided to eat our lunch because its noontime already. We also take a rest before descending.

But reaching the summit is not the end of our adventure. As we go down the mountain, the weather suddenly changes. A strong wind with strong rain came. We dont have a choice but to run or else our things will get wet. And suddenly everyone is shocked when a thunderbolt hit the ground, a few meters away from us. We don't know what to do, we just run and run until we saw a Nipa Hut. We decided to go there and wait for the rain to stop. But as we observe the surroundings, we noticed that no one is inside the hut. We saw some meat hanging in the kitchen and in the stove is open, its like someones cooking. Out of no where, one of us says he remember the movie "Wrong Turn". I dont know, but chills and goosebumps run trough our body and then we run away. https://steemitimages.com/DQmeP8sS9t2EZ169xtqTduFWJBDxJrGQVySWutJPGjAqXK6/DSCN2304.jpg Maybe, others will say that Mt. Batulao is not the most beatiful nor the most enticing mountain but I can say that Mt. Batulao, which is my mother mountain, will be my no. 1 pre-loved mountain. I hope one of this day, I will climb again this magnificent creation of God.

Thanks for your time reading my blog. Hopefully I can upload again soon.

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