Climbing Mt. Daraitan
When I invite people for a climb, I often get reactions of shock and disbelief. Some people don’t even believe me that I love going to beaches, and I don’t really mind soaking up the sun. I guess it might be because of my light complexion, which makes people assume that I don’t like outdoor activities. I’ll never forget the time when someone even asked me if I got Glutathione injections or drank whitening tablets just to maintain my skintone. LOL! My secret? I just don’t tan easily. I proved this whenever my friends would slather on sunscreen with a minimum SPF of 100, while I would usually just use sunscreen with SPF 30. After a couple of hours under the sun, my friends’ skin would look really tan, while my skin just looks red. I then get a slight tan after a few days. My skin’s weird like that I guess.
I really don’t identity myself as a “mountain climber”. In fact, I usually just climb 1-2 times a year, if given the chance. But more often than not, I’m game enough to try if someone invites me for a climb, or some other outdoor activity.
For my Daraitan climb, we chose to make it a sunrise climb, in hope of witnessing a sea of clouds. None of my closest friends are into mountain climbing, so it’s quite hard to plan a group climb. For this trip, I went with my officemates. The usual Daraitan climb usually starts at around 7-9 AM from jump-off point, but we chose to start our hike at 3 AM, in hope of seeing the sea of clouds.
From Manila, you can hire a driver with car (good for 7 people) for PHP3,100. You can contact Dencio 09212681896. This already includes roundtrip transfers, so it’s very economical and convenient. Daraitan is in Tanay, Rizal, which is in the east. It takes around 3 hours from Manila to get to the jump-off point. If you don’t choose to book a private car, I heard you can also commute, but I highly discourage this, especially if you plan to do a sunrise climb. To get to the jump-off point, you’d have to pass through a dirt road, 8 km long, with no ample lighting. It’s also surrounded by grass, so I don’t think walking or taking a tricycle is a good idea, since it’s pitch black at night, and it doesn’t really look safe. The route looks like it came straight out of a horror movie. It’s like a ghost can just suddenly appear in front of you haha!
Once you get to the jump-off point, you’d have to pay an environmental fee of PHP 100 per person, and PHP 500 per group guide. Getting a guide is mandatory since the trail is very challenging and can get very slippery. If you’re part of a big group, and some are beginners, I highly recommend getting more than just one guide.
As for the actual hike, going up is steep but manageable. Only 10% of the trail going up is considered flat, while the rest is quite steep. It takes around 2 - 4 hours to get to the summit, depending on your pace. There are 3 camps, with camp 2 to 3 being the longest. When you reach the summit, you’ll have around 4 vantage points to take nice photos. We arrived at the summit at around 5:30 AM and we were the first group to arrive, so we had a lot of solo time for taking countless photos. The view was amazing! It really felt like I was in Mt. Olympus due to the sea of clouds. We were lucky enough that it rained the night before, and the forecast for that day was cloudy. The scenery lasted pretty long - up to around 9 AM!
Do note that there's no guarantee what you'll see once you're up there. It's nature, so expect the unexpected. If you don't see the sea of clouds, that's okay. The view is still nice, and take the climb as an achievement. I’ve climbed Mt. Pulag (a mountain famous for its breathtaking sea of clouds), and I didn’t even get to see such thick clouds, since it was so clear the first time I climbed. I actually tried climbing it a second time around 2 years ago, and experienced the opposite. My second climb was plagued with a typhoon. It got so bad that I actually thought we’d have to be rescued. So yeah, just enjoy the journey!
Anyway, back to the Daraitan summit. Rocks are very sharp, and kinda reminded me of the prehistoric era. Some rocks even look like dinosaur bones haha!
The route going down to the Tinipak River is much more difficult than the trail going up. The trail going down is very steep, and is very rocky. The rocks are also very sharp, so take caution where you step, it can also get really slippery when muddy. I highly suggest covered trekking shoes instead of sandals. Be cautious that the trails have a lot of tree stumps in the middle of the trail - some of them are not really cut properly so the ends are pretty sharp. We asked our guide why there were stumps in the middle of the trails (some of them longer than a foot!), and we were told that over time, the soil has been washed away, and exposed more of the stump. If you ask me, having tree stumps with sharp edges pose a bigger risk than having trees in the middle of the trail, so just be extra careful. I also suggest wearing gloves. I made the mistake of not wearing a pair and I got a couple of cuts on my fingers, from holding onto vines, tree trunks, and rocks. Better to use fitted ones, so that they don’t slip out easily.
It took us around 4 hours to get to the Tinipak river, but the view was worth it! It’s the perfect spot to freshen up and rinse your soiled clothes. The river houses some powdery rocks and greenish water - a scene very inviting, specially after a very tiring hike!
There are tricycles at the end of the river, so don’t worry about walking even more going back to the town! Tricycle ride is only PHP 15 per person. Once you get back to the town, there are comfort rooms and shower rooms that you can use. The locals have made this into a business, which is such a big help for hikers. A shower costs PHP 20 while the use of the toilet is PHP 5. There are also toiletries and slippers for sale, just in case you need.
I really don’t identity myself as a “mountain climber”. In fact, I usually just climb 1-2 times a year, if given the chance. But more often than not, I’m game enough to try if someone invites me for a climb, or some other outdoor activity.
For my Daraitan climb, we chose to make it a sunrise climb, in hope of witnessing a sea of clouds. None of my closest friends are into mountain climbing, so it’s quite hard to plan a group climb. For this trip, I went with my officemates. The usual Daraitan climb usually starts at around 7-9 AM from jump-off point, but we chose to start our hike at 3 AM, in hope of seeing the sea of clouds.
From Manila, you can hire a driver with car (good for 7 people) for PHP3,100. You can contact Dencio 09212681896. This already includes roundtrip transfers, so it’s very economical and convenient. Daraitan is in Tanay, Rizal, which is in the east. It takes around 3 hours from Manila to get to the jump-off point. If you don’t choose to book a private car, I heard you can also commute, but I highly discourage this, especially if you plan to do a sunrise climb. To get to the jump-off point, you’d have to pass through a dirt road, 8 km long, with no ample lighting. It’s also surrounded by grass, so I don’t think walking or taking a tricycle is a good idea, since it’s pitch black at night, and it doesn’t really look safe. The route looks like it came straight out of a horror movie. It’s like a ghost can just suddenly appear in front of you haha!
Once you get to the jump-off point, you’d have to pay an environmental fee of PHP 100 per person, and PHP 500 per group guide. Getting a guide is mandatory since the trail is very challenging and can get very slippery. If you’re part of a big group, and some are beginners, I highly recommend getting more than just one guide.
As for the actual hike, going up is steep but manageable. Only 10% of the trail going up is considered flat, while the rest is quite steep. It takes around 2 - 4 hours to get to the summit, depending on your pace. There are 3 camps, with camp 2 to 3 being the longest. When you reach the summit, you’ll have around 4 vantage points to take nice photos. We arrived at the summit at around 5:30 AM and we were the first group to arrive, so we had a lot of solo time for taking countless photos. The view was amazing! It really felt like I was in Mt. Olympus due to the sea of clouds. We were lucky enough that it rained the night before, and the forecast for that day was cloudy. The scenery lasted pretty long - up to around 9 AM!
Do note that there's no guarantee what you'll see once you're up there. It's nature, so expect the unexpected. If you don't see the sea of clouds, that's okay. The view is still nice, and take the climb as an achievement. I’ve climbed Mt. Pulag (a mountain famous for its breathtaking sea of clouds), and I didn’t even get to see such thick clouds, since it was so clear the first time I climbed. I actually tried climbing it a second time around 2 years ago, and experienced the opposite. My second climb was plagued with a typhoon. It got so bad that I actually thought we’d have to be rescued. So yeah, just enjoy the journey!
Anyway, back to the Daraitan summit. Rocks are very sharp, and kinda reminded me of the prehistoric era. Some rocks even look like dinosaur bones haha!
The route going down to the Tinipak River is much more difficult than the trail going up. The trail going down is very steep, and is very rocky. The rocks are also very sharp, so take caution where you step, it can also get really slippery when muddy. I highly suggest covered trekking shoes instead of sandals. Be cautious that the trails have a lot of tree stumps in the middle of the trail - some of them are not really cut properly so the ends are pretty sharp. We asked our guide why there were stumps in the middle of the trails (some of them longer than a foot!), and we were told that over time, the soil has been washed away, and exposed more of the stump. If you ask me, having tree stumps with sharp edges pose a bigger risk than having trees in the middle of the trail, so just be extra careful. I also suggest wearing gloves. I made the mistake of not wearing a pair and I got a couple of cuts on my fingers, from holding onto vines, tree trunks, and rocks. Better to use fitted ones, so that they don’t slip out easily.
It took us around 4 hours to get to the Tinipak river, but the view was worth it! It’s the perfect spot to freshen up and rinse your soiled clothes. The river houses some powdery rocks and greenish water - a scene very inviting, specially after a very tiring hike!
There are tricycles at the end of the river, so don’t worry about walking even more going back to the town! Tricycle ride is only PHP 15 per person. Once you get back to the town, there are comfort rooms and shower rooms that you can use. The locals have made this into a business, which is such a big help for hikers. A shower costs PHP 20 while the use of the toilet is PHP 5. There are also toiletries and slippers for sale, just in case you need.
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