Night hiking: Thrilling yet adventurous

My friend and I decided to go hiking before the year ended, to unwind and forget all the stresses I've been through from the past months. Since our last hike( which was my second) was 7 months ago, we already missed going on an adventurous hike a lot. That's why we planned to do it again last Dec. 13. Mt. Gulugod Baboy, also known as Mt. Pinagbandirahan, located at Mabini, Batangas Philippines was our destination. We browsed some photos of it on the internet and found out that it was indeed a perfect place to go camping and the trail is easy especially for beginners.

We agreed to be on the camp site of the mountain at around 3pm so that we can climb up even without a guide and while it is still daytime. However, due to our busy schedule on that day and we also came from different places, far from our destination, we arrived on our meeting place at already 4pm. We still need to travel for some hours to reach the site, that's why we were anxious and hesitated to continue our hike and thought about doing it tomorrow instead. But still, since we already prepared so much for this activity, we continued to do it on that same day.

Unfortunately, we encountered too much heavy traffic on our way so we arrived on the campsite at already 8pm! We ate our dinner on the site before going up. I was a little bit scared and nervous because the trail we are about to go through was very dark. We need to use flashlight so that we can see our steps. We also paid for a guide because we might lost our way since it's dark and we're not yet familiar on the trail. There's a fear inside me about what may happen to us while going up. I have no idea about night hiking since I never heard that before and this would be my first time to try it. There was no other hikers on the mountain at that time aside from the two of us plus the guide. I gathered all my strength to face my fear even though I was being hysterical and paranoid at that moment.

Our guide said that we should pass four camp sites before reaching the peak. It would take approximately 2 hours to finish the trail. The beginning of our trek was fine. There was no obstacle and the road was easy. But as we walk further, we encountered slippery and steeper road. The soil was wet due to the rain from the other day, making our steps difficult. It was also very tiresome because of the steepness of the road.

Whenever we reach a camp site, we would rest for 5-7 mins. because my legs were cramping and I was having difficulty in breathing. But I cannot make our rest longer because it's already 10 in the evening as I looked into my watch. I could hear some strange noise surrounding us but I ignored it because maybe those were were just animals or insects.

Finally, we reached the last site where we can set up our tent. According to the guide, the fourth camp site is much suitable to set our tents because the wind there is not so strong that can destroy a tent unlike the wind on the peak. I can already feel the strong wind and see the lights below the mountain coming from the houses. It was very fulfilling because all the difficulties we encountered had been payed off as soon as we reached the top of the mountain.

We settled down and took our rest so that we can wake up early and witness the wonderful scenery on the top.

On the next morning, as I woke up from a very cold temperature, I could feel that my body was freezing. I looked around and saw a very beautiful scene. We ate our breakfast as fast as we can and started to capture photos on everywhere. It took us almost 2 hours on taking pictures.

This was the most adventurous, fun, memorable yet thrilling hike for me so far. That's why I want to introduce night hiking to everyone, if you want a new and challenging adventure. Just make sure that the mountain you're about to climb is safe, and also prepare everything you will need, especially your mind and body. :)