Conquering Mt. Pinatubo -2

The morning after

Despite feeling the ache in our bodies, many woke up at 6:30 in the morning. The air

was cold but the morning was beautiful as any new and pollution-free day. My friends

and I went swimming while the others cooked. The clear blue water was cool and

relaxing to our aching bodies. There were airplanes that passed by, oblivious to the

life underneath them.

The sun gradually crawled in to light every nook of the place, giving us a better view

of the whole scene.

Breakfast was abundant. It consisted of the same canned goods we had the previous

night. After breakfast, it was time for photo opportunities. We posed infront of ten

cameras, trying to capture the background in every angle possible.

Our Aeta companions changed into native G-strings and headpieces and showed us

their way of thanking Aponamalyari for the bounty of their harvest and for the safe

journey of the travelers back to their own homes. They chanted and beheaded a live

chicken as offering to the god.

After the ritual, we headed back to civilization. One after the other we climbed up the

steep trail. Each one of us had wonderful stories of Mt. Pinatubo. We got the last

glimpse of the crater and had more picture-taking when we got to the cliff top. I will

never forget this moment. We left the crater the way we saw it assuring future

adventurers of the same splendor we savored for two days. As responsible

mountaineers, we carried back our garbage and others that mountaineers left a week

before.

The Trek back

Even four hours of walking under the heat of the sun, there were still no sign of our

vehicles. In two more hours, we finally saw them from afar as if it was the oasis in the

desert. The route was faster because we took a short cut on the way that required

us to practice our rock-climbing skills. We had to climb almost a hundred feet up a

lahar mountain and another fifty feet down. It was definitely more fun and exciting.

We walked faster, not minding our exhaustion. We exchanged stories at the finish line

and shared the same pain and agony of the trek.

Nevertheless, we felt it was worth it. Some even promised to go back next year.

The crater of Mount Pinatubo is indeed incomparable. The pictures we took with our

cameras were not as splendid as the real scene, but the pictures we took with our

eyes will always be with us. I’m glad our group survived and lived to tell our adventure

to the next adventurers and spread the news of the birth of another wonder.