Young. 🇵đź‡ADVENTURE PRIMER 🇵đź‡
⏺ Mt. Kalugong, La Trinidad
⏺ Camp John Hay Eco-Trail, Baguio City
I have actually lost count how many times I’ve been to Benguet. The first time was during my days in the university as part of our Baguio City field trip in our Geology class. I can still remember collecting fossils and petrified artifacts under the heat of the sun. I’ve forgotten where exactly the site is in Benguet. We also visited Balatoc Mines in Itogon. Due to Baguio’s proximity to Manila and availability of public buses 24/7, I could never argue why this place is always flocked by tourists all year round. My friends and I would always consider visiting the City of Pines yearly especially during “ber” months because of its cozy weather. I’m just not into the crowd and heavy traffic situation though. Visiting Baguio is pretty much normal to me since it has always been the jump-off point of my mountain climbs in Cordillera but I haven’t really got the chance to tour around the city and nearby spots such as the ones that can be found in the municipality of La Trinidad just like this one, Mt. Kalugong. Damn, would you even believe I haven’t had any food trips in some of the most famous restaurants at the country’s summer capital? You’re probably wondering why I only have these two places in this blog of mine. The truth is, I have never been a fan of mainstream town/city tours so you won’t expect my blog posts to contain stuff like this. That’s why I only handpicked these two places that are my personal favorites in touristy Baguio. It was in 2015 when I first visited this part of Camp John Hay. I know what you’re thinking. In which part of Camp John Hay is this awesome wilderness situated? My friend and I opted for a day trip to Mt. Santo Tomas and Mt. Cabuyao but it was raining cats and dogs when we reached Baguio due to a typhoon in extreme northern Luzon which enhanced the monsoon thus bringing heavy rains in Cordillera. We made our way to the radar station but the rain didn’t stop and the fog was so thick considering the high altitude. We agreed to go back to the city and had our quick snack at Burnham Park then decided to visit this eco-trail of Camp John Hay. I was literally singing Taylor Swift’s Out of the Woods in my head as I was exploring this trail. I was imagining I was lost in an emo music video. It drizzled every now and then but we were lucky that the trail wasn’t too muddy. Who would have thought that the entrance to this mini-forest is just near the road where vehicles pass by? The place was deserted and boy was I surprised that an awesome spot like this exists within the city. Some of our friends asked us right away where this is located after we posted these pictures on social media. We headed towards the direction of the Bell House where we took some more photos. The sun would take a peek from time to time but it started raining again early in the afternoon so we decided to call it a day. It might have been an epic failure but at least we went back to Manila with some Instagrammable shots that day. By December of the same year, I went back to Benguet with my friends from the travel community but we followed a different itinerary this time. I just got back from my solo backpacking trip in El Nido and I wanted to have a break from beach bumming so I joined this planned trip to the north. We walked the concrete yet extra steep road to get to Mt. Kalugong. Because it was December, the cold weather atop welcomed us. There were no tourists yet when we arrived. We headed to this spot with rock formations overlooking the town of La Trinidad. Just be careful when you scramble for pictorial. Time for some awesome selfies! My bad for the poor quality of my cheap action camera. We ate our snacks before walking to the other side overlooking the famous strawberry farm. You really have to be cautious when you shoot your pictures at this spot. Isn’t this amazing? When one of my friends saw my photos atop Kalugong, he was like, “Oh, there’s no sea of clouds but sea of houses rather.” Hey. The view is still great. Besides, you won’t need to hike to see an awesome view like this especially if you have your own ride to get to the eco-park. We bid goodbye to La Trinidad then had lunch at the city before heading to a mountain resort where we would be spending the night. Too bad I already forgot its name. It’s still located in Benguet though. Sorry, I didn’t take any photos. If there’s one thing I could never forget, it’s the cold water of the swimming pool at the resort. Imagine, it was the month of December. We initially thought that they have a hot spring but it turned out that we booked a different resort. Nevertheless, the experience was fun and memorable. The next day, we traveled to Pangasinan where we checked out Antong Falls before going back to Manila in the afternoon. Fast forward to December 2017, my former workmates and I spent a weekend in Baguio. We left Manila at midnight but this time, we hired our own vehicle so it won’t be too much of a hassle touring around the city. Boy was it so cold when we reached our Mt. Kalugong before sunrise. It was still deserted when we arrived. Mt. Kalugong may be in the municipality of La Trinidad but it’s just a one jeepney ride away from the city. Besides, this place doesn’t feel like you left Baguio as this town seems like an extension of the city. After all, it’s the capital of Benguet. In case you don’t have your own ride, just ask the driver of the public jeepney to drop you off at the jump-off where you will hike through the concrete road. It’s just a short walk but majority of the path is steep though. We started taking pictures under the picturesque pine trees of the eco-park. I definitely missed this perfect cold weather. In case you will be spending a couple of hours at Mt. Kalugong, it’s much better if you bring your own food since there are no available restaurants nearby. There is a coffee shop though inside the eco-park. If you want to unwind and feel the cozy weather of Cordillera but you’re tired with the usual crowded spots, you should definitely consider Mt. Kalugong. Relax here at the top then try the tasty strawberry ice cream and strawberry taho (soy pudding) after your descent. Just be patient when you visit strawberry farm as it is usually full of tourists. Aside from the picnic area where you can eat and chill, there are also portions of Mt. Kalugong dotted with rock formations. Just be careful when you decide to climb them as there are parts where you need to scramble. We walked towards this spot to get a good view of La Trinidad. Our outfits weren’t really great for scrambling so we went back to the picnic tables and ate our snacks. We then headed to our booked accommodation in the city proper where we would be staying for the night. We freshened up and rested for a bit before battling the dreaded heavy traffic situation en route to Mines View Park. The next morning, the rest of the gang opted to just stay at our accommodation while my friend and I asked our driver to take us here at Camp John Hay. During this second visit of mine, the trail was slippery due to the drizzle the night before. But that is the least of your worries since the trek is short and easy. Relatively, walking Camp John Hay’s Eco-Trail is still a piece of cake. We would come across every now and then a few locals doing their morning jog. This place may be hidden from outsiders but getting here among Baguio residents is common knowledge. My friend and I savored nature’s feel-good vibes whilst we walked in the middle of tall pine trees while capturing photos. I could still remember the first time I first set foot in this place. You should have seen my surprised face. After all, this is still located inside the city. Camp John Hay may be a default inclusion in touring around Baguio considering it’s a family-friendly destination but this eco-trail is an interesting spot you should cover in your itinerary. It is rarely visited as well so you won’t be worrying about photobombers. After our pictorial, my friend and I headed to the Bell House. Fortunately, there were only a few people inside since it was still early. We roamed around with a guide assigned to us while taking some photos. I’ve been here a couple of times already so there was nothing new to me, to be honest. We took a quick peek of the amphitheater before heading out of the Bell House. We capped off our tour at Camp John Hay along this spot near the road where you could take pictures under these pine trees. If you’re feeling lazy for a short trek at the eco-trail, this portion of pine trees by the road is a good alternative. We went back to our accommodation to pick up the rest of our friends then made our way to Philippine Military Academy which is also one of the most popular tourist attractions in Baguio. But of course, our tour wouldn’t be complete without raiding the market for cheap veggies and fruits, souvenirs and sweets before going back to Manila. By 2019, my family welcomed the year with a day tour at Benguet. We’ve been postponing this trip since 2018 and because the cold dry weather of northeast monsoon seemed perfect for our getaway, we decided to finally push through with our plan. We drove early morning from Manila to Mt. Kalugong and waited for the sunrise atop the eco-park. Boy was it so cold the moment we arrived. After exploring the rock formations overlooking the busy town of La Trinidad, we decided to go to strawberry farm. The place was not yet crowded because it was still early. We filled our tummies with strawberry taho (soy pudding) and my favorite strawberry ice cream while my mum was busy scouting the souvenir shops. Our trip at the City of Pines wouldn’t be complete without binge-eating at Good Taste CafĂ© and Restaurant. It was still a tad early for lunch but we strictly had to follow our itinerary and leave for Manila by noon so we agreed to have our lunch even if it was still quite early. Our last stop in Baguio was Camp John Hay. I could never miss out on visiting this secluded and peaceful spot inside Camp John Hay’s compound. Just like the first and second instances I visited this place, it was virtually deserted the moment we reached the eco-trail. An hour or so had passed of taking photos and we bade farewell to my favorite playground in Baguio City. The heavy traffic condition was nerve-racking considering it was a Sunday. Thank the gods we were able to check off our side trips on our list, Manaoag Church and my aunt’s place in Tarlac City. We then reached Manila by 8:00 in the evening. ***For other destinations in Benguet and Cordillera, you may visit this link .
