Stairways to Heaven!

Having said a heart felt goodbye to Lianna as she was headed back to Canada the following morning, I jumped on a bus headed North. It took over nine hours  to travel 350 km winding along the mountain roads to reach Banaue.

The air is pleasently cool here and the sky seems to be permanently overcast which is a direct contrast to the rest of the country at this time of year. I have come to see the rice terraces, advertised as the worlds greatest, but from the town center view it is difficult to feel inspired.

After breakfast and a short nap I began to question the staff at the guesthouse on possible hiking routes in the area. To my dismay, I was informed it was planting season and that it would be difficult to navigate without a guide. I weighed in the pro’s and con’s of going solo and made my decision when I met Micheal who invited to guide me along with 3 Germans to the viewpoint that afternoon. Once we arrived at the viewing deck my initial pessimistic reaction was cast aside as I could see why the terraces are often labeled as an eighth wonder. We continued to trek amongst the terraces for the next 3 hours which was a nice way to stretch my legs and prepare myself for the next few days.

At 9am the next day I met up with the three Germans plus 3 Swiss and 2 French we had met that night for a hike to Batad. The road leading up to “the saddle” from where we would start our hike, was by far the worst I have experienced so far in the Philippines and everyone seemed to be glad when we arrived.

The view from the saddle is one in which postcards are made. Towering mountains rimmed a valley from which stone walled terraces radiated out. We descended  to a small lodge where one of the  German’s decided to remain back because he was feeling ill and the rest of us continued down to “the ampitheatre”, named because of the 360 degree views of rice terraces. It is planting season in Batad as well and while some of the terraces have water in them, many are in earth so dry it has begun to crack. There has been no rain here in the past few months which is highly unusual and will certainly impact the local communities as their harvest is their livelihood.

Once we took in the spectacular site from the ampitheatre we climbed a small ridge and walked down into a small valley behind the rice fields. The knee busting descent was worth it as there was a picturesque water fall complete with a pool for swimming waiting at the bottom. The water was shockingly freezing but welcomed after the hours of sweaty hiking. The refreshed feeling we gained wasn’t to last long as the climb out of the valley was our most difficult of the day.

Back at the lodge we were reunited with our fallen commrade and settled in for a massive lunch to refuel. With our bellies full, it took another hour of steep up hill climbing to reach the saddle where our jeepney drive was waiting to take us back to Banaue.

Banaue and Batad’s terraces lived up to my expectations but are certainly no undiscovered gem. Treking amongst them many small groups of tourists can be expected to be encountered and the tourist influence on the region is felt when meeting the local  population. Many children will ask for money and candy and may even become quite angry if don’t oblige proof that handing out things to children can have a negative impact. I enjoyed the scenery very much but the begging for candy/money left a small stain on an otherwise mesmerizing little town. Next, I plan to head further into the Cordillera into a much less visited region to meet the headhunters of Kalinga!