Libotero conquers Taal Volcano in Batangas!

It cannot be denied. Summer is finally here and making its presence felt. The almost-suffocating heat has an underlying message, GO OUTDOORS!

And for our first summer feature, we bring to you one of the most picturesque places in the archipelago, Taal Volcano.

This adventure happened not so long ago, before the restiveness of the volcano last year.

As a traveler, I’ve always been into more of the nature-tripping side, as can be seen in majority of the entries on this site and so I can’t help but get excited to share this with you.

The Taal Volcano sits on an island (Taal Volcano Island) within a lake (Taal Lake), within another island (Luzon Island). Amazing, right? Dad arranged everything prior to this trip so basically, we were just there to enjoy.

From our home in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, it took us an hour’s drive to reach the lake shore of Talisay, Batangas. We already booked a boat so as soon as we arrived in the resort, we just selected the food that will be prepared for us when we come back from Volcano Island. Then, we were immediately directed to our assigned boats. There were seven of us so we had to be divided into two boats. We paid P1,500 for each boat. I was with mom and dad. My three brothers were with our househelp.

Here we go!

The boat ride took thirty minutes and in between, mom would suddenly blurt out her questions, “Is this safe?”, “Why are there waves, this isn’t an open sea right?”, “How could the kids be doing in the other boat?”, “How deep is this lake?”. I couldn’t blame her, after all, she’s a mother. But then, I couldn’t help but remember one of my high school lessons that Taal Lake was one of the deepest in the world. LOL. I panicked for a while but I just held on to my seat and prayed.

Finally we docked at Volcano Island. We walked a few meters before we reached the entrance. At the entrance, we paid P50, per head, which served as the environmental fee and entrance fee at the same time. We also had the option of availing of tour guide services so we got one for P250.

Entrance

Upon starting the trek, our guide asked us if we wanted to take the horse as the peak was still far, far away. Without asking any questions, I told dad that I wanted to ride a horse and so we got one for P1,000. Aside for that, we had to pay another P250 for an assistant who would be pulling the horse, and I was surprised that it was assigned to a minor. Gosh, child labor. Oh well.

Like a boss, I led the group with my horsie. LOL. The path was actually very clear and defined, so hiring a guide is not really necessary.

Going up!

The well-shaped cone you see in the foreground, which is often the subject of most photographs and thought of as the volcano itself, is actually just a small portion of the island and does not hold the main crater.

The path was really dusty, a face mask would be helpful, especially that horse dung is scattered all-throughout route.

Green! Very!

Although the path was really established, some parts of it were quite steep and I really held on tight to my horse, afraid we might overturn anytime. Glad that didn’t happen but somewhere along the way, my horse went “gaga” and started running wild. We directly hit some rocks and plants resulting to multiple scratches on my legs. Ouch! But nonetheless, it was part of the experience. At least I could proudly say, Taal scarred me. LOL.

The path.

While I was sitting comfy on the horse with my mask, I couldn’t say the same for my camera. This was the first major “injury” that my camera has sustained as it accumulated a LOT of dust inside the sensor during the climb, so I immediately had it cleaned after the trip.

Mom and Ate Bon.

After an hour, we were already on top of the volcano! Our two guides asked for P50 each for softdrinks while we enjoy the view of the crater.

And here we are!

Part of the crater

I was really trembling when I saw the crater lake. My jaw dropped in amazement.

A panorama of the crater lake

An island, within a lake, within an island, within a lake, within another island! Gets?

From where we were standing, we could clearly see smoke coming from the lake. If the volcano could just talk, it must have been trying to say, “Hey, I’m alive, active, so be gentle and take care of me!”

After some photo-ops at the crater, our guide asked us if we wanted to conquer the cliff on the right side of the crater lake. Ofcourse we said yes.

This cliff…

Gawd, we really had to be careful, or..

One step could cost us our lives

Breathtakingly beautiful!

Stairway to the Sky

Crossing the narrow path towards the cliff really made me nervous but was a reminder that as living creatures, we should enjoy every moment without regrets. Because of my fear, it took minutes for the moment to sink in that we were actually already on the tip of the cliff.

My brothers and our guide as, miners?

On top of the world!

It started drizzling so we had to go back to the crater before the path becomes slippery and more dangerous.

Science 101: Igneous Rocks

After some more photo-ops and refreshments, we started the descent and I was still on my horse, weee!

We survived Taal!

The whole trek was very tiring and costly. You might say it was an effortless climb for me as I was on a horse, but no. Immediately after I got off the horse, I felt body pains I’ve never felt ever! It felt as if I was wrestled by ten gorillas. But nah, it was all worth it. This trip will always be one of the most memorable ones I had. Libotero loves Taal!

Boats docked at Volcano Island