Maligcong Bontoc | When Baby Carrots Fall

It is said that when you are on the summit of Mt. Kupapey, the most prominent peak in Maligcong Bontoc, according to locals, the rice terraces below would resemble a Butterfly (kupapey means butterfly in their dialect). Another tale suggest that the name was coined by their ancestors many years ago, when there was an abundance of those winged insects in their beloved mountain. On my own accounts, when I first hiked Mt. Kupapey last June(2016), I didn’t see anything to corroborate those stories, but what I did see though, was an incredible feat of Igorot Engineering, doused by a dramatic sunrise through a swirling mixture of fog and clouds, indeed one of the best kept secrets of Mountain Province, capping of what already was a memorable road trip in the Cordilleras.

(If you like this post, click here to check out my articles about TACADANG KIBUNGAN; the most beautiful village in Cordillera)   

Travelling has grown my acquaintances into many different branches that most of my trips, like this one, are an ensemble of different friends I met on separate circumstances. I met Jason when I was hiking in Montalban, while Bibi on the other hand is a fellow Thomasian I met on Zambales more than 2 years ago on my first major hike, and I haven’t seen her since. She brought with him his boyfriend Kiko, and his brother Joshua, which somehow gained the nickname “Baby Carrot”, for his resemblance to Carrot Man. My travel and hike buddy for the last couple of months, Pao Go was my Co-Conspirator for this trip when we planned it just a week before, when we were still in Burias Group of Islands, and she dragged along Jayvee which we also met on that same Burias Event (GalaPH). And with Pol, Jason’s co captain in the car, completing our crew – a Chapsuey of personalities that got along flawlessly throughout a weekend, or maybe forcefully, since we spent a chunk of the time being mutually tossed from side to side on Jason’s Ford Everest on the snaking alignment of Halsema Highway.

With Jason behind the wheels and brandishing his driving skills comparable to a secret spy being chased by multiple villains, we were able to reach Atok, Benguet from Manila in less than 5 hours, a trip that usually takes 7, arriving on our first stop before daybreak.

Mt. Timbak

When Jason expressed his intensions of bringing his car, the detours we can make along Halsema Highway became an endless foray of options, which made a sunrise viewing at Mt. Timbak almost a no-brainer.

It towers the small town of Atok, offering a 360-degree view of most of Benguet, which is a collection of rice and vegetable paddies, scattered residences, winding roads and dominated by a mountainous terrain fortunately still covered in green.

This hulking mountain, despite being the third highest in Luzon, is adjacent to the Highest Point in Philippine Highway System, and all it takes to reach its summit is a 20 minute trek. But what it lacks in difficulty and length of its trail, its immense altitude would more than make up for it, that when accompanied by ravaging winds, would incapacitate anyone’s extremities if summited without proper insulation of jackets, thick socks and a bonnet.

Centipede Rice Terraces | Sabangan, Mountain Province

After surrendering to the dropping temperatures in Timbak, we continued navigating the curves of Halsema Highway without an envelope of fog that would have denied us of its agricultural splendours. The parade of vegetable and rice plantations carved the landscape in Bugias and Mankayan, the northern borders of Benguet, until we formally entered Mt. Province, pronounced by its colossal Welcome gateway.

Bontoc (Ban-tak)

Long been over shadowed by its more popular neighbours like Sagada and Kalinga, the town of Bontoc has been relegated to a mere Pit-Stop to those destinations. Located at the epicentre of Northern Luzon, Bontoc is an agricultural settlement trapped within the mountains and lies along its sole drainage, the massive RIO CHICO de CAGAYAN, or more commonly known as Chico River.

Being the easiest to access from the lowlands of Luzon, Bontoc is the most industrialized town in Mountain Province, misplaced in the cordilleras because of the saturation of western influence on its architecture that is far from it’s rich indigenous cultural history.

Photo by Paolo Duran

Maligcong Bontoc is a baranggay beyond the northern mountains half an hour from town proper, with a steep, narrow but paved winding road that shouldn’t be maneuvered by a novice driver. As with most villages in Cordillera, it is interconnected by smaller Sitios separated by hills of thick forests, pine tree parks and slopes of rice terraces. The recent popularity of their community has made its inhabitants almost desensitized to tourist, and it is common to most of the locals to speak a decent tagalong. Several homestays has already been established catering to the influx of travellers.

Mt. Fato

Despite the obvious effects of a grueling 11 hour travel from Manila, we decided to push through with our original plan of climbing Mt. Fato, one of the intimidating peaks in Maligcong. It is just a short 1 hour trek from Makunig, the location of the homestays, with half of the trail comprising of a rough road where some vehicles can still pass, before reaching the trailhead leading to its summit. The final ascent is relatively steep, which can be muddy on a rainy season, crawling under the towering pine trees constantly looming in the entire cordillera, making it a tolerable hike even with a hot afternoon sun.

Mt. Fato’s summit is embellished by rock boulders, that explain its name – Fato deriving from Bato (Rock), and offers a unique aerial view of Maligcongs rice terraces, as well as other communities who also boosts their own terraces like Guinaang and Mainit, with the latter gifted by a number of hot springs.

A different route with a more manageable decent can be accessed to reconnect with the dirt road back to the homestays, and while it might take you a little longer, the graceful configuration of pine trees along its trail erases any signs of weariness.

Villages in the cordillera such as Maligcong, has a non existent night life, with most of inhabitants having dinner before sundown, and already asleep at 7oclock in the evening, which implies the conclusion that the curfew in Maligcong (9pm) was imposed solely on the tourists who might disturb an otherwise quite village.

Sunrise at Mt. Kupapey

With our flashlights beaming, and our yawning rhythmic from waking up hours before any sunlight came out,  we sluggishly ascended Mt. Kupapey, as our pants and socks were soaked by the clinging moisture on the vegetation as we pierced through the slopes of the sleeping mountain. Like Mt. Fato and Mt. Timbak,  Kupapey is relatively an easy hike, requiring just 1 hour and a half to reach it summit, and it was apparent that most of the tourist we  encountered at top were novice hikers.

Huddling around the bonfire started by the locals, we watched the sun rose from the concealed horizon beyond the mountains, when the thick fog embracing the famed rice terraces suddenly dispersed, seemingly chased away by the illumination. A vibrant hue of green represented the rice stalks, implying an impending harvest on the months to come, and from our vantage point, the flock of pine tress just below of us perfectly framed the astonishing sight.

When we were satisfied with the images in our cameras and in our heads, we made our descend and finally saw the trail we were stumbling hours ago when it was still dark. Just below the summit were two enormous parks of seemingly trimmed grass, one bigger than the other, in the midst of a thick pine forest that would have been a perfect campsite if only it was allowed to do an overnight camping.

We could have gone back straight to the homestay, feast on a well deserved breakfast, and maybe sneak in a quick nap before we travel back to Manila, but the best reward in any endeavors are never awarded without any labours. 

And although we may have been staring at rice terraces for the past two days, navigating directly across its hand-made paths is a different ordeal entirely, with a much salivating grandeur.

We tip toed among the Pilapils, the steep and narrow steps, fragile bridges – placing every footing carefully, and occasionally laughing in merriment especially when one of us, Baby Carrot, fell through the muddy knee deep rice fields.

When Baby Carrot Fall

For us, this was fun, a brief vacation, an opportunity to amass loads of spectacular photos or cross out destinations on our bucket lists. But to locals we encountered along the way, either bent on their back from planting or carrying sack after sacks of crops, this was just another day, not even a Weekend, for that concept eludes them. For these locals, every morning was a testament of labor, where the lazy starves, and the industrious barely survives..

Special Thanks to:

VILMA's HOMESTAY | 300 Php per Pax per Night | 09057011448

Obviously owned by wonderful woman named VILMA.

She'll even cook for you for a very affordable price, about 100Php per meal. On our last visit, along with the Chicken Adobo she cooked for us for our lunch, she added a Home Made Pumpkin Soup, Vegetables, Plus an Avocado Puree for Dessert. Too bad we were too hungry to take a pictures of it.

TIPS & HOW TO GO:

Even if you don't have your own car, it's very easy to reach Maligcong, Bontoc. Like SAGADA, you have two options, either;
(1) Via Baguio, where it's still another 6 hours away from Bontoc, 
(2) Via Banaue which is 3 hours away.

Once in Bontoc you just have to find the Jeepney going to Maligcong. Travel time is just 30 minutes.

Like all the other Destinations that features a rice terraces, for maximum appeal, I'd recommend you ask ate Vilma first weather the rice fields have been harvested or not.