Tanay, Rizal: Mt. Binutasan

posted on Tuesday, February 5, 2019

It was all systems go after fellow mountaineers from our group, Horizon Extreme Adventure Team or HEAT, agreed to a very spontaneous hike on the first Sunday of February 2019. Along with core members Jeff and Jo, we were set to conquer yet another mountain in Tanay, Rizal after Ling and my self’s duo climb last January.

After a failed attempt at seeing a sea of clouds during my pre-birthday climb last October 2018, we were holding onto our chances in Mt. Binutasan’s peak. It is a minor climb with 3 out of 9 level of difficulty. At a height of 577 MASL, Mt. Binutasan literally means ‘to make a hole’. The underground tunnel, however, is already inaccessible now.

Assembly time of the group was at 1 am. We left Cubao via UV Express going to Cogeo Gate 2 at P35/each. The trip is roughly less than 30 minutes. From Cogeo Gate 2, we rode a tricycle going direct to the registration area of Barangay Cuyambay. There were no jeeps available during the wee hours so we were compelled to take the tric. Unlike last January’s P600 fare, this time, we were asked by the tricycle driver to pay P700. We agreed and divided the transpo cost into four making it P175/pax. We arrived at Barangay Cuyambay at 2:45 am. Barangay registration fee is P100/person and we were first to register. We requested Kuya Barci, our Dumagat Remontado guide during last January’s twin hike. There are only 10 IP guides among the 80 local guides in Barangay Cuyambay. Guide fee is pegged at P500. From the barangay, we then rode a habal-habal going to the trail’s jumpoff for P50/pax.

We were on our way to Mt. Binutasan at 3:30 am. Another reason Ling and I returned to Tanay was its Baguio-like weather. I only usually wear long sleeves on treks in the northern part of Luzon where the climate is fairly colder but Tanay certainly is the exception. We experienced light downpour so our ascent got even colder. It was generally a relatively easy hike with established trails. What bothered us though were the limatiks or blood leeches we encountered along the way. I, for one, got bitten on my right hand. A first for me. Jeff endured bloody bites on his feet.

We were at Mt. Binutasan’s summit before 6 am. But the promised sea of clouds was a no-show. Nonetheless, the amazing Sierra Madre view was upon us. And the Batis side trail was just what we needed on our descent.

I highly recommend to get IP guides because they deeply promote responsible tourism. You can reach Barci at this number: 0910-454-3323.

See also our climb up Mt. Apo, Mt. Ayaas-Mt. Espadang Bato, Mt. Oro-Mt. Sipit Ulang, Wawa Trilogy 1, Wawa Trilogy 2, Laiban Trilogy, Maynuba Circuit, Mt. Batolusong, Mt. Arayat, Nagpatong-Mt. Masungki, Mt. Balagbag and Mt. Tagapo.