Mount Kanla-on may not be the highest, but it is definitely the most beautiful mountain I’ve seen in the Philippines

Its astonishing sceneries, magical flora and fauna, and a legendary and bloody history make Kanlaon Volcano the pride of the Negrenses and mountaineers who have witnessed its beauty.

I, with the Loyola Mountaineers, climbed Mount Kanla-on via Guintibdan – Wasay trail recently and those four days in the magical mountain are one of the best days of our lives.

Mount Kanla-on, Negros Island

Situated in the middle of the northern portion of Negros Island, between the provinces of Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental, Mount Kanla-on is the highest mountain and the most active volcano in the Visayas. Approximately 36 kilometers southeast of Bacolod City, the large stratovolcano is 2,465 meters above sea level and has a base diameter 30 kilometers wide. It consists of a multitude of craters, cones, ridges, cliffs, caves, sulfuric vents, and hot springs. The most prominent feature are the large and luscious caldera called Margaha Valley, and beside it the high summit hiding a very deep and volcanically active rocky crater.

Under DENR Close Watch

Aside from its strenuous trail, Mount Kanla-on is not easy to climb. Weeks before traveling to the island, permits must be secured with the DENR local office at Bacolod City. Always under close watch by the DENR, issuing permits depend on the volcanic activity and ecological preservation of the volcano, as well as the mountaineering experience of the climbers. With the climbers’ data sheet and proposed itinerary, waivers must be submitted to the DENR office. The volcano’s long and rugged terrain, cold environment, and above all, eruptions that occur without any warning, have taken its toll of climbers.

Mountain guides are mandatory in climbing Mount Kanla-on, limited to only nine climbers and one guide per trail. The limit is necessary to preserve the natural beauty of the mountain, and of course, prevent a large number of potential casualties. Depending on the season and volcanic activity, the limits can sometimes change. Mount Kanla-on can be climbed all year round but the best time is during summer.

Mount Kanla-on can be climbed from three to four days, depending on the trail, weather condition, and status of the climbers. On this climb we took the Guintubdan, through  the village of Guintubdan, a two-hour drive from Bacolod City and the trail can bring you to Margaha Valley in one day. The village of Guintubdan, the jump-off point of Guintubdan trail, is like Baguio City in Negros Island. The early morning sunlight makes the tall pine trees glow to lush green while the crescent moon appears solitary in the clear light blue sky. Ready to cook soup with hot water was being served in a store while children and dogs start playing in the narrow concrete street. We met with our guides, Kuya Boy and Kuya Gamay, along with their friends, Sir Toto, and special companion, a dog named Pampu. The village is already about 900 meters above sea level, a cool time for us to start trekking.

After passing through a few houses and chicken farms, we left civilization and entered the volcano’s domain. Pine trees became mossy forest and the trail gradually sloped upwards. After two hours of trekking, we reached Buslogan Falls, a series of waterfalls, slippery rocks, and pools with cool water, a perfect rest stop to cool-off. The main pool is deep enough to have a good swim. As soon as we put our shirts back on, steam slowly rose from our warm bodies.

We decided earlier to reach Margaha Valley that day and spend the night there, a distance usually covered in two days. We continued our trek as quickly as efficiently possible, passing through camps in an hour. Night trekking is dangerous in mountaineering, especially in Mount Kanla-on, because of its thick mossy forest steep trails. The camps serve as rest stops and emergency campsites. A wooden placard in camp one indicates the 4-kilometer danger zone of Kanlaon Volcano. Passing here means passing the halfway mark, well into the danger zone.

Magical Margaha Valley

The trek from camp two to the rim of the Margaha Valley caldera strenuous. Two hours of trekking up with almost no level ground to rest stop. Our companion, Pampu (Pampu for “Pampulutan”) a native dog familiar with the trek had no problem negotiating the terrain. As soon as we reachedthe rim of the Margaha Valley, a wooden signs indicates, “Welcome to Pagatpat. You are @ 2,200 meters above sea level and 1.10 km away from the summit”. That is 220 meters and 1.15 km in two hours.

The last leg of day one was a steep, hundred-meter plunge from the rim to the caldera floor. At first, thick vegetation blocks your view to the open space. Soon, a small clearing in the canopy reveals a huge open space, filled with grass and a tall wall behind. After a few minutes of steep, claustrophobic experience, the forest clears, and you will have entered the magical Margaha Valley – a huge extinct caldera the size of about 16 full football fields, carpeted with grass and variety of bushes, fully surrounded by very high, thickly forested walls of rock. Calderas are volcanic features formed by the collapse of land following a volcanic eruption. Standing in the caldera, I imagined the scale of the eruption thousands of years ago that caused the collapse of that much rock. Fortunately, that caldera was extinct.

But most prominent is the majestic summit of Mount Kanla-on, as seen from the caldera floor. The caldera may be extinct but the size, and proximity of the summit was intimidating. It was a magnificent green, gently sloping mass of rock hundreds of meters high, with grey features at the peak. But the slope has crevasses, deep and long, stretching from top to bottom. These crevasses would have been lava flows formed by past eruptions. A large eruption that day would have cascaded lava and pyroclastic flows from the summit down to where we were pitching up tents.

As we pitched our tents, the sun began to set, as well as the heat. The green slowly turns to black as the shadow of the caldera walls overcomes the caldera floor. Our warm bodies began to cool, so wearing thick clothing became necessary. Soon the sun dissipates and disappears, while we prepare our dinner. The temperature drops and as the night deepens, it continued to drop down to about 5 degrees. But despite the cold, we realized that we had front row seats to a stunning show of bright stars and streaking meteorites.

One Easy Day

Margaha Valley is actually colder than the summit because the cold air drops to the caldera floor and stays there. As the sun rises, the caldera floor is the last to be touched by the sun. Amazingly, moisture rises from the cold, wet ground as the sun touches every part of the caldera floor and forms a thin cloud over Margaha Valley, greeting us a good morning to day 2.

Soon it turned from really cold to scorching hot. Almost the entire Margaha Valley is exposed to the sun. Our goal in day 2 was to reach the saddle that connects the caldera rim to the summit. It was a fairly easy day for us, just a few hours trek. We had to return to Pagatpat by climbing the hundred-meter wall of the caldera. Again, we rested at Pagatpat while our guides took our nearly empty water bottles to get water. Two hours later, they returned. We took our water bottles (brownish but clean) and proceeded to the saddle.

Shaped like a horse’s back, the saddle shows both left and right clearings. On our left was Margaha Valley, on our right was a view of the plains of Negros Island to the sea. On the other hand, behind us was the caldera rim and before us was the summit. Beside the summit is a rocky ridge and cliff, almost vertical, and certain death if one falls. The cliff was called Allison’s Cliff, named after a girl named Allison who fell down to her death on that cliff. The saddle was the perfect campsite, the main campsite, before reaching the top.

Rescue and Retrieval

The saddle has a cleared level ground, covered with trees. Beside it was open ground. During the 1996 eruption, this place was used as a landing zone for helicopters rescuing the seriously injured. It was also the place used to gather the living, and the dead, mountaineers.

A Dragon Slumbering

            4:30 AM, the coldest wake up call ever. We prepared to climb up the summit of Mount Kanla-on. For 30 minutes, we hurriedly clamber up the last slope to the summit of Mount Kanla-on, against the sun itself. The rock trail was a challenge; loose rocks in every step. It was unbearable not to look east to catch tha first magical glimpse of sunrise. The earliest rays of the sun while atthe peak of a mountain is the best view for any mountaineers. That special time is THE magic hour.

            At the summit of Mount Kanla-on, everything, even clouds, are below you. In the east, the sun slowly rises above the graceful ocean of swirling clouds. Up north, Margaha Valley is like an enormous black and bottomless pit while clouds swirl beside the ridges of the mountain. In the west, the shadow of the mountain covers plains of Negros Island to the sea. And down south, the majestic and terrifying fissure of the earth’s crust - hundreds of feet strait down with walls of red, orange, and dirty rock. In the bottom is where all these beauty and terror reigns. On the other side from where we stand was the true summit of Mount Kanla-on, accessible only via Allison’s Cliff from the other side of the mountain.

            There are rules when looking down at the crater. One should not stand directly at the edge because the loose rocks or a mere gust of wind can be fatal. We crawl on our bellies while two people hold our belt and feet. Throwing rocks in the crater is prohibited. No one wants to wake a dragon from its slumber while standing before its door. After taking many photographs, we sat there and made the most out of those few minutes of being on top of the majestic volcano.

One Strenuous Day

            Going down from the summit to the saddle was difficult, but I didn’t mind. As we descend, the sun had already brought light to Margaha Valley. After breakfast, we packed our bags and head out back to the caldera rim, the first stage of a strenuous day 3.

            At Pagatpat, one side goes back to Margaha Valley. The other side goes back to Guitubdan. Our way was towards Wasay trail, a beautiful but very long trail down the mountain. Day 3 was one strenuous day because it would take two days of never-ending rolling  mountains before reaching Mambukal Hot Springs and then, Bacolod City. Once we entered the trail, we climbed 60 degrees up for one hour and 60 degrees down for another hour before reaching PMS Lagoon. This was the place where our guides brought water the day before. We did not realize our water came that far. No wonder they become guides.

After four days in a mountain, packing up is no longer difficult because of the decreased load. Four hours of trekking lead us through mossy forests, pine trees, a small Ifugao-like rice terraces, and civilization. We reached Mambukal Hot Springs resort and savored the taste of soft drinks and fish balls – something pleasurable after four days in the wilderness.

As we drove back to Bacolod City, we looked back and saw Mount Kanla-on slowly diminishing from sight. From our bus we saw the rim of Margaha Valley, the crater summit, and the ridges of Wasay trail at the distance. There we realized how high we’d climbed and how far we’d trekked. We were thankful that Kanla-on let us through safely.