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MT. LOAY TRAVERSE
Mt. Loay has become the hiker and trail runner’s haven after it was opened to the public. Since then, Loay has slowly become an attraction to hiking enthusiasts in the region. There’s even a meme that circulated on facebook stating “dli ka climbers kung wala pa ka kasulay sa Loay (You are not a climber if you didn’t experience hiking Loay)”. With its strenuous trail, one would surely flex the experience when hiking this celebrity mountain of Sta. Cruz, Davao Del Sur.
I considered myself lucky as I was able to experience Mt. Loay’s dreadfully exhausting trail before it got famous in the local hiking community.
It was one random night in 2018 when our friend chatted at our GC looking for joiners for the sunrise hike at Mt. Loay scheduled just before dawn of that very night. Five of us took the invitation and agreed to meet up around 3:30am at our village entrance since the joiner’s meetup is at 4am. At 4am we’re still at our village waiting for the rest of our members and we’re already running late. At around 4:30am we finally met up with other joiners at Davao City Overland Terminal’s 7/11 where about 10 more pax are patiently waiting for us. Good thing is, the joiners really waited for us before they decided to go. Lol. Else, we’ll be on our own. From there we took a southbound bus with a fare of 58Php. We then alighted at Loay Elementary School crossing just before the dawn breaks.
We started ascending the main road going to Loay Elementary school at 5am and for about 30 minutes of gradual ascend, we reached the School. As dawn finally breaks, our team of 6 decided to stay for a cup of coffee while the rest started ascending the not-so muddy trail.
After replenishing, we then continued with the ascend. Although it was our first time in Mt. Loay, we easily recognized the path as there are already trail signs. However, there are still confusing junctions that have no visible signs given the fact that the mountain was just recently opened to the public and we almost fell for it.
As we ascend, a series of beautiful sights are gently revealing its view beside the trail. A sight mostly common to hikers but can still surely give ecstatic feeling for sure. The moment we arrived at the first checkpoint was also the moment the other joiners resumed their assault. Lol.
We were already consistent of being the last so we might as well stay true to it. So instead of chasing the other joiners, we wasted more time at the checkpoint. We cooked food and mingled with the locals manning the checkpoint before we continued the hike.
Along the trail, we encountered a few small huts with locals selling snacks and foods like boiled eggs. Every encounter is also an opportunity for us to rest, chit-chat with them and render support by buying their served foods. Although we struggled all throughout the ascent as we still feel dizzy from last night’s drink (that explains why we are always late.) nevertheless, we persevered and reached the last checkpoint area just below the peak.
The team agreed to eat the food we cooked earlier to regain energy before assaulting the final stretch towards Mt. Loay peak. Another series of awesome sight beholds while advancing to the peak.
As we arrived at the peak past 10am, other joiners were already preparing to descend. That’s the time we started to think that we are not actually part of the group. Lol.
Loay’s peak was not that spacious for camping though. If I were to judge, the tent capacity it can hold plays within 6-8 tents only. I might be wrong on this one. Anyway, to be consistent, we didn’t join the rest of the group from descending, we just rested at the peak and enjoyed its majestic view before we started the descent. To be honest, if not drunk, the trail from the School to the peak is only average with a slightly steeper ascent during the final assault.
Right before 11am, we started the descend. The traverse made the hike really challenging. It started with a narrow path at the forested part of Loay. Few minutes later we were already trailing literally at the top of a knife-edge-like mountain range. For about an hour of just harboring the grassy trail of the hilltop, we reached the next challenge, the boulder-like, steep and slippery trail. Loay’s rocky trail requires real effort. We need to be cautious on every step so as not to be outbalanced and get injured. Some of the rocks lose the moment we step on it and sometimes we need to jump in order to advance.
It goes like that for more or less 20 minutes until we reach yet another challenge. This time, a very slippery trail with support less to nothing. It was very steep and slippery that the local kids who joined us on the trail just let slid slowly leaving ample amounts of mud in their butts. We can’t let that happen to us as we will still be commuting home. So each of us grabbed a plant that can at least support our weight while slowly descending. I grabbed a tree and let others pass on me then they’ll do the same so I can pass on them until we reach another challenge.
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| No visible trail. |
The challenge was, making your own trail towards the flatland. Another lol. So yeah, we managed to descend the slippery trail and now we’ll be making our own path. Yes! Full of adventure. Good thing, the kids led us the way.
Before we reached the flatland, my partner’s ankle broke. So I decided that they should continue the descent and we’ll just be behind them. I assisted my partner throughout the rest of the way to Langan Waterfall where my friends and all other joiners were already relaxing. Langan Waterfalls will be your last destination before capping the hike since a few meters from the falls, there are already habal-habal drivers waiting.
Mt. Loay really is a mountain you should try if you are fond of hiking and if you really want a great hike here in Davao Del Sur, try reverse traverse and start your hike at Langan falls. It was definitely a very exhausting hike and albeit tired, the feeling of surpassing the difficult trail of Loay is definitely worth a flex in your social media accounts. Yeah! Lol
P.S
The memes I mentioned were created after the event of “DEAM Mountaineers” where more than hundreds of participants were able to experience the reverse traverse Itinerary. Imagine what they've gone through at that event. Thanks for reading!
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