Travel Footprints

Dark clouds above did not dampen the adventurous spirits of the boys after we got down from Sitio Target route. Although it crossed our minds, going towards the 7-km ride to Puning Hot Springs (Station 3) on our bikes was not a good idea. The choices were either to backtrack Sitio Target route or carve a path along wet, muddy and sandy Sacobia River.

Guess where our pedals took us?

The ride along the Lahar Valley was definitely one-of-a-kind. Not to mention that it started pouring rain a little after we took off with this unchartered trail. As we were pedaling, we joked about biking for our lives as we talk about the possibilty of rain and raging lahar coming down to us (yikes!). The Sacobia route was difficult but fun. Imagine biking along wet sands punctuated with several river crossings under the pouring rain. At one point, I couldn’t pedal anymore BUT I remained upright for probably 40 seconds, as if in a stationary bike, because my front wheel was dug in too deep in the sand.

The fun in the lahar lasted for a little more than 6 kilometers. From the Sacobia River, we went up somewhere in the vicinity of a footbridge and was back in Clark through the lesser known but very scenic Gate 14 route. At the end of the ride, we were all a picture of happy bikers!

Photo credits: Lydon de Luna of Team VGB in Angeles, Pampanga