We opted to travel towards Northern Luzon last weekend and experience more of Clark in Pampanga. The last time we were there was last February when we spent our Valentine weekend with a Mt. Pinatubo hike and then on to the Philippine Hot Air Balloon Festival the day after the trek. Clark on an ordinary weekend is a far cry from what we’ve seen during the festival, with very few cars on the road and lesser people around.
We were happy to have linked up with a biker based in Pampanga and was introduced to the ‘Target’ bike trail. First few kilometers of the trail is an uphill climb in paved roads
which leads up to an semi-offroad trail
and we found ourselves eventually in front of Station 1 of the Puning Hot Spring Day Tour package situated in Brgy. Sapang Bato in Angeles, Pampanga where we met the rest of the Pampanga Mt. Bikers:
This is in Sitio Target (hence, the name of the trail). Beyond Station 1 of the Puning Hot Spring opened up a trail with some hints of volcanic ashes, which was a first for us!
The ‘Target’ route led us to a spa and massage area, which we found out was Station 2 of the Puning Hot Spring package, according to the friendly Aetas we met there who are employed by the company as masseuse (good for them!). Puning Hot Springs is reached ideally with a 4×4 vehicle so getting to Station 3 was not an option anymore. But the Sacobia valley was wide and we are in the mood for more adventure 
Next post: Inside the Lahar Valley
Photo credits: Lydon de Luna of Team VGB in Angeles, Pampanga
April 30th, 2009 at 12:56 am
[...] through a feature in PAL’s inflight magazine, Mabuhay, early this year. We wanted to have our Valentine dinner here but had to pass due to some conflicting plans with our Mt. Pinatubo trek. This weekend, we made [...]
June 29th, 2009 at 9:55 am
I found roamingronos.com very informative. The article is professionally written and I feel like the author knows the subject very well. roamingronos.com keep it that way.
July 21st, 2009 at 1:02 pm
Can i ask how many minutes will the biking take going to the Station 2?
August 6th, 2009 at 6:09 am
hi kat! it was a very short bike ride to Station 2. if you are reasonably fit, you’d get there within 30-45 minutes
happy biking!
September 26th, 2009 at 7:47 pm
Hi all -
I was in Clark a few months ago and rode my scooter through Sapang Bato to Hot Springs. Yes, it was a rough road after Sapang Bato. My question is, what is Hot Spings? Is this a tourist resort or a village? I just stopped and talked to some of the kids going off to school, as it was early in the morning. But no one ccould really tell me anything about it. Regards.
September 28th, 2009 at 11:04 am
hi bud, thanks for dropping by. from what we heard from the locals there, the hot springs is really a steaming hot waterfalls. we only passed by Station 1 (garden restaurant and very near a Gawad Kalinga village site) and Station 2 (spa and massage area). we did not even reach the hot springs area coz we were travelling DIY-style and on a bike. package tours are offered, with 4×4 service. happy travelling and keep safe!