Bivouac in Banahaw

Tiring? Punishing? Exhausting? Energy Zapping?

Our escapade last October 23 Friday brought us to Mount Banahaw located along the boundary of Laguna and Quezon provinces. Imagine travelling by car for 8 hours, walking up and downhill for 3 hours to plant 1 tree. That is considered a sacrifice to a typical office worker like me who spends an average of eight hours a day at work.

HOW IT STARTED
It started when our department head Bing Payumo encouraged all her direct reports to contribute to mother nature's longevity by joining the tree planting in Mount Banahaw which was organized by HR and PA. After doing Mount Pinatubo in February this year with the Smart Photo Club and Smart Mountaineering Club, I reckon ths would be a relatively easy climb.

EARLY BIRD
The day started early. I woke up at 2AM, just in time to prepare, pick up some officemates on the way to Icon, QAve. Registration started at 4AM and by a little past 5AM we were on the road to Quezon province. Before 10AM, the trek uphill to the site started and we reached there just a little past noontime. Lunch was served on a banana trunk and leaf. The sub 1 hour planting session ended just before 3PM and that marked the start of our descent. By 10PM, we were back to our homebase in Manila.

TREE'S NOT A CROWD
The seedlings planted last October 23 were Lauan (an endemic tree) and fruit bearing lansones.

While it is unfortunate that we were only able to plant only one tree, October 23 is a special day because of our sacrifice for mother nature.