BUCKETLIST ADVENTURES: CIRCUMNAVIGATING THE SIERRA MADRE RANGE VIA THE MARIFANTA HIGHWAY

   Knowing I have cancer really turned my life around. It was very difficult to accept at the start because of the many plans that I have for the future.  Eventually, I've learned to surrender myself to the will of the Lord and things get to be lighter after that.  I no longer get hung up on the hard times and the challenges. Then the idea of blogging my life story made me realize that somehow writing serves as a therapy to my mind and soul.  In this blog, I share my story by highlighting the victories. Because I believe triumphs and victories  will inspire, motivate, encourage other people afflicted with cancer to live their stories in a similar or even grander ways.

      The Sierra Madre Range as the name infers is the "mother of all ranges" in the entire Philippine archipelago.  It is indeed the longest mountain range with a length of 210 miles, found in the big island of Luzon and stretches from Cagayan province in the north up to Quezon province in the south. It is impossible to travel the entire length of the range by road because the mountains make it difficult the connect the various coastal roads that line up the eastern seaboard.  Because of these, one can approach the Sierra Madre in some of the eastern Luzon provinces.

 We began our ascent in the intersection of Marcos Highway and Sumulong Highway and continued along Marcos Highway going up to the first town of Cogeo.  As we passed along the first towns, the road was littered by makeshift stalls selling this odd and peculiar fruit where the seeds instead of being inside the fruit juts out like a sore thumb. This is the fruit locally known as "kasuy" or cashew with the scientific name of Anarcadium occidentale. One of my companion delighted at the sight of these enticing fruit bought the entire batch for us to eat throughout the entire journey.  The fruit has a blend of sweet acrid flavor.  A bite on it will send its juices running down the corners of your mouth while savoring on its flesh.

 We decided to use my Dad’s Honda City for this drive instead of my Toyota Vios because I didn’t have my car tuned up for this trip.  The entire trip was a breeze because of the tip top condition of the car and that this baby hadn’t had a long trip since it was bought years back.  I believe that this is its moment of glory.  The car was full because there were five of us but the car carried the weight well.

 The trip going up already gave us a breath taking view of the Sierra Madre Range.  It is a so-called range because of the many mountains connected to each other like each have similar geological features with each other.  With so many mountains, it would be difficult to know the names of each mountain we passed by.  Furthermore, you will really lose count on how mountains have we crossed.  The drive going up consists of countless twists and turns, numerous ups and downs, bridges, a few houses and villages, a radar tower and lots of trees.  Driving an automatic in this road interesting.  In the plains of Manila and Cavite, I often drive in cruise mode all the way, but when going up and down, you should be  wary of your speed because there is a need to shift to a lower mode when driving on an inclined slope.  Going uphill will make it more powerful during the climb.  On the other hand, going downhill shifting to low will provide the necessary engine brake to slow down the car.  In a way you become  manual driver instead of an automatic one.

 When one speaks of the Sierra Madre, one would often have the notion of it being a remote, rugged and dangerous place.  However, when we reached the highlands, there are communities thriving for a long time there especially in the highlands of Tanay, where we even encountered traffic during the Holy Week because of the huge volume of pilgrims paying homage to the largest image of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Philippines which is located along  our path while passing Tanay.  We also passed by the road leading to Daraitan which was featured in one of the travel shows on TV as having one of the cleanest rivers in the Philippines.  After passing the town proper of upper Tanay, we proceeded further into the heart of the Sierra Mader into the next town of Infanta which is already part of Quezon province.

When we finally crossed the boundary between Tanay and Infanta , the number of dwellings slowly began to decrease and the appearance of the countryside began to become more rugged, the vegetation became thicker and the road became more hazardous as cliffs became steeper in angle and more danger signs for falling rocks became more frequent along the road.  There were no establishments for miles around until finally at 2,331 feet from sea level, we arrived at a roadside diner called Jariel’s Peak.  It turned out that this is the last stopover available for the rest of the way according to the owner.  It was a cozy log cabin located at the km94 marker with a picturesque view of the mountains, windy and cool breeze and a haven for motorbikers.  It offers a variety of attractions like bathing in the nearby waterfalls, pitching a tent for the overnight campers, trekking or simply strolling along the roadside while enjoying the view.

What's more about this biker's haven is the cheap and delicious food that they serve.  You can just look at the variety of mouth-watering dishes that they have here and it will really make you plan on visiting this place.

 What's surprising about this restobar up in the mountains is that they have a raffle contest for motorbikers and they even have the motorbike prizes on display.  This really shows that this place is indeed a biker's haven as shown by the different biker groups posters on the wall.  We had a fun time taking pictures while posing with the bikes.

After a hearty lunch we proceede towards Infanta and stopped whenever we encounter an exhilirating scenery and we took the opportunity to get a posterity shot of the beautiful view.

Along the way we keep noticing several boulders painted with advertisement of resorts in Infanta, Quezon.  We actually visited these resorts and found that they the typical low-cost nipa hut cottages resort where it has tendency to be overcrowded at this time of the year.

The remaining leg of the trip was all downhill but still winding.  We passed by a bridge where several vehicles were parked but we didn't stop to look.  When we reached our resort in Infanta, the resort owner told us that the place is where Pinlak Falls is located and it is the newest attraction frequented by Infanta residents.

In almost the entire length of the MARIFANTA highway, this river called the Agos runs alongside the highway although this is the point where the river closest to the road.  The Agos River is a less-known river that was once being considered as a site for a dam that will provide fresh water for Manila.  I think there are many oppositions to the plan but I learned that it will still proceed in the near future.  This river is also well known to Infanta residents as the culprit for the many loss of lives when flashfloods occur due to rains high up in the mountains of Tanay and the floods come rushing down towards the Pacific Ocen taking the Infanta residents by surprise.

 Finally, we reached the end of the MARIFANTA highway here at this roundabout where the Marifant intersects with the Real-Infanta road.  The next story will be our many adventures in these two coastal towns of the eastern seaboard.  This trip was really something that just cropped out without any plans.  When you physically challenged such as me, one often becomes spontaneous in many things and I believe that spontaneity is one of the things that makes life interesting. In closing this halftold story, I stumbled upon a quote from Joseph Campbell, “We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.”