(Mt. Cuernos de Negros, Negros Oriental, Philippines)
Originally six mountaineers from three clubs in Victorias City had nodded to form a party for the Talinis Climb (April 20-23, 2000), an idea which was finalized into a plan only three days before departure. By 11:00 p.m. (departure time) on April 19, 2000 , only three remained braced to go on board the Ceres bus in the terminal in Bacolod City for the 6-hour midnight trip to Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental. Present were Dennis Ella (SB), Mariebelle Porras (SB) and Ernina Defino (KSDM). Catstrophically left out, Budoy Legaspi (President of NTCI) was left out for failing to contact in time Dennis Ella, party leader.
Unable to muster enough sleep, the party arrived in Dumaguete City at 6:00 a.m. for the commencement of the climb at 9:00 on that morning, April 20, 2000 in Dauin, an interior town southwest of Dumaguete.
Based in Dumaguete City, the Cuernos de Negros Mountaineering Club (founded in 1988) hosted this event dubbed as "Sunburn 2000", the second of such event started in 1999 and held in the mountains of Cuernos de Negros, better known as Talinis (site of the MFPI annual climb in 1990). This year, seventeen mountaineers gathered from three provinces to participate in this 4-day event, a far cry from the 5 inagaural particpants who are exclusively CNMCI members.Officially invited, the Cebu Doctor's College Mouintaineering Club (founded in 1995) sent seven delegates for this occassion; the 3 delegates from Victorias City had joined by chance.
The trail-head in Dauin introduced a gradual climb along a logging road before the steep cogonal slope prior to the breathtaking ridge. Under the heat of the sun, it was a hell of a climb start, most especially to Ernina who suffred hyperventillation. Her lack of sleep the night before and her eight months of mountaineering inactivity did take its toll on her.
All three delegates of Victorias City and four from Cebu were guided by Ricardo `Cacards' Rodriguez III of CNMCI for the climb of the 1700-M Peak northeast of Yagumyum Lake in the morning of April 21, 2000. In barely two hours of trail-tracking, the party reached the peak with a view marred by the fog. On the return, the frustrated viewing of the panorama was replaced by the excitement of meeting other climbers struugling up the slope. One party was a local one while the other is an American lead by a seventy year-old who claims to have climbed the 7000-meter Cotopaxi (the tallest active volcano in the world!). The NMCI-SAMOC (Bacolod City) party, coming from Valencia town passed by our camp by lunchtime. With this marauding presence of mountaineers, hikers, bird-hunters and forest scavengers, Talinis in Holy Week is very festive, in wide contrast to the solemnity of its virgin forests.
After lunch, the 17-strong delegation broke camp and lined up to transfer to Nailig Lake. Their train passed by the edge of Halawig (a dried-up lake) and the slope overlooking Malingin, the twin-lake of Nailig.
A seven-member party lead by Cacards went for the summit of Talinis Peak (6,243 ft.) , the highest point in the province of Negros Oriental, in the afternoon of April 22, 2000. From the Final Asault Camp in Nailig Lake, the climbing party reached the summit in barely two hours of scrambling on the steep North Face. Avoiding the unscalable West Ridge (rocky, 70-degrees steep, sharp and thick with growth) the party followed the previous year CNMCI trail with hackmarks which could no longer be clearly defined.
CLIMBING PARTY PROFILE
Name Club Comments /Distinctions
1. Ricardo Rodriguez III CNMCI (Climb Leader) Second Climb on Talinis
2. Mark Gregorio CNMCI Left-out by the four CNMCI climbers in 1999
3. Dennis Ella SB Provincial Highest Peak Record Climb
4. Mariebelle Porras SB -do-
5. Ernina Defino KSDM -do-
6. Jun Antonio Rocaberte CDMC First Cebu Climb on Talinis
7. Juvy Limpangog CDMC -do-
Dauin-Valencia Traverse
Started on April 23, 2000, the "Sunburn 2000" was capped by the completion of the Dauin-Valencia Traverse late in the afternoon of April 23, 2000.
While the last day demanded the longest trekking in four days, the mountaineers were feted with the scenic, if not bizarre, view of the Sulfur Area (near Rancho). There the stands of lifeless whitewashed trees present a reminder of the havoc wrought by the emmission of seething sulfur from the deep vowels of mighty Cuernos de Negros (an inactive volcano) that occured several decades ago.
Photo: Courtesy of JL of CDMC