Mt. Batolusong and Kay-Ibon Falls

Mt. Batolusong and Kay-Ibon Falls in Tanay Rizal

ride and roll

 Mt. Batolusong is situated in Brgy. San Andres Tanay Rizal, with an estimated elevation of up to 670 meters above sea level.  There is another jump-off area in Sitio Kayibon near the falls that you can visit as a sidetrip. I'm quite familiar with this place because Tanay is the neighboring town of Antipolo. I climbed Mt. Irid and Mt. Tukduan Banoi way back in 2011 and this mountain is in the same area. There is a significant improvement when it comes to the road as well.

Itinerary

Bulalo and Liempo

0530 Assembly at Cogeo
0630 ETD Sitio Batangasan

Breakfast at Mang Vics

0730 Stop-Over Mang Vics Bualohan (Heavy Breakfast)
0830 Resume Ride
0900 ETA Brgy. San Andres
0915 Register/Arrange Guide/ Secure motorcycle
0930 Start Trek
1000 First Water Source
1030 Peak 1 / Siesta
1130 Summit
1230 Start Descent to Kayibon Falls
1330 ETA Kayibon Falls / late lunch
1500 wash-up / head back to jump-off
1630 ETD Brgy San Andres / Meryenda
1700 ETD Cogeo
1800 ETA Cogeo

Road Trip

In preparation for a Major Climb this coming Holy week, we chose Mt. Batolusong as our training ground as it is the nearest mountain within Antipolo, and it's quite cheaper. We also missed our roadtrips, so we decided to take our motorcycle going there, making this adventure more exciting and thrilling.

We had a stop over at Mang Vic's Bulalohan and took heavy breakfast in order to us to be prepared for a quck hike.

Organized Guide Schedule

Rice Field

River Crossing

Mapatag Plateau

Around 9AM, we reached Brgy. San Andres. We proceeded to their Brgy. Hall and noticed the well organized Guide schedule. Our Guide for that day is Kuya Emiliano. We bought some snacks before commence our trek. The first part of the trail is walk in the park - passing some rice paddies then woodland. There was a short delay due to the wrong trail we pursued after the first water source.

Summit Ridge

Selfie with Mt. Batolusong as the Background

Fly High

Explore High

Eldie almost aborted this climb due to emptiness "feeling incomplete kuno" - he suffered mild hypertension due to over fatigue and lack of sleep. There's no cellular signal through out the trail. Driven by our passion for adventure and eagerness to complete this training, we decided to continue after a short rest. Upon reaching the summit, we were all captivated by the beauty of the surroundings - the beauty of Sierra Madre mountain range at its finest. One can see also Talim Island, including  Mt. Makiling, Mt. Banahaw, Mt. Cristobal and Mt. Irid as the highest point of Rizal.

Group Picture with Kuya Emiliano

Descend to Kayibon Falls

Mapatag Plateau view from the summit

Water Source around the locals house

After enjoying the cool breeze and being able to pose for a few shots, we then headed our way to nearby falls as our sidetrip. We literally descended through out the trail to reach the Kayibon Falls. We dropped by to the last water source around the locals houses and took our lunch at a nearby Nipa Hut. After a short rest, we proceeded to Kayibon Falls. Our excitement heightened when we saw the falls. We were lucky enough to enjoy the falls as we're the only visitors that time. The falls was a bit shallow due to the summer season, It was a very refreshing moment, a natural reward after the long hours of hike.

Late Lunch at Nipa Hut

Kay-Ibon Falls

Enjoying the Falls

the Explorers

Jump-off

By 3PM, we hit again the trail going back to jump-off. After an hour and a half of trekking, we reached Brgy. Hall. We then took a quick "meryenda". Afterwards, we decided to wash-up in our Home and have dinner together.

I would like to thank Eldie and Ronfel for joining this quick training climb of my sweet explorer "Joana". We we're lucky to have a friends who will go out on an adventure and discovery no matter what. Until our next adventure brothers!
Ot Rocks - Outdoor Trippers!

Ride again

Home sweet home (Post Climb celebration)

Group Picture

Mt. Batolusong and Kay-Ibon Falls Video <------

Budget Breakdown:

25 - Cubao -Cogeo
40 - Cogeo - Sampaloc
50 - Habal habal to San Andres
20 - Reg. Fee
500 - Guide Fee 5:1 (700 if overnight)
100 - packed lunch / Snacks
50 - Habal Habal to Sitio Batangsan
40 - Sitio batagasan - Cogeo
25 Cogeo - Cubao