Amidst the mossy forest

Mt. Lumot

Found in the heart of Claveria, Misamis Oriental, Mt. Lumot rises to an altitude of 2, 320 meters above sea level and is part of the Balatucan Range. It's entry point is located at Sitio Harrohay, Brgy. Lunotan, Gingoog City.

Mt. Lumot is basically a mountain full of moss and mossy forests; hence the name "lumot" which directly translate to moss. Mt. Lumot is also known as Mt. Sumagaya. It is also called the "Mountain of Souls" because many people died in this mountain when the Cebu Pacific Flight 387 from Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), Manila to Lumbia Airport in Cagayan De Oro (CDO) crashed on February 2, 1998 in its slopes killing 104 people on board. Remnants of the plane crash can be seen in the trail and the impact site is also preserved.

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The Unfortunate Circumstance

I already mentioned our climb in my previous article Southbound. This was part of the Plata y Siete's out-of-town trip. We weren't supposed to climb Mt. Lumot, instead we have the itinerary for Mt. Balatukan. Unfortunately, on our way to Gingoog City from CDO, our guide who lives in the city didn't tell us that there was an encounter between the military and the New People's Army (NPA) in our selected mountain. At least, not until we arrived. He was so sorry towards us that he decided to change the mountain without telling us so we could at least climb in Mindanao for our first time visit. We were quite disappointed but also relieved. It wasn't so bad, after all. And by that time, I'm used to improvisations already.

The Climb

Plata y Siete before the climb

We arrived at Gingoog City at around 11 pm. We rode a tricycle to our guide's house which wasn't that far and we heard the unfortunate news when we were unpacking. We slept at around 1 in the morning already and we woke up at 4 am to prepare. We had our breakfast at a "carinderia" (canteen) in the market place where our habal-habal were waiting.

Breakfast at the market

A Habal-habal is a motorcycle with modified seats to fit more people than usual. It is very famous in the Philippines and each province has different styles. So far, the Gingoog's modification is my favorite. A motorcycle can fit 7 people including the driver. If maximized, I bet 9-10 people can ride the single altogether.

The amazing habal-habal ride

As much as we were disappointed upon hearing the news about changing mountains, we were much more disappointed that we won't reach the summit. Hiking Mt. Lumot/ Mt. Sumagaya would definitely take more than a day to reach the summit and we'll be walking in the dark if we climbed until the crash site so we decided to at least reach the "Camp Niel Perez", the third water source; have our lunch there and descend immediately afterwards. Because our plan was only a day hike, we won't be back before dark and might be late for our trip back to CDO City if we proceeded there.

Lunch at Camp Niel Perez

It turned out, reaching the Camp Niel Perez was enough for us. We saw some remnants of the plane crash; some rusty metals and clothes. We enjoyed the hike so much and talked about anything under the sun. But it was actually cloudy and a little bit rainy probably, just the weather in the mountain. The climb itself was satisfying and I couldn't contain my happiness. Even if we were not able to reach the summit, Plata y Siete was complete! I was already contented and it was already an amazing birthday gift.