Mount Apo
The Highest Mountain In The Philippines, Sacred To The Bagobo And Manobo And Closed For A Long Time After Trekkers Burned The Summit In 2016 · Digos, Davao del Sur
APO IS THE HIGHEST MOUNTAIN IN THE PHILIPPINES at a shade under two thousand nine hundred and sixty metres, and the climb passes through more landscapes than any other in the country: farmland, then mossy forest, then a bare boulder field near the top with SULPHUR VENTS STAINING THE ROCK YELLOW and steam coming out of the ground. IT IS A SACRED MOUNTAIN TO THE BAGOBO AND MANOBO, whose name for it carries the sense of grandfather, and rituals are still performed before climbs. THE PHILIPPINE EAGLE LIVES IN THIS RANGE. AND THE THING THAT SHOULD BE SAID PLAINLY: IN MARCH 2016 A FIRE STARTED BY CARELESS TREKKERS BURNED A LARGE PART OF THE SUMMIT AREA AND THE MOUNTAIN WAS CLOSED FOR A LONG PERIOD. Quotas, permits, medical clearance and mandatory guides all date from that, and they are not bureaucracy for its own sake. Confirm the mountain is open before flying to Mindanao, because closures have been extended and repeated, and no booking site will tell you.
Mount Apo Natural Park, Davao del Sur, Mindanao, Digos, Davao del Sur, Philippines
APO IS CLIMBED FROM SEVERAL JUMP-OFFS - KIDAPAWAN IN COTABATO, KAPATAGAN AND SANTA CRUZ IN DAVAO DEL SUR - each a different route of two to four days, with DAVAO CITY the usual arrival point by air. A PERMIT, REGISTRATION AND MEDICAL CLEARANCE ARE REQUIRED and DAILY NUMBERS ARE CAPPED; GUIDES AND PORTERS ARE MANDATORY and are arranged through the local tourism office at the jump-off, not privately. THESE RULES FOLLOWED THE MARCH 2016 SUMMIT FIRE and the mountain has been closed for extended periods since. CONFIRM IT IS OPEN BEFORE TRAVELLING TO MINDANAO. THE CLIMBING SEASON IS ROUGHLY MARCH TO MAY; the wet months bring leeches, mud and river crossings that rise fast. IT IS COLD AT ALTITUDE. Carry everything out, including your rubbish.