Old Boot Travel Tours - The Pinatubo Hike

Hiking Mount Ugo in the Philippines

There's so much to do in the cities outside Metro Manila, so we decided to do a little travel-y video and take you up Mt. Ugo. It's really near Baguio, making it a good spot for overnight or weekend trips out of town.

Mt. Ugo is quite a challenging hike, so be prepared. What are the other mountains we should climb? Comment below!

Shot and Edited by Seabiscuit Films
Soundtrack Credits:
Great Days - Joakim Karud
Lovelyfriday Podcast *20 - Joakim Karud
Darling, Wait (with Sparkybeats) - Andrew Applepie
Loudness & Clarity - Joakim Karud
Balloons - Joakim Karud

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Erwan Heussaff

FAQ

What are you?

Im French Filipino, i work in the restaurant, bar and production industries. I create food and travel content.
I live in the Philippines.

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Usually a sony a7sii, cranes, dji osmo, gopro hero 5, dji mavic.
I use a 85mm, 35mm, 50mm, 10-18mm and 20-70mm lenses.

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When i edit, its usually do it with Premiere Pro on a DELL XPS 15

How old are you?
30

What did you study?
International Business in France

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I've always loved making food videos and that's how it started. Youtube starts off as a passion. Dont get into it if you are looking to make it your job. It doesn't work that way :)

Why arent you on TV?

Because the internet is easier and its free for you guys hahaha! Also we are currently working on producing TV shows ourselves and i have some TV shows floating around.

Who writes/produces the shows?
Moi

Who shoots the actual shows we have on?
Seabiscuit films.

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Peanut Butter or Nutella?
Peanut buttttttttttttter

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Climbing Mt Sicapoo, Philippines Loosest Mountain Trail

Mt Sicapoo is the highest mountain peak of Ilocos Norte Province in the Philippines. It is rated as a 9/9 in difficulty by the climbing group Pinoy Mountaineer. Some say that Mt Guiting Guiting in Romblon is the most difficult mountain climb of the Philippines; before deciding on that conclusion one should also try climbing Mount Sicapoo.
The length of the Sicapoo trail is long, exposed and contains many sections of loose slopes. With little rain, there are constant bush fires in the area, this leaves many areas with few trees and nothing to hold onto on some very steep ridge tops.

The summit assault on the second day is a very intense 12-14 hour hike (if you're fit). You must leave Camp One at sunrise and you will return at about 8-9pm. WARNING some climbers from past expeditions were still descending back to Camp One as late as 1am. Make sure you carry a reliable flashlight if you plan to climb Mt Sicapoo. If you plan to use Camp 1 you may have to find your way back along the exposed ridges of the video in complete darkness. Alternatively you could camp higher at Camp 2, this would shorten the length of your summit assault but it would also involve carrying your heavy packs across the most exposed sections of the entire trail. The most exposed sections of the Sicapoo trail are just after Camp 1.
Near the summit is the impressive rock formation known as 'Penguin Rock.' After reaching Penguin Rock we realized that the trail had come to an end and that no one had ever been further. Many things like constructions and developments are left unfinished in the Philippines. Many Pinoy mountain trails are also left unfinished, I am proud to say that we were the first group to climb the final 105 metres to the true summit of Mt Sicapoo. At Penguin Rock I took a final baring from my GPS and compass and would like to finally conclude that the true summit is about 105 metres away at a direction of 55 degrees. Hopefully someone will soon cut out a trail for this final 105 metres, but until now it's a very dense bush bash.

The Sicapoo mountain range doesn't experience much rain, this is one of the reasons why the whole area is constantly on fire. For climbing in Ilocos Norte Province there is no need to obtain a permit, but signing in at the local police station is recommended.
Laoag is the closest major city to Mt Sicapoo. The quickest way to get to Laoag is by airplane from Manila (buses from Manila are also available). To get from Laoag City to the jump off point in Solsona we recommend a private taxi car from the Java Hotel in Laoag, this will cost about 1350 pesos (one way). Once at Solsona sign in at the police station & then go and find Emilio Benito :-)

We would like to thank the One Degree Mountaineering club who gave us lots of advice on climbing Mt Sicapoo, they originally made the trail together with Emilio Benito the head guide. If you wish to climb Sicapoo you could also join them on one of their treks.

GUIDES NAMES
Porter: Jimmy Benito +639279663365
Head Guide: Emilio Benito (father of Jimmy)
Porter: Jay-R Umayam

Solsona Police: +639215613333 or +6391511872668

One Degree Mountaineering member Ang Ango Louie: +639177955901

GPS Coordinates:
Emilio Benito's House: 18'05'16.5N 120'48'38.0E
Camp One: 18'01'41.7N 120'53'02.1E
Camp Two: 18'01'23.8N 120'53'30.1E
True Summit: 18'00'47.2N 120'56'20.1E

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