Mount Banahaw, an experience to remember

I have always been looking forward for a chance to experience mystical Mount Banahaw. My longing was finally came into a reality, when i had the chance to come along through the journey of my friends to the Holy Mountain. - Mount Banahaw, an experience to remember. "It's been a long day short journey" of my life.

Typical Four-Day Schedule

DAY 1

0700 Breakfast. Check equipment and supplies.

0800 Leave Manila for San Pablo, Laguna via public bus or hired vehicle.

1000 Arrive at San Pablo. Proceed to Santa Lucia by public jeepney.

1030 In Santa Lucia, contact National Parks Station for a guide.

1100 Hike to Kinabuhayan.

1230 Take lunch at Kinabuhayan.

1330 Begin climb.

1400 Reach first waterfall: Kristalino Falls.

1530 Arrive at second waterfall. Rest and find suitable spot to set up camp. Enjoy the scenery and the cool, refreshing water.

1700 Early dinner with the soothing sounds of the falls in the background.

DAY 2

0700 Breakfast. Pack up and remove all debris from campsite prior to continuation of ascent. 0800 Climb up vertical wall. Find way over narrow ridge, under which is a small waterfall referred to as Salamin Bubog (Glass Mirror).

0900 Reach detour and backtrack slightly to locate trail.

0920 Traverse a treacherous, slippery gully to a natural cave known as Kuweba ng Dios Ama (Cave of God the Father).

1030 In the cave, take a brief rest and snacks.

1100 Climb rock formation with 45-degree gradient. There are hardly any handholds due to the absence of any plants or trees. Climbers can rely solely on cracks along the surface. At the base is a deep gully. Good luck!

1130 Arrive at top marked with tall grass and trees. Encounter diverging paths. Always follow one going to the right.

1200 Lunch along the way.

1300 Resume climb.

1430 Reach Pintong Lihim (Secret Door). Proceed to the summit. Come across bent twisted trees. Residents of the area call this particular spot Niluhuran (place where they knelt).

1900 Arrive at the peak: Santong Durungawan (Holy Window). Establish camp and take dinner.

DAY 3

0700 Breakfast. Break camp. Take photos if weather permits.

0800 Start descent.

1300 Reach Tatlong Tangke (Three Tanks). This term refers to a series of waterfalls. Have lunch.

1400 Resume hike down. Pass through a gully and over the kaingin (slash-and-burn farming) trail.

1600 Cross over rocky trail which leads to the "backyard" of the town of Kinabuhayan.

1630 At Kinabuhayan, inform Barrio Captain about arrival.

Find suitable place to stay overnight. Mingle with townsfolk to get first-hand experience about life and customs in a typical Filipino barrio.

DAY 4

0700 Breakfast.

0800 Return to Manila.

Special Considerations
Always contact local weather station for the latest conditions within the vicinity of the climb.
It is possible to attempt the climb anytime of the year in absence of tropical depressions or if advised otherwise by the local weather bureau.
Guard against leeches especially during the rainy season. Secure cuffs of long-sleeved t-shirts and pants. Tweezers and lighted cigarettes are useful for removing leeches. As a preventive measure, ordinary soap may be rubbed on pants and shoes to ward off leeches


1 day 1 night schedule (into the summit; holy window, unang dungaw ) - a long day short journey

We were at the foothills of Mount Banahaw around 7am after we finish a bowl of Special Mami "pares", we hurried ourselves to nearby parking slots, which i learn is not a parking area, but from a friends' house.

After 10 hours of trekking (Jojo Gimena, Ian , Jun Albay got there earlier, about 2PM ) I finally reached the summit.

Santong Durungawan : we camped for a night at the first peak of the holy mountain, we enjoy the food we bring along.

Before we go to sleep we had shots of Fundador, for us to make a goodnight sleep.

The morning breeze wake me up and voice of my friends, laughing with their experience during the climbed.


About 8 AM, we decided to go down.Another long journey back home. But we made it to the foothilss before 1PM.

We take a bath at the nearby river, just few steps from Bakas (Christ’s foot print), where we take get waters for take out ")

Close by was the “Cueva de Jusgado [Cave of Judgment].” It had a small opening just enough for one person to back into. There was an anecdote that pilgrims who are sinners cannot enter this cave no matter how much they try.We leave everything behind so as not to be carrying much once we are inside." As we entered, we brought flashlight, simply because it was totally dark inside.

When it was my turn to enter, my hearts beats faster. It's like im going to have an asthma attack, I can't breath. But I decided to continue. And ascend myself into the holes. It was difficult to find any foothold for my feet to help me move forward from my awkward position.

Entering the cave was like being born, as there was no way I could return to the entrance. I thought that was the only problem. I learned too late that I was inside a long, dark, narrow cave (tunnel) about 20 to 30 meters in length just big enough for my body to make slight movements. Some portions were slippery and surrounded by sharp, protruding stones.

I had to slither and contort my body like a snake to come out unhurt. There is no point of turning back as it is easily to continue and make it to the end, as it was doubly difficult to return.

In moments like this, faith in oneself and, most of all, faith in God, plus a little resourcefulness can help keep one's head.

But finally after the terribly difficult obstacle course, the sense of achievement was simply exhilarating.

The Cueva de Jusgado was very symbolic of life, for in life there are many obstacles and ignoring them won't solve the problem.

One must think be confident, have faith in oneself and in God, be resourceful and continue moving forward to be triumphant.

Not Abundant Water

April 4 1999

This message was from CBR posted on the

RP Fidonet Outdoors Echo from www.today.com.ph - 8 years ago

MOUNT BANAHAW, QUEZON -- Water is flowing again within Mount Banahaw, noted someone who intends to visit the "Holy Mountain" on Holy Week. Last year water was scarce. Skeptics have a scientific explanation for this: El Niño ravaged the country last year and Banahaw was not spared this environmental phenomenon. However, for the pilgrims and believers, this means that Banahaw is no longer disappointed -she no longer "hides her water." Banahaw's "disappointment" is said to stem from issues related to commer- cialization. Whenever business -minded persons fetched water from the springs by the gallons and sold them at ridiculous prices to the tourists, the water would disappear. When the government planned to build a superhighway that would run through the mountain, the water disappeared for months. The campaign of pilgrims and environmental groups did not prove futile: the project had to be changed and the water came back. Call it a crazy explanation, but the belief that they have regained the mountain's "trust"-as evidenced by the water flowing from the springs and waterfalls-has lifted the spirits of the people in the area.

Banahaw is their sacred mountain: She continuously manifests her protective powers through events that appear miraculous and certainly providential, even though these may be dismissed by outsiders as pure coincidence.

Banahaw protects her chosen ones: no outside threat can disturb the people's serene faith, their ineffable peace. Gratefully they dedicate their own sacrifices. With hymns and rituals, wearing ceremonial garb, they periodically sweep the templo, dredge the sacred pool, repair the footpaths for the pilgrims, trim the grass and the branches of the trees, and burn the refuse left in the sacred groves by the thoughtless tourists.

There are basically four categories of people who frequently climb Mount Banahaw. First, there are the religious, the sects who consider the mountain the site of the New Jerusalem. There are those who scale the slopes of Banahaw as part of their sacrifice in exchange for blessings or "miracles" that they are seeking, including the cure for those suffering from sickness. Other visitors are in search of anting-anting, psychic or paranormal experiences. Then there are mountaineers or outdoor groups wanting to breathe fresh air from one of Southern Luzon's largest forests.

Through the years, the number of religious sects in Mount Banahaw has grown to 168. Seventy-three of these are members of the Mount Banahaw Holy Confederation. As they believe that the mountain is the "New Jerusalem" the holy parts of the mountain are called puestos in Dolores and Sariaya and erehiya in Tayabas. The puestos normally represent the elements: earth, water, air and fire.

Superstitions abound for trekkers and pilgrims. One must request permission before starting the climb so as to ensure the guidance of the spirits. These spirits make their presence felt through strange lights or luminous objects, the eerie feeling that one is being watched along the trail, cold air enveloping one's body, and other manifestations. Some even see supernatural beings like dwarfs. The boisterous laughter of a group will earn them the ire of the spirits-they may find themselves drenched in rain while other groups in the vicinity remain completely dry. There are those who say that the crater of Banahaw is the perfect landing site for UFOs.
If Banahaw is known as the Holy Mountain, myth has it that the nearby mountain, Mount San Cristobal, is the "bad mountain." There, a spirit called Tumao is believed to haunt hikers and subject them to weird phenomena.

Scientists like Raymundo Punongbayan of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) have long been intrigued by the folk belief that if Banahaw erupts, water will gush from its crater. Mount Banahaw is one of the largest active volcanoes in the Philippines, its unique feature being an elliptical crater 758 meters high. The recorded date of the latest volcanic activity of Banahaw was in 1730 and 1743.

Punongbayan explained that in the event that Banahaw erupts, there will be pyroclastic flows toward the town of Sariaya and lava flows cascading toward the town of Dolores. Pyroclastic flow is a turbulent flowing mass of ejected fragmental volcanic materials mixed with hot gases and moving downslope at high speed. Pyroclastic flows may result from the collapse of tall eruption columns or from spillover of ejected materials from the erupting vents.

Punongbayan compared lava flow and pyroclastic flows with the toothpaste. Squeeze it slowly and the toothpaste will flow down slowly, while pressing it immediately will cause the toothpaste to zoom up. The former resembles the lava flow, the latter the pyroclastic flows.

The Philippine archipelago has more than 200 volcanoes distributed in five volcanic belts. Banahaw is one of the 22 known active volcanoes in the country. A volcano signifies a vent, hill, or mountain from which molten rock or gaseous materials are ejected. For a volcano to be considered active, Punongbayan explained that it must have erupted in historical time. On the other hand, a volcano is considered dormant if there is no historical record of its last eruption.

Punongbayan stressed that the best way to educate people is to give specific labels like "Banahaw volcano" instead of Mount Banahaw.

Declared a national park in 1921, Mounts Banahaw and San Cristobal cover an area of 11,133 hectares of moderate to steep terrain. The Quezon side is noted for its unique rock formation, mystical cave and medical springs. It has three towering peaks-Banahaw de Lucban, 1,875 meters above sea level; Mount Banahaw, 2,158 meters above sea level, and Mount San Cristobal, 1,470 meters above sea level.

One of the biggest forests in Southern Tagalog, the national park contains game animals such as wild pigs, deer, monkeys, and game birds such as hornbills, pigeons, jungle fowls, tailor birds, wag tails, orioles, brown doves, parakeets and coucals. Giant rats, wild cats and reptiles such as snakes, pythons and ground lizards are also seen in the area. It is home to tree species such as red lauan, tanguile and mayapis, while plant species like rattan, vines, grasses, club mosses, ferns and other aerial plants are abundant within the park.

The park is traversed by eight rivers, namely, Olla, Manipis, Santa Cruz, Liliw, Dalitawan, Malinao, Bakong and Lazaan. It is locally known as vulcan de agua due to the abundance of water even during the dry season.

For pilgrims and mountaineers, the jump-off point is Santa Lucia toward Kinabuhayan town. The wide and well-trodden trail leads to Kristalino Falls, a 30-meter waterfall surrounded by vine-covered trees, ferns, palms and bamboos. Just one-and-a-half hours away is a second waterfall whose surrounding area is ideal for a campsite.

One of the most difficult portions of the trail is a vertical wall leading to a very narrow ridge over a minute waterfall known as Salamin Bubog. This climaxes in a treacherous slippery stretch over huge boulders leading to a cavernous formation with a 30-meter-high entrance known as the Kuweba ng Diyos Ama.

On the way to the summit are landmarks like Pinoy Lihim, huge moss-covered boulders marking two divergent paths, and rows of trees with twisted trunks almost hugging the ground on bended knees. These trees are commonly known as Niluhuran.

The first peak is Santong Durungawan, which overlooks a clear, blue open sky. The crater of the volcano is shaped like a winding canyon with walls soaring as high as 915 meters; its floor is between 27 and 46 meters wide. Thick forest carpets most of the interior but some portions exhibit marked scars of past avalanches.

From Durungawan, the descending group will pass through Tatlong Tangke, which used to refer to a series of waterfalls, and again to a gully and a kaingin trail. Crossing over rocky trail will lead to the backyard of the town of Kinabuhayan. (Dennis Gorecho)

Holy Trek

Trekking Through the Holy Mountain


Along Crystalino trail you will pass by the Crystalino Falls, Suplina Falls, Salamin Bubog (glass mirror) which is a small pond in which the waters are still as a mirror. The Kweba ng Dios Ama (cave), one of the most sacred place but you will be disgusted to see a concrete house erected by one of the local sects right in the mouth of the cave; the Pintong Lihim (sacred door)- two large boulders with divergent paths and Niluhuran (place where trees knelt) which was named due to the bent trees which abound the place and some minor pilgrim sites (holy places).

Due to typhoons that hits the Philippines, some part of the Mountain were devastated. Large timber were uprooted. Big tress were scattered along the way.Local folks have no choice but make money out of it.

The face of the Mountain maybe devasted but not its holliness.

At the summit try to visit the Durungawan (view points) I, II, and III (highest point), the cave near the cross and the crater view overlooking Guis-guis and two other rivers Tubig ng Gatas at Tubig ng Dugo (river of blood and milk because one is white as marble and the other red as iron oxide). Along the Tatlong Tangke route, pass by Kapatagan (plains) and the Tatlong Tangke (3 natural water tanks).

From the summit, you can also take the trail going down the crater towards Sariyaya or from Durungawan III, you can go to a longer un-established trail to Tayabas and/or Lucban trails.






Within Kinabuhayan area, the Bakas (Christ’s foot print), Santo Calbaryo (Calvary), Tres Personas, Ilog ng landas (river), Ina ng Awa, Husgado (cave), Kweba ni San Pedro (cave), Kweba ni San Pablo (cave), Prisintahan, Dolorosa, Piedra Mental, Ciudad Mystica, Buhok ng Birhen, Nunong Lalake and some other pilgrim places are worth to visit.

A way to go - Mt Banahaw itinerary

WHEN AND HOW TO GO

Mt. Banahaw can be scaled through various jump-off points like Dolores, Tayabas (Banahaw de Tayabas), Sariyaya (Guis-guis Trail) and Lucban (Lucban de Banahaw) but most of these trails have different peak destinations though there are already recorded traverse from one peak to the other or climbs using a combination of these trails.

This itinerary is the Dolores Trail. The Dolores Trail, the most popular particularly among the pilgrims, have two other sub-routes, the Crystalino and the Tatlong Tanke routes. There is a third route in Dolores that is no longer being used. It connects to the Guisguis trail of Sariyaya going inside the crater. So officially, the two Dolores trails, Crystalino and Tatlong Tangke are considered the Banahaw de Dolores climb.

In climbing, it is advisable to take one of the trails going up and the other on your way down to see the two routes. The climb can be easily done even without a guide for trails are visible and marked. Looking for guides within the place may be difficult for most people living within the jump-off area are not inclined into climbing or guiding in particular. The climb itself is not a technical one, but a long strenuous hike. To go there, take a bus bound for Lucena City (Tritran, JAM, JAC, BLTB).

Get off at San Pablo Laguna. Ask for the jeepney stop for jeeps bound for Dolores Quezon (regular trips are from 4:00 AM to 4:00 PM, though special trips can be arranged 24 hours a day with much added cost). Kinabuhayan in Brgy. Sta. Lucia, Dolores, Quezon is the official jump-off point. From Kinabuhayan, you can ask the locals for the start of the trail or you can go directly at the back of the barangay hall. The trail initially splits into two, the Crystalino and the Tatlong Tangke trails. Either of the two, follow the established path straight to the peak (Durungawan I). From there you can choose what trail to take in descending the mountain, either the other Dolores trail, the Guis-guis trail or Tayabas/Lucban trails.

Banahaw can be scaled any time of the year though it is best advised especially for beginners and the curious to climb it during the Holy Week. Few weeks before the Holy Week is the best time because during that time, the place is already prepared for the Holy Week revelry with make-shift stalls along the trail but not as crowded and littered as the Holy Week itself.

Banahaw - Off limits to visitors

Beginning April 5 2004, and covering the next five years, Mount BANAHAW will be off limits to visitors


MYSTICISM, religion and romance shroud Mount Banahaw. The scenic mountain and popular tourist spot in the province of Quezon is said to be the home of ancient spirits and a shrine for supernatural power.


For these reasons, numerous religious cults believe Mount Banahaw to be sacred, where devotees must go to make their yearly pilgrimages and celebrate their rituals. Some even have settled down at the foothills of the mountain to commune continually with their gods.
Over the years, however, tourists and devotees alike have inflicted much damage on Mount Banahaw’s pristine surroundings.



Owing to neglect and carelessness, heaps of garbage littered the area, according to the Lucena Protected Area Management Board. The municipal watchdog tasked to protect the mountain’s environmental health disclosed that nearly half a million tourists and devotees annually climb Mount Banahaw, during the Holy Week and two weeks before Lent.


We can only guess at the amount of damage these visits have wreaked on the mountain. Moreover, since some cultists have settled on its footsteps, we can surmise that part of their food and water comes from the mountain’s plants and wildlife. This, too, can upset its ecological balance.


Preserving Mount Banahaw has gained paramount importance, since it is the largest watershed in Southern Tagalog and a magnet for tourism. A member of the board, Manny Calbayog, also Lucena’s municipal and natural resources officer, has disclosed that the towns around the mountain have started to experience a decrease in their water supply—no doubt as a result of the harm done to Banahaw over a long period of time.


We commend the move to save Mount Banahaw from further deterioration by imposing a five-year ban on tourists and religious devotees who would trample all over the place.
Beginning April 5, and covering the next five years, the mountain will be off limits to visitors, except for certain assigned areas at its foot where worshipers can do their annual rituals. April 5 marks the start of Holy Week, Expecting a howl of protest from faithful and wayward pilgrims, Calbayog noted that “only two out of ten climbers are real devotees.” If they were really God-fearing Christians, would they leave garbage in their church? Indeed, would a devout Catholic leave bubble-gum wrappers inside the Saint Peter’s Basilica?


He has observed that garbage left by “devotees” after Holy Week included sleazy magazines, playing cards and empty liquor bottles. These are hardly the things you’d expect from people who go to Mount Banahaw to nourish their soul and spirit.


The moratorium on the beautiful mountain, harsh as it may seem, is very necessary. Given the mountain’s historic and cultural niche, the government must act to protect it. The ban could have been prevented, of course, had those who frequently go there obeyed the old saying: “Cleanliness is next to godliness.”

Date: February 25, 2007 : We are at the summit , Santong Durungawan. (Holy Window ) Unang Dungaw , cooking our dinner : ) .

Local folks said that it is now open for public but they have not announce such thing because the news were easily spread out. As the saying goes " May pakpak ang balita may tainga ang lupa ". If you are truly a devotee of Mt. Banahaw you can surely know these and grab your back pack and trekking through the Mountains of Holliness.

The Legend of the Holy Mountain - Mt. Banahaw

HOLY MOUNTAN - THE LEGENDS OF MT. BANAHAW

A legend has it that because of the turmoil in the Middle East in a not too distant past, the four Archangels transferred the Holy Land to Mt. Banahaw. In the 16th century, a legend said that a Chinese cutter, Juan Ynbin, who’s body dismembered by the Spaniards and thrown to the sea as a result of a revolt against forced labor during the construction of the shrine of Caysasay came back to life. He claimed that a beautiful woman saved him from the sea and placed him on a leaf that carried him to Majayjay within the view of Banahaw.

Another legend says that somewhere in between 1886 and 1939, a Holy Voice or Santong Boses, dictated the locations of the holy places in Banahaw which also gave the names to these places. It was given to one of the famous mystics of Banahaw, Agripino Lontoc from Taal Batangas who hid in the mountains from the Spaniards who branded him as a rebel. He also went into the mountains to seek for amulets.

The story goes that every time he tried to leave the mountain, he would go blind and this forced him to stay in Banahaw to become one of it’s first hermits.

Banahaw was also the headquarter of a group of dissidents headed by the famous local hero, Apolinario de la Cruz or Hermano Pule sometime in 1840-43.

He was the person who named places such as Jacob and Kalbaryo. In an offensive against Pule, he and his wife was killed wherein his head, stucked to a pole, was displayed at the road to Tayabas to warn all rebels. Pule promised to return as the Santong Boses.

Chocolates, Redbull, Extra Jos and Soup No 5 - Bat and Balls

These were the foods and supplements that keep you going going going and going to conquer the holy mountain........ well with out the energizer my camera won't work and these picture were not possible to see : ) hehehe.

Bat and Balls

They call this special mami ,but from Manila, specially in the Makati Rolling Canteen, they call these Pares. whew! hot. We had a bowl of this before and after our adventure to the mountain. This will ad up to our energy and burn while climbing. Fortunately I have so much fats to burn. But those fats did not help me climbed.






This is how my fats burned : )

At the peak of the Holy Mountain - Unang Dungaw sa bundok ng Banahaw

February 25, 2007 - Sunday 3:30 am - Mt. Banahaw 2007

It is said that Mt. Banahaw keeps away those who are not yet ready to receive its secrets.

" Well after 15 years of waiting, Finally I recieved the secrets of the Holy Mountain".The following post will be our long day, short journey to Mt Banahaw. Imagine walking, scrumbling, rope climbing...etc. for one day just to reach the peak ( Unang Dungaw ) of the Holy Mt. Banahaw.

For a rookie like me, trekking to the Mountain takes 10hrs to reach the first peak ( Unang Dungaw ).But for the veterans that climbed Mt. Banahaw since 1991, they can reach the peak in just 2-3 hrs. Those veterans we're my companion in my first adventure to the Holy Mountain."


"Daday" ang taong bundok, hehehehe. i know this guy from the basketball court in our hometown, Taytay,Rizal. Daday served as my guide/sherpa. Sherpa? hmmmm well this guy trained along side with the pinoy who climbed Mt. Everest, here in Mt. Banahaw, those people were trained here in Mt. Banahaw and got their energy and stamina from the Mountains of Banahaw. The Mountain of Banahaw served as the training ground of mountaineers. Well those people who have known from around the world being the First Filipino climbed the Mt. Everest mostly were the product of the Holy Mountain.



Rising some 2450 meters from sea level, this active volcano, a part of the Banahaw-Cristobal National Park, has long been believed to be a storehouse of psychic energy. The local residents considers it a sacred mountain. It teems with legends and superstitions. It has been the home to countless members of religious cults, hermits, soul searchers, spiritist and faith healers who climbs its slopes to meditate in it’s cave and commune with the mountain spirits. It clearly shows the other side of Filipino fanaticism and superstitious ways. Being in Banahaw is something like stepping into incredible stories of apparitions, heavenly voices, strange sounds, dwarves, fairies and even UFO’s.

Geographically, Banahaw stands on a power point where the key lines of the earth intersect.Wherever such latitudes and longitudes meet, they create energy fields that allow higher frequencies of perception, physiological or otherwise.

Banahaw is one of those rare fields just like Lourdes in France, Sedona in Arizona, Bali in Indonesia and Ayers Rock in Australia, to name a few. People living in the foot of the mountain speaks of apparitions of Jesus Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary and even Dr. Jose P. Rizal and other national heroes.

An old legend has it that a hermit living near Banahaw once had a vision that it was to become the New Jerusalem. Appropriately, the names of all topographical features had been given names with biblical allusions, Kinabuhayan, Dolores, Santo Kalbaryo, Kweba ng Dios Ama and the famous Jacob’s Well to name a few. During Holy Week, pilgrims ascend to the crater rim peaks called Durungawan to relieve the passion and death of Jesus Christ. There, three crosses have been strategically planted to recreate the actual crucifixion scene. On Good Friday, however, the summit should be deserted, as the mystics believe that only God the Father may bear witness to His Son’s death.

It is also said that on the same day, an enkanto (spirit) opens a hidden cave near the crosses, which acts as the pathway to the nether world. Anyone left on the summit will be compelled to enter it and never return. Mt. Banahaw is a silent eloquent towering refuge. It forces the visitor to see beyond, if only momentarily, his/her superfluous needs. For an instant, even the most jaded traveler becomes pure of heart and for that alone, a climb up the mountain is well worth it.

Banahaw is located 100 kilometers southeast of Manila. It is the highest peak among a series of mountains and is surrounded by the towns of San Pablo, Majayjay, Liliw, Nagcarlan, Tiaong, Candelaria, Sariaya, Lucena, Tayabas and Lucban. Being an active volcano, its last recorded eruption was on 1721. That eruption caused a lake to form on the volcano’s crater which may have caused the crater to burst open during a possible eruption of 1743, though geographer Fr. Huerta mentioned in his Estado Geographica that it happened sometime 1730. The crater today is called ilalim. It also resulted the transfer of the town of Sariaya to its fourth and present site. In the 19th century Banahaw was called Monte de Majayjay or Monte San Cristobal which was then considered the "gateway" in ascending the mountain. It was also called "Vulcan de Agua" because of the numerous springs that flows from the base.

The present name Banahaw might have been derived from the word Ban-aw which means a vantage point to a lofty position.



INFORMATION:

Mount Banahaw
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mount Banahaw (alternatively Banáhao) is a dormant volcano located on the boundary of Majayjay, Laguna and Lucban, Quezon in Luzon, Philippines. It is considered to be sacred by the local residents. It has another of this mountain and it was named as Mount Banahaw de Lucban.

Physical characteristics

Height/ Elevation: 2,158 m asl (7,080 feet)
Crater: breached by 1.5 km x 3.5 km at its southern rim; 210 deep

Major adjacent volcanic edifices:

Mount San Cristobal (at western slope)
Mount Banahaw de Lucban (at northeastern slope) Buho
Masalakot Domes (at southwestern slope)
Mount Mayabobo Maars: Lake Dagatan and Lake Ticab

Thermal Areas:

Tiaong-San Pablo hot/warm springs
Bakia warm/cold springs
Sampaloc warm springs
Mainit hot/warm springs
Cagsiay hot/warm springs
Composition of Lava: Andesitic
Coordinates: 14°4′0″N, 121°29′0″E
Type: Complex Volcano
Last Eruption: