Author: Remo Aguilar
The Mountain Beneath the Summit
Natural History Notes from the Mossy Forests of Mt. Kalatungan Most hikers remember mountains by their summits. They remember the elevation, the difficulty, the weather, the photographs taken at the highest point. Years later, when stories are retold, the summit becomes the symbol of the entire journey. Yet when I look back on our climb...
Learning to Fall Behind on Kalatungan
“Sometimes, it feels good to get lost in an adventure—or forget about time and schedules.” I don’t remember much about the itinerary anymore. There were permits to secure, vehicles to coordinate, schedules to follow, and campsites marked on maps. Before every climb, I tend to build the trip in my head long before my boots...
Photo Climbing Mt. Kalatungan–Lumpanag Traverse
A Photographer’s Field Guide to Mindanao’s Twin Peaks Based on a 2013 Kalatungan–Lumpanag traverse via Brgy. Mendis, Pangantucan, Bukidnon. Trail conditions, regulations, access arrangements, guide requirements, and tourism policies may have changed since this expedition. Always verify current information with local...
What Mt. Kalatungan Taught Me About Getting Lost
The recent news of a hiker getting lost in Mt. Kalatungan is unfortunate. Yet for those who have spent time in its forests, it is not entirely surprising. More than a decade has passed since I climbed Mt. Kalatungan, but I still remember it as one of the most demanding mountains I have ever encountered. …...
The Waterfalls Are Calling Me Back: Eighteen Years After I Bled on Penek Busay
“Penek Busay this weekend. You in?” The ad popped up in my feed three days ago, and I swear my knees twinged in response. Not pain —more like muscle memory wrapped in scar tissue and eighteen years of stories I’ve told about that trek. My thumb hovered over the keyboard. In 2007, I bled all …...
Climbing Mt. Apo via Digos-Kapatagan Back trail: A Mindful Hiking Experience
“You don’t conquer the mountain. You conquer yourself.” The Trail Inward Begins For many, summiting Mt. Apo—the highest peak in the Philippines—is a bucket-list adventure. But for me, this trek via the Digos-Kapatagan Back trail was not a conquest. It was a reconnection—with nature, with people, and with myself. Planning the...
Photography for Wellness: Mindful Frames That Heal
Photography isn’t just an art—it’s a practice of presence. A tool for clarity. A bridge to others.
The Mindful Trek: Lessons from Mount Capistrano That Go Beyond the Trail
Introduction – Why We Climb Hills That Aren’t Just Hills There are trails that challenge the body, and then there are those that quietly challenge the soul. Mount Capistrano, nestled in the heart of Valencia, Bukidnon, may not be the tallest or the most intimidating peak, but for many, it offers a powerful space for …...
Seeing Siargao Through a Different Lens: An Inventure of Self and Soul
“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.”— Henry David Thoreau Introduction: Beyond Surfboards and Swells When most people think of Siargao, their minds drift to Cloud 9—that iconic, barreling right-hand wave that put this island on the global surfing map. But this isn’t a story about...
Top 10 views and scenic stops in the US
The man himself, for such I may call him, was fully fifteen feet in height and, on Earth, would have weighed some four hundred pounds.
