Sunday, July 20, 2008

Hapao-Hungduan-Ducligan Trek

The Hapao-Hungduan-Ducligan Trek is one of the easiest and pleasurable hike in Ifugao. It will take you just barely four hours (back and forth) to walk through the dazzling rice terraces of Hapao and Hungduan which are spread out over the valley floor.

To walk to a small hot springs beside a river in Hapao, you need to take on the concrete steps behind the Hungduan Viewpoint and follow the paved irrigation canal for about 10 minutes until you reach a small group of houses. Then, it is another 20 minute hike to the river where you can cool off in the refreshing water or soothe yourself in the warm hot springs.

Here are some photos I have taken on the awe-inspiring hike featuring the Rice Terraces of Hapao and Hungduan, the walking trails, the river and the hot spring:
















Personal Notes:

Firstly, in this blog's poll last week, I ask you, my dear readers, where do you want me to go next? The results were not really a surprise. The top vote goes to BATANES while the second and third places go to CAMIGUIN and TUBATTAHA REEF respectively. I always wanted to go to BATANES had several postponed trips to that place in previous years. Your votes just made me eager to go to BATANES and I will probably go there in the summer of 2009 or earlier if opportunity knocks. I just hope that my dream of going there will be fulfilled soon.

Secondly, I joined Top 100 Traveling Sites about a month ago just for curiosity's sake. I first saw it in Tutubi's famous Backpacking Philippines and Asia site so I decided to join it. I am just so amazed that in just short span of time that I have joined them, this site is now ranked at 61. I am just so amazed 'coz I really do not know that this site is also getting such attention worldwide. My hats-off too to Tutubi for his site is ranked in the high top 20s.

And lastly, I have been receiving e-mails and comments about why am I not posting new law topics. Pardon me for not having to post legal matters in recent months. Thank you for those who have noticed it and I really have some posts made up for taxes and some about the latest laws and jurisprudence. It's just that I still have lots of catching-up to do with regards to postings of my recent travels particularly on Ifugao and Pangasinan. I do promise however that once all of these travel posts are over (it's rainy days anyways), I'll post more about laws and some other stuff.

But for the meantime, I do hope that you enjoy my upcoming travel posts.

96 commented:

nyl said...

great photos!sana makapunta ako dyan...

acey said...

beautiful place!

congrats on being ranked 61st!!! :D cheers.

Vanessa said...

So beautiful. Wish i cud go there someday.

> Vanny < said...

wow.. nice.. =)

the pictures.. waaahhh.. *green in envy*

tc!

Anonymous said...

love the last photo!

pensucks said...

honga... sana sa batanes. ako din gustong gusto ko makapunta dun. kaso di ko alam.

The Islander said...

kala ko madalian yung choice mo between batanes and camiguin. hehe. anyways pansin ko lang planting season pa lang sa banaue, samantalang sa hapao at hungduan harvesting na. why is that?

bw said...

Amazing how they constructed the terraces minus the mechanized equipment ! And the water is so fresh - crystal clear :)

Rio said...

ang linaw ng tubig sa last photo=)
ganda=)

Selerines said...

Fantastic lawstude... Nice one.. You are just bringing my 6th class social book in front of me.. There only i learned all these things, i mean the fields etc,. Cool!!!!

Lawstude said...

@ nyl - hello. welcome to my blog. and thanx for the compliment. sana nga makapunta ka din doon and pls explore the beauty of our country.

Lawstude said...

@ acey - thanks. the last time i checked i am now ranked 30th. wow.

Lawstude said...

@ vanessa - thanks. hope so too.

Lawstude said...

@ vanny - you shouldn't envy. punta ka na din.

Lawstude said...

@ anonymous - thanks.

Lawstude said...

@ pensucks - ang alam ko tuwing summer lang pwede doon kasi pag rainy season na eh hindi rin malilibot ang place.

Lawstude said...

@ the islander - pwede rin. punta na kaya ako next week lols. pero teka baka masisante na ko.

Lawstude said...

@ bw - talaga. you just couldn't discount the engineering ingenuity of our native ifugao brothers.

Lawstude said...

@ rio - sarap nga magswimming doon eh. ang init ng tubig.

Lawstude said...

@ selerines - thanks. glad to be of information to you.

Freddy said...

wow!!!!great shot! lovely scenary..
the place looks so beautiful

The Islander said...

as of this moment po, you are elevated to top 25 in top100travellingsites. me on the 76th spot. nyaha. at least.

pero if you were on the 61st yesterday and now in the 25th.. grabe! ang bilis...

Coldman said...

love the first pic! galeng!

the donG said...

lawstude number 18 ka na! as i checked it today. congratulations! tingin ko sa number of hits nakabase ang poll. ibig sabihin dami na talagang bumibisita sa blog mo. yihaa!!!!

astig ng mga shots. pumunta ako ng kapangan pero hindi ganito kalaki ang mga rice terraces.

redlan said...

i like the photos, puro green. cool sa mata. maganda ang pagkakuha lahat. parang postcards. tapos yung may mga magsasaka parang painting.

maganda ang topic mo about traveling. i enjoy it most

Shades said...

sunny and beautiful place...! wish i could go there some day...!!
:)

Ely said...

awesome!

kingdaddyrich said...

pwede pala ang consultation about legal matters sayo noh? :)

Daniel J Santos said...

I like these travels, I hope for more and more, excellent.

TENTAY™ said...

dapat camiguin muna eh tapos magmomoment sabay background song eh un broken vow. oh bakit emo ka din!! hahahahah

Lawstude said...

@ freddy - thanks and welcome to my blog. the place indeed is very scenic.

Lawstude said...

@ islander - oo nga. ngyun 19 naman. btw congrats and more power to pinoy travel bloggers.

Lawstude said...

@ coldman - ganda ng kulay ng first pic kaya gusto ko talaga yun.

Lawstude said...

@ the dong - akala ko magkakamukha lang ang rice terraces ng ifugao pero di pala. ibaiba sila ng features lalo na yung sa batad.

thnx.

Lawstude said...

@ redlan - thnx buddy. although i considered this trip one of the toughest because of the hikes, nevertheless it is one of the most enjoyable one.

Lawstude said...

@ shades - thank you, glad you like the place.

Lawstude said...

@ ely - wow. thnx.

Lawstude said...

@ kingdaddyrich - oo naman pwedeng pwede.

Lawstude said...

@ daniel j santos - i got at least a couple more posts about ifugao. glad u like 'em.

Lawstude said...

@ tentay - hahaha. parte na yata ng buhay ang pag eemo. basta wag lang papakamatay. ;)

luna miranda said...

Wow, congratulations for being in the Top 100 Traveling Sites! I agree with most of the voters...Batanes should be on top of your list of destinations, it's in mine, too.:D I'm also planning to visit Batanes next year, God willing. Hopefully, airlines would include Batanes in their promo fares.:D

beero said...

the first pic wowed me!hehe. there's something different in that pic. ganda ng kulay.

batanes is also a nice destination kuya. i was able to watch a TV show before na nag-feature sa batanes. ganda ng design ng houses dun.

Allan Barredo said...

been aiming to revisit Ifugao for the longest time. :)

congrats on the making it to the Top 100 Traveling Sites sir! definitely well deserved.

Lara said...

amazing! must be great wandering around there!

Ash said...

More fantastic images...

alicesg said...

Great and fantastic photos of the rice plantation. I will visit the travelling site as I am interested in travel. :)

Shionge said...

Yo I just have to come by and thank you for a visit at my blog earlier :D

Now, you have captivated me and clearly reminded me of my trip to Bali (Year 1998)....stunning shots and yes I'll be back here too :D

Happy travelling!

Pietro said...

Fantastic pictures and very nice blog!
I've just seen your interesting post about Lourdes Grotto: this year is the 150th Anniversary of the Virgin Mary Apparitions to Bernadette Soubirous.

MEDITERRANEAN KIWI said...

you;ve certainly shown us beautiful places with your camera!

Jules said...

Great photos and I will enjoy going back and checking out your other posts. Thanks for dropping by Rabaul DP.

Cheers

KOSTAS said...

I thank for the visit and the comment.
Yours blog is very good, with informative and full travelling information posts but also beautiful photographs!
Congratulations!!!

Stanley said...

Nice photos! Thanks so much for dropping by my site. You site is very popular!! HAhaahah...wah.....so many comments =)

Regards,
Stanley

Michele (Rocky Mtn.Girl) said...

Thanks for dropping by my blog and the nice comment. Your photos are beautiful. It's as if I'm traveling with you and enjoying the amazing sights. Awesome! I will be back!
Mountain Retreat Photos

kyels said...

Love the photos pare! It shows the true side of nature, di ba?

[:

Sorry I haven't been visiting for a few weeks; currently operating on a friend's computer na, and my links are in my e-mail. Will be back regularly once I buy my new machine.

Lawstude said...

@ luna miranda - thanks. another pressure to improve my posts lols.

i love to go to Batanes. it is one of my dream destinations and i already have lots of infromation about the place.

Lawstude said...

@ beero - i also like that pic a lot. the mountain background is just so amazing.

hey. i added u to my friendster bro.

Lawstude said...

@ allan barredo - the place is just awesome so you won't regret going there.

thnx.

Lawstude said...

@ lara - thanks lara, indeed, its great to just wander around the rice terraces.

Lawstude said...

@ ash - wow. thank you for liking the photos. i appreciate.

Lawstude said...

@ alicesg - please do. there are lots of great sites in there and i am just so lucky to be included in top 100.

Lawstude said...

@ shionge - thank you. i really love to travel 'coz it relieves stress and i got to experience various cultures.

Lawstude said...

@ pietro - i love the virgin mary, we have the same birthdate so i pray to HER a lot.

Lawstude said...

@ mediterranean kiwi - thank you, it is my pleasure to share my beuatiful country with you.

Lawstude said...

@ jules - your welcome and thank you too.

Lawstude said...

@ kostas - wow. thank you for the nice comment. i appreciate it very much.

Lawstude said...

@ stanley - thanks stanley, i am just lucky to have so many visitors in this humble site.

Lawstude said...

@ michelle - thanks. it's my pleasure to share my journey with you.

Lawstude said...

@ kyels - i agree. the place is just right for nature and landscape enthusiast like me.

hope ur machine arrives soon. take care.

MedaM said...

Thanks so much for dropping by my blog and for the nice comment. Your blog is interesting and just wonderful. It is full of fantastic photos of so beautiful landscapes. I really like it very much.

vinzent said...

Ang ganda talaga ng rice terraces. Gustong-gusto ko marating yan kasi sa mga pictures at tv ko lang yan nakikita. Sana bago ko mamatay marating ko yan.

pts said...

your blog is amazing!thanks for the comment on my blog.

Joy said...

Really beautiful photos! Would love to go there, too - but will need to fly from Manila :D

Many thanks for your visits to Norwich Daily Photo. I hope that you enjoy the colours of summer on my blog.

joy

my-so-called-Quest said...

galing kuya, you really captured its beauty!

ingats palagi=]

fishing guy said...

LS: What a great sight the terraced rice paddies are. It does look like a great walk. Do you see much in the way of animal or insect life on your walks?

Laerte Pupo said...

Thanks for your visit to my blog.

You have a beutiful blog, and I
like your blog.

I'll back.

Carletta said...

Wow!
This was like watching The Discovery Channel or reading National Geographic only WAY BETTER!
Wonderful photos. I enjoyed my visit very much.

Thanks for your visit to my Carousel horses today.

george said...

Muchas gracias por tu visita y tu comentario, tienes un blog con unas fotos extraordinarias, volveré.
Un abrazo

Catherine said...

Oh wow, that is so beautiful..what a place for a hike!!
Beautifully captured too! :)
Enjoy your week Lawstude!
Cat

Luzdeluna said...

Qué lugar maravilloso,paisajes increíbles!!
Las fotos estan excelentes!
Saludos

TENTAY™ said...

aakyatin ko nalang ang terraces at sabay magpapagulong gulong sa hagdan upang mamatay! nayahahahah at habang kumakanta ng broken vow. ayan tuloy stak up ako sa broken vow. ;p

Lawstude said...

@ medam - thank you for liking it. my country is just blessed with lots of beautiful scenery and i am just happy to share them with you.

Lawstude said...

@ vinzent - pare negative naman yung mamatay lols. punta ka na agad.

Lawstude said...

@ pts - thank you too and welcome to my blog.

Lawstude said...

@ joy - it is about 8 hours from manila but the long ride is definitely worth it.

Lawstude said...

@ my-so-called-quest - salamat doc. good luck din sa studies.

Lawstude said...

@ fishing guy - i have seen lots of birds and insects there and just few lizards. and lots of domestic animals like cows and dogs too.

Lawstude said...

@ laerte pupo - your welcome and thank you for the visit too.

Lawstude said...

@ carletta - wow. i really appreciate it. just to be compared with those nature channels is a compliment in itself. thanks a lot.

Lawstude said...

@ george - gracias señor and bienvenido.

Lawstude said...

@ catherine - thanks cat and enjoy your week too.

Lawstude said...

@ luzdeluna - gracias señora. bienvenido mi blog.

Lawstude said...

@ tentay - di ka mamamatay kasi putik babagsakan mo ahehehe. unless doon sa batad ka papagulong kasi yung terraces nila eh stone-walled. di broken vow yun kundi broken neck. ;)

Stardust said...

Wow, truly beautiful landscapes you have here...

Digital Polaroids said...

IS ALL THIS YELLOW REAL???

Lawstude said...

@ stardust - the place is just so marvelous that any photographer couldn't go wrong.

Lawstude said...

@ digital polaroids - yup it is. maybe played with some hues but the crops have already been harvested so the fields are all yellow.