Mayana: Higher and Higher

Nine years ago, I and a few teammates of our team, Sky Logistics CC, conquered Baguio twice in two days. We were in Luzon to join a race called the “Vuelta Dagupan”, a two-day race that started in Dagupan and finished at the Pines City.

The first day was along the Marcos Highway, and the second on Kennon Road. Both times, I ended at the tailend, but it didn’t matter, Baguio was iconic, and just to be able to scale it not once but twice, was something I could only dream of. At almost 1500 meters in altitude, it was a long slog, but it was worth it.

Then last year, I climbed 1000 meters, at the highest coffee shop in Cebu, Patimz Cafe, located in Mantalongon, Dalaguete. My curiosity and my pride has also brought me to the top of Mt Manunggal, one of the most difficult climbs I’ve ever done, not because it's the hardest, but because of the “other” climbs before you even step on the foot of the climb.

However, there is one climb that I have failed twice. It's called “Mayana”, the climb between Jagna and Sierra Bullones in eastern Bohol. The last time I was there was nine years ago. I would have wanted to climb over the mountain but my companions wanted to go back to Jagna.

So last week, after almost two years of not having set foot on my homeland, I finally conquered Mayana. Starting in Tagbilaran,I rode to Jagna, then to the Chocolate Hills of Carmen via Sierra Bullones before heading back to where I started. The total distance was 173km and I finished it in 7 hours, 30 minutes.

What’s so compelling with Mayana? For starters, it's the highest paved rolling road and the longest climb in Bohol. Secondly, I have to ride for 60km before I can start scaling this mountain, and it will take a toll on your fitness. Thirdly, the climb is about 20km long and it's hard to find of such length and quality around the region.

There was a time during the Martial law years when this place was only for the NPAs and the military to roam around. In fact, Mayana made the headlines when the NPA ambushed a convoy of high ranking Philippine Constabulary officers. After that, there were stories of people getting robbed as they travelled from the highlands going to Jagna.

Today, Mayana is a far cry from the recent past. It’s now fully paved. The climb starts easy then like a crescendo, it gets steeper and steeper in the last 3-4k’s. At the top, there is a strawberry farm but I had  no time to check out the place, I would rather spend my remaining energy on the ride home.

If you start the climb from Jagna, then it shouldn’t be a problem, but if you start from Tagbilaran, it's another story. While earlier slopes have huge trees that give you shade and gentler gradients at 4-5%, the  higher slopes have sheer rocks on the side that reflect the heat from the sun that can sap your remaining energy and gradients that ramp up top 10-14%.

I will be back again, and instead of turning towards Loboc, I’ll go further north to Trinidad and take the long way home. Finally, I have slain the dragon.