Seeing the Beauty of Sagada through Mt. Ampacao

MT. AMPACAO

Photo from: http://www.flickriver.com/photos/92065706@N08/35704309032/

Rising above the highland town of Sagada, famous for its natural and cultural wonders, is its highest point, Mt. Ampacao. Laden with pine trees, this mountain offers a beautiful overview of Sagada. It only takes 90 minutes to reach the summit on average pace. The ‘ranch’, a viewpoint two-thirds up gives beautiful views of nearby villages and mountains, especially on the western side, where one can already see the mountains straddling Ilocos Sur and the Abra-Mt. Province boundary. The panorama includes Mt. Polis (SE), Bessang and Mt. Tirad, site of the famous Tirad Pass (E) and Mt. Sipsipitan (N). Read More: http://www.pinoymountaineer.com/2008/01/mt-ampacao-1889.html

Photo from: http://www.traveltropa.com/2013/11/adventure-to-mt-ampacao-in-sagada.html#.W9JIAfZRdaQ

The traverse to Mt. Ampacao starts from a partially obscure offshoot from the main trail. The weather is cool and pine trees dot the single path. It winds through the hills and offers a view of the town center along certain portions of the trail. After about half an hour, you reach a grassland called the “ranch”. At the “ranch”, cows graze and you get a panoramic view of Sagada and its neighboring towns. Twenty minutes from the grassland, a cellphone tower marks the summit of Mt. Ampacao. This is the highest point of Sagada, Mt. Province. Read More: https://iwanderiwonder.com/2012/12/24/a-double-traverse/#more-1090

Photo from: http://ph.geoview.info/mt_ampacao_view_sagada,51002486p

The mountain is located in Sagada, Mountain Province; it is 1889 MASL, two hours to reach to the summit which offers a beautiful scene of Sagada. The jump-off is at Brgy. Ambasing. There are two important landmarks of the mountain; the first one is ranch which some hikers mistakenly call it as the summit, and the second is the peak of mountain.

The first summit is the ranch where you can pitch tent here if you stay overnight. However, additional thirty minutes going up to the peak of Mt. Ampacao. It’s a concrete trail and there’s a part also that are rocky. Pine trees are everywhere throughout the trails which give common shade that helps hiker not feel the heat of the sun. The weather, obviously, is still cold which I truly like during the climb. Read More: https://thesoulexplorer.blogspot.com/2014/07/mt-ampacao-traverse-to-lake-danum.html

Photo from: https://iwanderiwonder.com/2012/12/24/a-double-traverse/#more-1090

Photos below from:

http://www.ivanlakwatsero.com/2012/12/mtampacao.html