Mapanuepe Lake x Liwliwa Zambales

I was desperate for my two days leave approval and overthinking for the past days; a willing employee to risk her regular job because she was truly exhausted and burn out. I knew what I need: a great escape to gain peace of mind.

Last minute after my shift they approved my leave.

I was all ready to go anyway.

It was Thursday 1 am when they picked me up in Cavite and travel straight to Zambales. From Metro to Zambales it took 4 hours travel time. It was raining lightly the whole night, hoping the sun won't hide from us in the morning.

There are few bad omen before the trip started but opposite happened. It was the best 4 days of my 2022!

We arrived in the Zambales proper before 6am and stayed in the car until the public market opened. We bought all the items we need that wasn't in our packs yet. We waited for the ice and water store to opened not knowing there's available in Mapanuepe.

Just a disclaimer, this blogpost is for story and sharing experience only. If you're looking for a complete detail of travel and itinerary I won't be able to say that you'll get what you need here but hope some will help.

📍 Mapanuepe Lake, San Marcelino, Zambales Philippines

THE MAPANUEPE LAKE

The Mapanuepe lake was formed in 1991 after the catastrophic eruption of Mt Pinatubo. The lahar blocked the rivers in Mapanuepe valley which caused to flood some villages. Hamlets submerge in the floodwater which is part of Brgy Aglao and Brgy. Buhawen. This became the mapanuepe lake. The steeple of church Bojoaen still protruding out of lake water, This significant part of the beautiful disaster can still be seen up to date.

How to get there:

I actually can't remember what happened during travel time because I was all sleepy. But there are two ways to get there. First is the challenging way which can only passed by an off road vehicle. Second is easier which is for vehicles not intended for off road. from main road, turned right in an alley that lead to rough lahar covered road then go up, down and zigzag in the mountain. The easy one is the road we've taken.

Once you passed the residential area, there will be villagers collecting environmental fee for PHP 20 per pax. A few minutes you will reach the Mapanuepe view deck where you can park your vehicle and pay for the registration fee and arrange the boat rental. This will be your boat back and forth. We rented two boats one for us (5 pax) and another boat for our things and camping gears good for 3 days.

The boat ride took around 10-15 minutes and once you've reached the camping site, a local in his motor sidecar will offer a bag transfer on your chosen camping area, you'll just give him any amount.

We've got the best spot to pitch our tents. A lot of tall pine trees behind where we can set up our hammock and tolda for dining. A beautiful landscape of mountains and lake in front of us, so much greens and a wide grass land to play.

It was perfectly serene.

What to do in Mapanuepe:

If you're gonna ask me what activities to do in Mapanuepe - I'll actually tell you NOTHING! and its the best thing! We did not acomplished any exciting recreational activities since our main goal was to relax and reset from the reality. But you can go camping overnight, picnic, play with your pets, swimming, boating, motor rides or simply just enjoy the scenery.

We did enjoy doing some things. Like cooking on the next level, we prepared dishes inspired from different countries. We have steak, pasta, samgyupsal, thai rolls, Filipino meryendas and breakfast. Of course nothing beats the joy of eating all the food you worked hard to prepare.

We have no complaints in washing the dishes even though we have to do it multiple times and work our arm muscles pumping the rusty poso. Because who will say no with this view while washing plates?

Personally I enjoyed sleeping in the hammock, the endless beers all day, good night talks and bonfire camping night.

Beware of the cows and dogs lurking around especially at night, they're targeting your left over food and trash. They're watching from the dark.

Stargazing is also another relaxing thing to do at Mapanuepe. You just have to look at the sky at night and all stars shining brightly.

There's no network signal and electricity in the area and that's really the point of the trip. To disconnect with the corporate reality for a while, reconnect with our inner peace and simply immerse in nature. If you don't feel like doing anything, it's the perfect place.

If you're already suffocated with the urban perspective and looking for a picturesque scenery break, Mapanuepe suited your photography hobby. Everything will inspire you to take snapshots. Effortless beauty.

Things to remember:

• Bring off lotion or mosquito repellant

• There's no restaurant in the campsite but there is a sari sari store where you can buy basic needs and some locals go around to sell fresh buko, fruits and meryenda.

• Ask the caretaker where to best set up your bonfire. We don't want to damage the healthy grassland. They also sell firewoods.

• bring your flashlight! Its too dark at night.

• bring containers for your left over foods so you can keep it in your cooler and to avoid feeding the cows and dogs uninvitedly.

• When using the common CR, make sure to clean afterwards. I'm happy to hear the caretaker telling us they have mirror in the public bathroom, he's so proud how they take care the area.

• Best to ask first the caretaker/locals/registrar if you can swim in the lake because they said it might be mercury contaminated.

• properly keep your trash.

• Wear comfortable clothes.

• Leave no trace and be a responsible camper.

• always remember to enjoy the moment!

📍Liwliwa, San Felipe Zambales Philippines

Liwliwa Zambales

The remaining days from the four days trip was well spent in Liwliwa San Felipe Zambales. The good thing about travelling with a car is you can switch places without a hustle. It was my first time in this beach. We usually spent beach days in zambales cove. This one hits different compare to rural feels in cove. A combination of night life and relaxation. They said it's improving similarity with Elyu vibes but never been to Elyu yet.

We stayed in Haven Campsite and booked Teepee Villa with ac and own cr good for 4-5 pax. But in can accommodate more than 5 Pax. We spent around 7k for 2D1N since we have additional head. We came in Liwliwa experiencing another light rain so we just settled in our villa with our drinking session and prepared our dinner.

Since we are all late twenties and tired of activities, sign of aging I guess; We just chill and enjoy the beach vibe. I heard you can also surf and separate rental for ATV experience and of course we didn't try neither of the two. We're already in our tito-tita era. When the light rain stops we went to the open area near the beach to jam with the live band with bottle of beers.

We drink, we eat, we sleep and we swim.

On our last day, we ate lunch and dinner outside. Our accommodation is in front of the long beach area minutes aways from stores and restaurant proper. We ate on the same restaurant called Mommy Phoebe's. I enjoyed the bopis for lunch and sisig for dinner. PHP200 per meal. Viant serving is good for sharing. Foods are all prepared like Carinderia style. My friend ordered calamares and never again. The serving is not justifiable for 200 pesos better order their ihaw-ihaw, all worth it!

There are more establishments under construction, sooner or later the place might be louder and crowded.

I felt neutral with the distance of our villa to the beach. You have to walk for some minutes passed a narrow road, camp site and the open bar before reaching the sloping beach shore. Beneficially, walking is good for health. I was disappointed with the pvc pipe dividers in the beach shore. What's that for?! It actually ruined the beach view.

One thing I like about going beaches is watching the sunset. The slow paced hiding of the sun in the horizon until its all dark up and yellow light bulbs turned on. The reset is over, Another beginning for tomorrow.

I hope you get the rest you need when it's all suffocating. No matter the circumstances, if its too much for you, take your pause. Above all else mental health matters.