It was good to meet up with Francis, a guide from Tinglayan, and hike around the hills to Dananau and Tulgoa. There is a road from Tulgoa but we chose to walk. Dananau is still isolated but a road is in the process of being built.
It is a good hike and there is a waterfall and hot springs between Tulgoa and Dananau where you can bathe. For pics check the story on Polangha Falls.
We were there in Feb when they were planting the rice. Francis tells me that no one in Tinglayan uses pesticides yet. They are quite proud of that and feel their produce is far superior to Bontocs and Sagadas.
We also did not see any of the bright colored snail eggs in their fields that you find all over the place in Sagada. The "kohol" or snails are eaten but that new one that has showed up in the 80's around Sagada is very damaging to the rice plants and has displaced the native snail.
We landed up staying a night in Tulgao in the community center. The cost was 75 pesos per night and Francis scrounged up some excellent rice and beans. It was cool at night but there were plenty of blankets there. I also took along 2 jackets in case we had to rough it. It can be miserable trying to sleep if you are freezing your butt off.
There are some steep drop offs alongside the trails where a misstep would send you plummeting into the gorge to serious injury or death. It almost makes you dizzy when you look down by your feet and 6 inches away there is a 200 meter drop off straight down.
The circle route through these two villages, the waterfalls and back to Tinglayan could be done in a long day especially is you are in good shape.
For me though it took 2 days because not only am I slow and out of shape I stop to look at everything along the way and take a lot of photos.
The woman in the above phote is said to be over 100 years old.
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