The Legacy Trail at Masungi Georeserve

Masungi Georeserve is a conservation area and karst rock garden hidden in the rainforests of Baras in Rizal. I’m sure by now, most tourists are familiar with the giant hammocks, rope bridge courses and spiderweb-like view deck, which are the highlights of the Discovery Trail. For those who would like to delve deeper into the forest, engage with the local community, and make a difference somehow, the park just launched a new trail called the Legacy Trail.

The Legacy Trail is an immersion in the greater Masungi Geopark Project where guests can get a firsthand experience in tree-planting and tree nurturing, enjoy a well-managed nature trail hike and relax among the last few remaining pine tree stands in the project area. The Legacy Trail gives visitors a glimpse of the daily work and struggles of conservation. The experience focuses on educating the general public and raising awareness on the role of forests.

Location

The Masungi Georeserve is located in the mountainous region of Baras in the province of Rizal, Philippines. The site is roughly 1 to 2 hours away from Quezon City by private transportation. The jump off point is at KM 46 Marcos Highway, located at the first ranger station across the road from the main Geopark.

About the Legacy Trail

The route is a combination of natural dirt trails and some paths with concrete/stone steps in the steeper portions to make it safer and more accessible to visitors of varying fitness levels and in different weather conditions. Amenities such as the rest stops and benches along the route, decent restrooms at the jump-off point and lunch stop area, and prepared meals make the trail a comfortable option for beginner hikers and families traveling with children.

Individuals interested in directly participating in reforestation and nature-lovers will benefit mostly from this experience. The trail is also suitable for groups and families who are looking for a day tour or a day trip from Metro Manila and a unique learning experience together away from the city. 

At the moment, Masungi Georeserve can only accommodate small groups of 7 up to 14 guests, but I think the Legacy Trail could potentially be a good activity for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs. Many tree-planting efforts I’ve attended in the past don’t go beyond the surface after the photo ops have been taken. Here, each visitor gets a certificate of the tree they planted and can actually check back on the tree’s progress in years to come.

The best thing about this effort is that it harnesses community participation and aims to change people’s behavior towards the destruction of the environment. Masungi Georeserve employs guides and park staff who are locals from the indigenous Dumagat communities who live in nearby barangays like Cuyambay, some of whom used to be engaged in destructive activities and practices.

The conservation fees provide an alternative source of income to the residents while ensuring the area remains protected. It was eye-opening to see firsthand the effect of destructive activities such as illegal logging, quarrying, kaingin and treasure hunting that continue to threaten our forests today. 

With travel blogger/vlogger friends Christine, Celine, Dennis and Ferdz. Drone photo courtesy of Ferdz/Ironwulf.

Just spending quality time outdoors and connecting with nature can be very therapeutic. Aside from the natural surroundings, the well-designed rest areas, particularly the floating cottages provided a refreshing venue where you can just hang out and catch up with friends in an outdoor setting instead of just chatting online or meeting up in a restaurant or mall in the city. 

The trail can provide a great bonding experience for friends and families. Since the park only accepts a limited number of guests per visit, your group will be assured of a quality experience compared to hiking in a destination where you have to share the trail with hordes of other tourists. For those interested to check out the Legacy Trail at Masungi Georeserve, here’s some basic information to help plan your trip.

Legacy Trail Features

The Legacy Trail normally lasts 3-4 hours (1 hour climb going up, 45 minutes of restoration activities, 1 hour of food & rest, 30 minutes going down). All trail visits require a park ranger to guide guests through the trek providing a deeper understanding of the area.

The early part of the trail is known as Kawayan as it involves ascending through narrow steps passing under rows of bamboo trees that form a canopy lining the trail.

Along the way, you will pass by various points of interests to learn more about the native fauna and flora that thrive in the area. Throughout  the trail, there are resting areas like benches and swings made with natural materials and with designs inspired by the environment like leaves and pine cones.

As the central activity of the trail, guests will be able to conduct tree planting and/or Tree Nurturing activities alongside park rangers. Tree nurturing is often overlooked by typical tree-planting programs.

Visitors are guided by locals who serve as park rangers. We met Ka Ando, a former kaingero who now serves as a forest ranger.

The trail’s lunch stop and rest area is known as Amihan, a series of ropeways and floating huts suspended among some of the last pine stands in the area. The area features light, temporary and low-impact materials suitable for the area.

There are two sets of rope nets and cottage rest areas, including a smaller area with two suspended circular cottages and a larger one with four triangular floating cottages.

To keep the areas clean clean, there are shoes provided specifically for use in the net areas or you could opt to go barefoot (best if you’re wearing socks). It requires a bit of balance getting around from one hut to the next, which makes it pretty fun to traverse. There are pillows inside each floating hut that you can use to make the rope net areas more comfortable to lie down on.

We just wanted to just laze here the whole afternoon! The park only allows day trips at the moment, but I wouldn’t mind staying overnight here.

Who should try it

• The Legacy Trail is best suited for people who are interested in directly participating in reforestation; Naturalists; Regular and Beginner Hikers; Groups and Families who are looking for a day tour or a day trip from Metro Manila and a unique learning experience together away from the city.
• The trail is recommended for those aged 10 and above.
• Optional rope courses among the trees are limited to persons 13 years of age and above for safety purposes.

When is the best time to visit

Weather in the area is generally tropical and humid, with average temperatures hitting from 24 degrees to 31 degrees celsius. The dry season runs from November to April, while the wet season is from May-October. January is often the coolest month, while May is the hottest. Tours are still conducted even if it rains, though they may be cancelled in the event of a typhoon. As of its initial offering in July 2018, the Legacy Trail is only offered on weekends, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and only group per day will be accommodated.

What to wear

• Visitors are advised to wear comfortable hiking and forest restoration attire (long pants/leggings, loose or dri-fit shirts, non-slip and closed shoes suitable for a hike).
• Light jackets and long sleeves may be used for certain parts of the trail and tree nurturing activities as there will be contact with grass.
• For added comfort, you may also bring gardening-type gloves.
• It can get hot towards noon, so arm sleeves, a cap or hat and shades are recommended.
• For safety purposes, slippers are not allowed. Wear appropriate closed hiking shoes.
• Masungi Georeserve is located in a mountainous area where the weather can shift dramatically. There may be drizzles (or full-blown thunderstorms) from time to time. Bring extra clothes for changing into after and raincoats just in case.

What to bring

• Bring a copy of your proof of payment, extra clothes, water, light snacks and valuables.
• Bring your own reusable water bottle or tumblers filled with sufficient water for the activity. Water supply is limited in the area.
• Walking sticks and hats may be borrowed from the ranger’s station at the jump-off point.
• Fully charged cameras and powerbanks. (NOTE: My camera’s battery which was full when I left the house drained very quickly for some reason. Bring extra batteries).
• Visitors are allowed to do drone shots in the area (NOTE: According to Ironwulf, who took the drone shots that I used here, there was some interference and “No Signal” in some areas.)
• It case it rains, pack your gadgets in a dry bag inside your backpack.

Where to eat

Visitors are advised to eat before heading to the georeserve to ensure a comfortable hike. To limit the amount of waste generated, packed meals like fastfood can not be brought inside the park. Guests can bring light trail food and snacks such as peanuts, chocolate, trail mix and biscuits. The park employs a strict Leave No Trace principle. All biodegradable (banana peels, etc.) and non-biodegradable (plastic packaging, candy wrappers, etc.) trash must be brought out and disposed of properly.

The complimentary lunch is minalot, a traditional meal of rice, viands and vegetables wrapped in banana leaves and drinks like gumamela juice which are served upon finishing the forest restoration activities. The meals are prepared by the local community and can be enjoyed in an outdoor picnic setting. In the event of rain, there is a covered dome-style shed nearby that can be used as the dining area.

After completing the trail visit, visitors can also choose to dine in Silayan, a sustainable restaurant found within the main Masungi Georeserve complex that aims to help local farmers and producers who live in the area. Prior reservations are required.

During my visit with friends, we decided to grab a late snack/early dinner at Lutong Pugon, an artist’s retreat that serves wood-fired pizza, pasta, shakes and rice meals. It’s a bit out of the way if you’re heading back through Marcos Highway, since it’s roughly 18 km (or 30 mins drive by private transportation), but the restaurant is relatively near the Sampaloc-Tanay junction, which provides more public transportation options for those commuting. Of course it just had to rain just as we were on our way there, but that’s another story.

Restroom situation

There are clean and well-maintained restrooms at the Ranger’s Station right before the climb where you can change clothes before or after the trail visit. There is also a bathroom with running water at the Amihan rest stop beside the pine tree forest area where visitors will stop for lunch.

WiFi and Connectivity

If you’re driving there for the first time, download directions for offline use because there is no WiFi for most of the route and cellphone signal is erratic or non-existent in most of the area. Data signal is stronger once you get to the top of the hill.

Rates & Inclusions

In order to maintain the quality of the place and focus on conservation efforts, Masungi Georeserve only entertains private group bookings of 7 up to 14 guests. The introductory rate is Php 1,000 per person. All tours are inclusive of a local park ranger guide dedicated to the group, reforestation immersion, access to rest areas and complimentary “minalot” lunch meal. Since the park employs community members, they can not guarantee an English speaking guide.

Videos

Check out the video shot by travel blogger and photographer Ferdz Decena of Ironwulf, which has some really cool drone shots. He also wrote about the Legacy trail here.

And here’s a vlog by Dennis Murillo on Youtube from our visit, where he gives some some handy tutorials on nature photography.

How to get there

By Private Transportation

The easiest way to get to Masungi Georeserve is by private transportation. Marcos Highway is reachable by all types of vehicles. By car or motorcycle, it’s roughly 1-1.5 hours away from Quezon City with no traffic.

Route 1 via Marcos Highway: (**RECOMMENDED)

• Coming from Diliman, head to Katipunan, turn left on Aurora Boulevard heading to Marikina.
• The highway forks to a bridge heading to Marikina town proper on the left. Stay on the right side of the road heading towards Marcos Highway instead.
• Just go straight and follow the route of Marcos Highway / Marikina-Infanta Road.
• You will pass through Masinag, Cogeo, Boso-boso Resort, Foremost Farms and Palo Alto.
• After reaching Garden Cottages, look out for the Km. 46 sign on the right side of the road. The entrance to the jump-off point will be on the left side of the road.
• Travel time is 1 to 1.5 hours depending on the traffic.

Route 2 via Sampaloc and Tanay from the Manila East Road: 

• From Manila East Road, turn left on the Sampaloc Road. You will pass by the street that leads to Daranak Falls on your left.
• Follow the road until you arrive at the Tanay-Sampaloc junction. Turn left here going up.
• Follow the scenic road going up. It’ll be a 45 minutes to an hour ride.
• You will pass by Pranjetto Hills, Paseo Rizal, Cafe Katerina, Sierra Madre Resort and Ten Cents to Heaven.
• You’ll also pass by the Kilometer 47 Masungi entrance and main parking area, signaled by its logo on your left when taking this route.
• Look out for the Km. 46 sign on the left side of the road. The entrance to the jump-off point will be on the right side of the road.
• Travel time can take 2 to 3 hours depending on the traffic.
• Based on personal experience driving both routes, the Sampaloc route can take much longer because of the traffic in the cities and smaller towns you have to traverse. Marcos Highway is much better and you only have to deal with traffic when you get to Cogeo and Marikina.

WHERE TO PARK: You may park at the Left side of the highway near the Km 46 marker where the entrance for the Legacy Trail is. Masungi Georeserve is still in the process of improving the parking area for this trail. If you’re traveling by motorcycle, you can park it within the gated area of the ranger’s station for safety. You can also leave your helmet and whatever items you don’t need to bring on the hike there.

By Public Transportation/Commuting

It’s also possible to get here by public transportation, but be warned that travel time may take longer. You may be able to ride easily going there, but in general, jeeps and vehicles are very difficult to find in the area for the return trip. You can spend up to an hour waiting for a jeep to pass. Jeeps are often full of passengers when they pass by the area, which means you may have to topload (ride on top of the jeep).

Route 1 via Cogeo

• From Cubao or Marikina (Sta. Lucia area), ride a van or jeepney going to Cogeo Gate 2 Padilla.
• Get off at Gate 2 near the market and from there, ride a jeepney bound to Sampaloc via Marcos Highway in Tanay.
• This is a long and scenic route on a zigzag road. You will pass through Masinag, Cogeo, Boso-boso Resort, Palo Alto and Garden Cottages.
• Get down at the Km 46 sign on the RIGHT side of the highway.
• Travel time can take 2 to 3 hours depending on the traffic and waiting time.
• NOTE: Jeeps are only available until 6:30 pm

Route 2 Via Tanay

• Coming from Metro Manila, go to the transport terminal in Starmall in the corner of Shaw Boulevard and EDSA or in EDSA Central Crossing near Unilever.
• You can ride a vans, bus or jeepney going to Tanay Public Market. Fare is around P70 for van and P53 for jeepney.
• From the Tanay Public Market, charter a tricycle to take you to Garden Cottages. Fare is P500 one way but can be haggled down to P350.
• Alternatively, you can hire a trike up to the Sampaloc junction. There are jeepneys going to Antipolo/Cogeo that will pass by Kilometer 46 Masungi entrance.
• Travel time can take 2 to 3 hours depending on the traffic and waiting time.

Thank you to Masungi Georeserve the invitation to check out the new trail and their dedication to conservation efforts. For more information, visit the following links:

Address & Contact information

Masungi Georeseve. Km 46 Marcos Highway, Baras, Rizal, Philippines.

• Website: www.masungigeoreserve.com
• Facebook: Masungi Georeserve
• Instagram: @masungigeoreserve
• E-mail Address: trail@masungigeoreserve.com