Baguio-Sagada Bus Ride

Somehow, I find it difficult to blog about our trip to Sagada. There are tons of photos waiting to be upload, tons of explanation to images that arouse curiosity (such as why their waiting sheds have stairs on the side or why the coffins are hung at Echo Valley). I have all the time in the world to come up with lousy jokes or just some simple high-school-precision paragraph writing.

I'll settle for a photo entry for now. The trip was great, aside from the fact that it was six hours long and there were only two bus stops and we were three rows from the front seat. After my trips down to Mindanao and up in Luzon, I concluded it is only in Cebu where "near" is really near and "far" is just far. Everywhere else, near is hours of walking/riding and far is really, really far.

The Baguio-Sagada trip is the best bus ride you will have in your life so better get the one beside the driver. It's like riding a roller coaster, only that the risks are real. En route, you will pass by the Philippine Pali, the highest elevation in the Philippine Highway system. It is 7,400 feet high and just one kilometer from the first bus stop. The Piattos we brought nearly popped off because of the pressure.

There are jeeps and other vehicles you will see at the ravines--fallen vehicles nobody bothered to bring up nor steal the metal. Those places are just so deep and ragged and steep that they just let those stuff rot. If you want to have the best seat, be early at Dangwa Terminal. It is near Baguio Public Market.

Dangwa is a once-huge bus liner. They still operate buses in the Mountain Province but they share their terminal now with other passes, like the GL bus we rode. Fare is 240 pesos. Seats are assigned so be there early, like an hour before the departure. The bus we rode left nine minutes before schedule.

There are times when you think you'd nearly fall off a cliff but after a few hours you'd realize it's normal. Bus drivers take that six-hour route twice a day so don't worry--just enjoy your window seat.

Credits to Chy for the food photos and for bringing a great camera. There was more food trip than road trip so I did not exactly leave up to my previous blog post. It's difficult to be on the road with someone who is very willing to try everything edible she sees.

Update: Just remembered our guide's story about a French guy who biked this whole route from Baguio. He visited Sagada years ago and when he was about to leave for the airport, his bag was stolen in Baguio. All he had left was the bike he rented. So he pedalled the six-hour bus ride back to Sagada. He now works there as a cook and plans to stay in the place for good.