We went there, in the Volcano Island in the middle of Taal Lake. The Crater Lake is in the middle of that long portion of the island.

We trekked about four kilometers of rough terrain to reach the crater rim of the volcano – the main volcano – on Volcano Island in Taal Lake. It was an arduous climb, even if at first it seemed like a leisurely hike on verdant rolling hills.

“Kaya mo yan (You can do it),” FPPF Project Director Lito Beltran goaded us as we began our walk from the shore of Barangay Tabla at the foot of the volcano. We got to Tabla by way of a motorized banca from the town of Talisay, our first stop from the elevated town of Tagaytay. Ka Lito just celebrated his 70th birthday three weeks ago. The FPPF team, composed of Ka Lito, George Cabig, Amir Alba and Chris Malinao, took this trek as part of a scouting trip to look for beautiful locations to include in a planned Travel Photography workshop.

Kaya mo yan, Amir, urges FPPF Project Director Lito Beltran, as Amir Alba follows behind him. The horse guides never left us, knowing all the while that we would need them later.

So we walked on our own feet in the direction of the crater with some town folks trailing behind us with their horses. They had been insistent on offering us their horses for the ride up, but we were equally confident of making it with our own feet. No, thank you, we can walk our way up. Or so we thought.

After about 300 meters of hiking, and as the ground began to rise and seemed to get rougher and narrower as we went, our feet started to hurt and our breathing got heavier.

“How far up are we going?” I asked, and one horse guide pointed us up to some makeshift structure about 400 meters up at the top of the mountain. “That far up, sir, and it’s four kilometers from here,” he said with a definite voice. Behind me I saw Ka Lito mount a horse and not long after that I was also on a horse. Then I saw George and Amir appear from a turn on the path riding their own horses. And so up we went – on horseback all.

Along the way, we noticed evidence that we were indeed trekking on top of a volcano – black and red volcanic soil could be seen where the path had been eroded by rain and time, and there’s the occasional vent spewing hot steam here and there.

While the uphill climb was no picnic, the surrounding vista rewarded us with beautiful sights of Taal Lake from a vantage point that we never saw before: it was beautiful! All around us was a magnificence that only God can show. As we went higher, the scenery became much prettier.

Finally we reached the top of the crater rim. The view was breathtaking. It was all worth it, after all! Standing on the rim and looking down below, at the Crater Lake as it is called, one is overcome by a sense of awe at this creation. A bluish green lake about 30 kilometers across, so wide my kit lens at its widest cannot even take it all in. One is also reminded that in 1911, over a thousand people perished when Taal Volcano – this volcano – erupted in a catastrophe that devastated towns and lives. The quake and tremor was felt as far as what is now Metromanila where much volcanic ash also fell.

The sulfuric shore of the Crater Lake. Fumes can be seen on the lower right of the picture.

This was the Crater Lake before us, the real Taal Volcano, as the local folks would love to point out. It’s not that pretty cone out there that you see when you are in Tagaytay. That’s not the volcano, they would say. In fact, Taal Volcano is a system of vents and cones – all 47 of them – that have the potential of spewing out disaster anytime it chooses to.

And this Crater Lake has a little island in it, a small islet in the middle of this sulfuric lake. Think about it: this little island is in a lake that’s within the Volcano Island inside a bigger lake in the island of Luzon. Some curiosity!

At the top we met some people who were obviously enjoying themselves even if the weather was starting to threaten with some downpour. We noted the presence of some Filipinos, Koreans, Indians and a number of Caucasians while we were there. An Australian tourist and her two daughters were all smiles always, taking a lot of pictures with their digital camera until we heard the youngest say they were out of memory card.

Australian tourist Rosemary Asher (center), with her daughters Emily (left) and Hanna, enjoying the view at the Taal Volcano crater. Photo by Amir Alba.

The horseback ride on the way down was a bit easier, and you could tell from their big smiles that those who made it to the top of the crater were going home with some memorable moments. The weather was good while we were coming down on horses, although from a distance we could see rain beginning to fall. No, rain was pouring like crazy out there in the distance, and it rained hard just moments after we reached the barrio and took shelter in the waiting sheds there. It did not only rain, the wind also blew hard. We waited a while for the winds to subside before we could board our banca again for the boat ride across the lake back to the town of Talisay where we came from.

The FPPF foursome standing on the rim of the Crater Lake (L-R): Chris Malinao, George Cabig, Amir Alba and Lito Beltran.

It’s raining out there! This must be what PAGASA calls isolated rainshower. It later rained hard on the lake.

For you to imagine how it is at the top, we recommend this 360-degree view at the crater taken by our Filipino friend Fung Yu. It was made in 2005, but the view basically remains the same, save for some makeshift structure that now serves as resting shade at the volcano rim.

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• Laguna Loop: Travel Photography Workshop with George Cabig May 1, 2010
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