MT. CANLAON OF NEGROS ISLAND Closer to home and the official "playground" of Negrense mountaineers is MT. KANLAON (3,465-m), the "sacred volcano" of sugar island, and the highest peak in Central Philippines.

MT. MADJA-AS IN ANTIQUE PROVINCE MT. MAYON (2,462-m), considered to be the world's "most perfect-coned" volcano, is also the highest peak in the Province of Albay in the Bicolandia, and  was the venue for the 5th MFPI Congress & Climb in 1984.

SUMMIT AREA OF MT. PULAG IN BENGUET MT. PULAG (2,922-m) in the Province of Benguet, is reputedly the highest peak in the island of Luzon, and the 2nd highest in the country.  It was the site of the 3rd MFPI Congress & Climb in 1982, and was climbed by a number of Negrense mountaineers.

MT. APO IN MINDANAO MT. APO (2,954-m), a dormant volcanic mountain, is the highest peak in the Philippines.  First climbed by a team of Filipino-Spanish explorers led by Governor Rajal of Davao in 1890, Mt. Apo has since then become one of the favored climbing destinations in the country. The 100th year anniversary of the first recorded ascent of Mt. Apo was observed by making it as the site of the First MFPI Congress & Climb, witch included the official induction and oath-taking of the first set of Officers of the newly-organized Mountaineering Federation of the Philippines in April 1990.

MT. GUITING-GUITING IN ROMBLON MT. GUITING-GUITING (x,xxx-ft) in the island of Sibuyan, is the highest peak in the Province of Romblon.  The mountain has never been climbed until the summer of 1982 when a team of UPM-PMS climbers led by Art Valdez successfully placed 4 climbers- Mon Ruiz; Kim Valino; Bubot Tan Torres; and Ed Gatia, to become the first climbers to attain the summit.  Other Negrense climbers who took part in the expedition were Fred B. Jamili, Rene "Ike" Atonson, and Mayo C. Monteza, after whom "Mayo's Peak" was named.

MT. BANAHAW (2,158-m) is the highest peak in the Province of Quezon.  Mt. Banahaw is probably one of the most oft-climbed peaks in the country owing to its popularity and accessibility.  A team of climbers from the Philippine Airlines Mountaineering Club made their inaugural ascent to the peak in November of 1979, which included a Negrense climber, Ed Gatia, as guest climber of PAL-MC.

MT. KINABALU (4,101-m), the highest peak in So.East Asia, fell to a team of Negrense climbers led by Art Valdez; others included Mayo C. Monteza; Fred B. Jamili; and Ed Gatia, during an expedition undertaken in April of 1983.

MT. MADJA-AS IN ANTIQUE PROVINCE MT. MADJA-AS (x,xxx-ft), the highest peak in the Province of Antique in the island of Panay, was first scaled by a team led by John M. Fortes of Philippine Airlines in January of 1977.  In May of that year, Mt. Madja-as was assaulted by a group comprising of members of the Ilonggo Mountaineering Club, among others: the brothers Dodot and Vic Pison; Babes Galuego of the Provl. Governor's Office; Arch. Tony Sangrador; Pakit Mandar and Virgilio of the local DOT Office; and Negrense climber Ed Gatia.

MT. YARIGATAKE (3,180-m), dubbed as the "Matterhorn of Japan", is situated in the northern Japanese Alps and afforded climber Ed Gatia the opportunity to do his first ice-climbing to the summit in the summer (June) of 1984...

YU SHAN- the "Jade Mountain", also known as Mt. Morrison (3,997-m), is the highest peak in Northeast Asia as well as being the highest in the Republic of China (Taiwan).  The mountain was scaled by Negrense climbers Ed Gatia in 1983, and John Anglo in 1996.

Perhaps the country's most enchantingly popular and legendary mountain in the country is MT. MAKILING (1,090-m) in the Province of Laguna.  Rising out of the plains of Laguna, Mt. Makiling is home to the country's College of Agriculture at the University of the Philippines in Los Banos, Laguna.

MT. HALCON (2,586-m) is the highest peak in the island of Mindorom, and primarily accessible from the Province of Occidental Mindoro.

MT. ARAYAT (1,026-m), an old extinct volcanic mountain, is the highest in the Province of Pampanga- and the only peak, that rises from the vast plains of Central Luzon.      xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Climbers near an erupting summit-crater of Mt. Canlaon

Climbers at the summit-crater of Mt. Canlaon

PROFILES OF NEGRENSE MOUNTAINEERS

Wilhelm Mountaineer WILHELM "TIKBOY" J. TAN is one of Negros' most active climbers, achieving for himself ascents to most of the high peaks in the country that include Mt. Kanlaon of Negros; Mt. Apo in Davao; Mt. Guiting-Guiting in Romblon; Mt. Kintanglad in Bukidnon; Mt. Mayon in Albay Province; and Mt. Pulag in Benguet.

Art T. Valdez : World-class Mountaineer Perhaps one of the country's leading and well-known climbers and now a world-class mountaineer, ARTURO "ART" VALDEZ began his climbs to Mt. Kanlaon in the late 1970s, and eventually built his climbing reputation by leading the successful First Ascent of Mt. Guiting-Guiting in Romblon in 1982.  His other climbs in the country included the ascents to Mt. Mayon in 1979 and 1981; Mt. Pulag and Mt. Halcon in 1982; Mt. Apo in 1982 and 1989; and led the first MFPI-All Negrense expedition to Mt. Kinabalu (4,101-m)- the highest in So.East Asia, in 1983. As Expedition Leader for the First Philippine Mt. Everest Expedition 2006, Art Valdez also summitted in the Indian Himalayas and Mt. Cook in New Zealand.

Fred Jamili : World-class professional mountaineer Negrense FRED B. JAMILI, now a world-class mountaineer, made his first ascent of Mt. Kanlaon in 1978, and practically climbed most of the high peaks in the country within his climbing career that spanned for almost 30 years now.  His climb of Mt. Kinabalu- the highest in So.East Asia in 1983, which was his first internatonal climb with an all-Negrense team, was followed thereafter with climbs in the Indian Himalayas, Mt. Cook in New Zealand, and served as support team to the First Philippine Mt. Everest Expedition in Nepal in 2006.

Ed Gatia: one of the original Founding Members of the Club EDWIN V. GATIA started his climbing career in Mt. Kanlaon in the early 1970s on the inspiration of Dr. Gus Guerrero of the Mountaineering Association of the Philippines (MAP) in 1972, which led to establishing a freelance career as a Mountain Guide in the late 1970s to the early 1990s. As an avid mountaineer, Ed has also scaled Mt. Apo in 1976, 1979, 1982, and (unsuccessfully because of the NPA incident) in 1989; Mt. Mayon in 1977 and 1979; Mt. Madja-as in 1977; Mt. Pulag and Mt. Halcon as well as the Leyte Trail, in 1982; Mt. Manaphag in 1985; Mt. Bulusan in 1991; Mt. Banahaw in 1979; and the First Ascent of Mt. Guiting-Guiting in 1982.  He also joined as a member of the Negrense team to Mt. Kinabalu in 1983, was with a Sino-Japanese team to Mt. Morrison (Yu Shan) in the Republic of China (Taiwan), and did a solo ice-climbing ascent of Mt. Yarigatake (3,180-m) in the northern Japanese Alps in the summer of 1984.

JOHN ANGLO, originally of the San Agustin Mountain Club (SAMOC), became one of the original signatories to the founding of the NMCI in 1989.  He has participated in several MFPI Congresses & Climbs, the first of which was his ascent of Mt. Pulag (1982) and was a member of the Leyte Trail Team in August 1982.  In 1996, he made a winter ascent on Yu-Shan (or Mt. Morrison/3,997-m)- the highest peak in Northeast Asia located in the Republic of China (Taiwan). John X. Anglo : Mountaineer and Businessman, is also an original founding-member of the Club John Anglo negotiating the west wall of Mt. Morrison

Mayo C. Monteza : Mountaineer-Businessman and NMCI founding member MAYO C. MONTEZA began his interest in the great outdoors while being a College student at Colegio de San Agustin, and was one of the original members of the Philippine Mountaineering Society (PMS) along with Art Valdez; Fred Jamili; Ike Atonson; and Ed Gatia as original members. In addition to his numerous climbs to Mt. Kanlaon, Mayo Monteza also did summit ascents to Mt. Mayon in 1979; Mt. Halcon in 1982; Manaphag in 1985; Mt. Apo in 1989;  His name has been assured in mountaineering history when one of the peaks in the Mt. Guiting-Guiting range was named "Mayo's Peak" during his birthday spent (that time) at that peak in 1982. And he was part of the Negrense team that climbed Mt. Kinabalu in 1983.