Bouldering in Manalmon, Bulacan is best from late December to early February. The river would have subsided and the boulders could freely be accessed. Extensive waiting for the boulders to pop out the river pays of and when it does you can be sure to discover new gems. We started bouldering in the area since 2001 or prior or shortly after that, a clear track to the details have faded from memory. Throughout the years more and more boulder problems show. The promise of a new line never fades. We've mined the area for the most obvious lines and now it's more difficult to spot new ones. The next few problems in the area would be more creative and definitely harder. Still the classics would be there. I'm psyched on the prospect of the tail end of the Dragon in Manalmon. It would be fun to shoot, fun to climb and fun to spend days and nights among the boulders.
Here's an old clip of "Magic Dragon", one of the classics and a must try on a trip to Manalmon. Anthony Prieto and I spotted the problem in 2003. I couldn't recall him sending it but we did push ourselves on it. It was a one day-one boulder problem kind of day. Miel Pahati joined us late in the day and he sent it on the last go under dying daylight. I got spent from trying it over and over in the crisp morning air, the heat of midday sun, and the cool afternoon shade. I can no longer recall how many tries I had. It must have been many, many times, but the first go of the second day I can clearly recall. It was too unfortunate we didn't have enough tape or battery to capture it all. The "green" take on the last few seconds of the clip shows Miel on the FA but it was either that the film ran out or the batteries had fully drained. Newbie mistake ! The next day, it didn't matter anymore. It was purely for the sending. A clear mind and a boulder problem equals a quick second ascent.
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