"This is madness," I cursed, more to myself, than to anyone else as we kicked off our trek one Saturday afternoon under a heavy downpour brought about by typhoon Karen which was reportedly leaving the Philippine area of responsbility the next day. With rain pelting like bullets and thick fog rolling in, I was quite sure that the climb would eventually be aborted. But I was dead wrong. The mountaineering club Ascend was as stubborn as a mule, though gentle as a lamb. I was told beforehand that the team rarely cancels a climb, unless the mountain has been declared off-limits to trekkers. Unfortunately, that gloomy afternoon Mt. Mariveles was still relatively safe for climbing. 

Common sense told me that I should call it quits and let the team pursue the seemingly insane trek. But I was more scared of the possibility that my supposed cancellation would tarnish my already blemished reputation. Oh yeah, Ryan Mach, I know him, he's the guy who always backs out from a trip. That's just a disturbing thought. So I plucked up courage and decided to join the pack in their quest to conquer Tarak Ridge in Bataan despite a terrible weather.