How To Hike Taal Volcano

"Volcanoes are one way earth gives birth to itself."

Taal Lake, formerly known as Bombón Lake, is a freshwater lake in the province of Batangas, on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. The lake fills Taal Caldera, a large volcanic caldera formed by very large eruptions between 500,000 and 100,000 years ago. It is the country's third largest lake after Laguna de Bay and Lake Lanao. Volcano Island, the location of Taal Volcano historical eruptions and responsible for the lake's sulfuric content, lies near the center of the lake. 

There is a crater lake on Volcano Island. Known as the Yellow Lake or the Main Crater Lake, it contains its own small island, Vulcan Point. Vulcan Point was thought to be the largest third order island in the world, but Treasure Island (Ontario) is much bigger and is thought to be the world largest, and is also on a freshwater lake. (c)

From my previous blog post which is 5 Things to do in Taal Lake beside on that, I would love to share with you on how to hike the Taal Volcano and what are the things needed to put in mind before going there.

Since we arrived at Club Balai Isabel by private transport I will now jump to things to bring and also some hiking details.

In a separate blog post, I shared the ways on How to get there which you can find the places to go to and fees to be paid.

If you are in accommodation like in my case, you can bring a light backpack, which carries all the important stuff such as:

* 2L drinking water - the temperature is from high to medium, so better to prepare from dehydration

* Cap - which protect you from sun

* Sunblock/Sunscreen - this is very important, especially for those whose skin is very sensitive and also choose the right product to you that your skin is comfortable

* Food trail - it's better to be ready to bring light snacks that fuel you along the way, such as nuts, oatmeal bar, energy bar, fruits and so on

* Arm sleeves - to protect from extreme sun exposure for those who are wearing a shirt or short sleeve top

* Comfy clothes - I do not recommend to wear shorts or anything that can show skin during the trail because it's extremely hot, so definitely after that your skin will get burned so I recommend wearing hiking clothes that are comfy

* Face mask - since this is an active volcano, you will encounter dusk along the way

* Extra money - if you forget to bring food and water, there are local vendors on the summit so If ever you may opt to bring cash to purchase food or souvenirs

* Energy - I think this is the most important of all. In order to have this one must have a good sleep before the hike since most of the time it starts early in the morning to avoid extreme temperature at noon

Tip: I discourage everyone to bring plastic, especially plastic bottles of water just to avoid littering within the area and preserve the place. You may bring your own jug or bottle to fill with water.

Hiking Taal Volcano will take you from 40-50 minutes, depending on your pacing and of course, it will be faster if you go for horseback riding round trip though it's just 311 meters from ground zero to crater.

How do you find this Taal lake?

Let me know your thoughts.

Thanks for reading.
XOXO

ZARRAH