Walking in Baguio: Veteran Pine to Mile Hi Center, Camp John Hay

I categorized it under "Power Walk" because there wasn't an option for jogwalking. :P
Details of my walk here.

Walking to Camp John Hay from Mines View has been on my list of things to do simply because I know it's "near" (don't ask an avid walker what's near or far) but I've never gone there on foot. Whenever my friends and I would meet up at CJH to walk the trails I would always take a cab just so I can conserve my energy for the hike and save on travel time.

Well, I didn't have any friends to meet today and there was just the tiniest hint of a drizzle this morning, so I thought it would be the perfect time to see how long it would take me to walk from Mines View to the Mile Hi Center in CJH where I planned to have a full (second) breakfast. I had coffee and oatmeal and let my body digest it a bit before heading out.

I also decided to take the opportunity to field-test some new gear I got recently (very early Christmas present to self): a hydration backpack and a new pair of trail shoes.

The backpack (I got the Ascent from Conquer) fits water (of course! I'm using a foldable water container for now while waiting for my wide-mouth hydration bladder to arrive), a couple of snacks, a face towel, wet wipes, and my coin purse, phone, pocket Wi-Fi, and umbrella. It's great because the shoulder and sternum straps work to keep the pack steady so it doesn't swing from side to side while running. Though the bag isn't waterproof, I don't mind because I use zip bags for keeping my things dry anyway. It's the perfect size for me and for what I plan to do in the months and years to come. :)

The Conquer Ascent Hydration Bag
I felt like a sword-wielding samurai warrior whenever I had to get my umbrella.
I love this bag. Seriously. It fits everything I need on jogwalks near and far!

As for the new kicks (I never thought I would use this term), I mentioned in an earlier post about getting new shoes for trail running. Well, I was able to buy a new pair but not the one I originally planned on getting (the salesman was very, very good). Anyway, I wanted to see how the shoes perform on wet and muddy surfaces and I've already conditioned myself to be very, very careful and prepare for slips (I'm slip-prone and slick surfaces make me nervous). I'm dedicating another post for that pseudo-review (because I am hardly an expert) here.

It's a Sunday on a long weekend, and as expected there were already many people in Mines View by the time I stepped foot on Outlook Drive. I started tracking my walk from the nearby Veteran Pine instead.

Photo of the Veteran Pine taken last year

I initially planned to walk (because that is the point of this blog) but I couldn't stop myself from jogging-walking-jogging (jogwalking?) downhill along Outlook Drive (and all the way to Baguio Country Club) once I felt the shoes had enough traction on the wet road.

Good thing I did, because when I neared the Mile Hi Center, the drizzle started to become a downpour. While I did have an umbrella with me, I didn't use it anymore since shelter was only a few feet away.

I changed my mind about eating there. I wasn't hungry yet, and besides, I had snacks with me. I walked by the shops while waiting for the rain to ease up and had a quick water + bathroom break before continuing with part two of my walk, which I wrote about here.