Hello, after a messy crash on valentine's day I am now back riding my bicycles.
But first let me say my final farewell to my old car "boxy". We spent 17 years together through college, work, play. Boxy was the first vehicle that my son rode and it was the car that I used to carry my bikes.
Boxy was there through the good and bad times sadly the body rotted by rust so instead of blowing our budget for costly repairs we decided to just sell the car and buy a new one.
Last weekend got to ride my folding bike around neighboring towns of Tanza cavite. My wife purchased property on tanza, during the weekends and holidays we leave shitty city life for bundoks a mere 36 km away from Manila.
Tanza a wonderful place with rich Christian heritage (old churches) and beaches a couple of kilometers away from our place. Most are situated inside towns so you have to rely on satellite map based applications on your mobile phones to find them or just go old school and look at the road signs littered along the road. Beaches facilities and rates differ from town to town but they all share the same coastline. Going further south you end up on mountain road "Nasugbu-ternate highway" to Batangas which also has a ton of beaches.
This was the second time I got to go around the same route. Couple of weeks ago I used my newly resurrected Beater SS (single speed) which was fun but very wrong (52-24 gearing). Antero soriano highway (NAIC highway) hilly until you reach NAIC junction, coming from the junction you have a choice of going to Indang, General Trias, or Maragondon-ternate.
Folding bike 10 speed drive train got fucked so now its sporting the stocks bits (Shimano 6 speed, 14-24, grip-shift). Said it before that the stockers are nice piece of drive train with only limited range and weight as negative.
6 speed fine the 52 km Sunday ride along NAIC and parts of maragondon was easy on the knees although I did not push hard anywhere.
Goal for Sunday ride was Maragondon Bonifacio shrine had a vague idea where it is located. According to googlemaps it is just past the maragondon river-bridge, the 2nd street to be specific. Couple of kilometers from entering the st. you will end up on a junction with a waiting shed in the middle "donated by korean missionaries" at this point turn right on dirt-rough road, going straight be cautious on climbs as trucks from the nearby quarry share the same road. A mountain bike right now starting to sound GREAT as the 20' inch almost slick bike tires would slip on muddy road when your giving it gas. Shifted on lowest gear and slowly spun to avoid blowing it on climbs, mud-ruts and I do not want to mangle another RD. At the end of muddy road you will see two paths a narrow paved one straight from the main road, and rocky, mud filed one on the left going downhill. Take the one on the left and proceed down until you reach the river, cross the bridge and climb the rock filled road until you reach the farm gate on the right. When I arrived at the gate it was close with just a chain casually keeping cows from wandering outside, asked a couple of locals swimming at the river where the shrine was and they told me to enter the gate and go follow the path. Entering the place felt like trespassing on some haciendero property. Couple of meters from the gate there was mud so opted to pass by the field of grass with lots of cow-pies, and curious cows looking at this idiot with a folding bike and camera phone. The path reminded me of La mesa's ecopark fire road, it was surrounded with trees which is quite relaxing. Upon traversing the fire road you will encounter a makeshift bamboo gate which is cleverly constructed, couple of meters ahead you will end up on a paved road with horses. Climb the road until you reach a fork at this point you should be able to see the shrine at the right.
Environmental/entrance fee is P20 but during my Sunday visit it was closed. No dice but for couple of hours exploring cavite and doing it on the wrong bike it was all worth it.
Next ride: Tagaytay
Ernest Hamster
 |
| Goodbye friend |
Tanza a wonderful place with rich Christian heritage (old churches) and beaches a couple of kilometers away from our place. Most are situated inside towns so you have to rely on satellite map based applications on your mobile phones to find them or just go old school and look at the road signs littered along the road. Beaches facilities and rates differ from town to town but they all share the same coastline. Going further south you end up on mountain road "Nasugbu-ternate highway" to Batangas which also has a ton of beaches.
This was the second time I got to go around the same route. Couple of weeks ago I used my newly resurrected Beater SS (single speed) which was fun but very wrong (52-24 gearing). Antero soriano highway (NAIC highway) hilly until you reach NAIC junction, coming from the junction you have a choice of going to Indang, General Trias, or Maragondon-ternate.
Folding bike 10 speed drive train got fucked so now its sporting the stocks bits (Shimano 6 speed, 14-24, grip-shift). Said it before that the stockers are nice piece of drive train with only limited range and weight as negative.
6 speed fine the 52 km Sunday ride along NAIC and parts of maragondon was easy on the knees although I did not push hard anywhere.
Goal for Sunday ride was Maragondon Bonifacio shrine had a vague idea where it is located. According to googlemaps it is just past the maragondon river-bridge, the 2nd street to be specific. Couple of kilometers from entering the st. you will end up on a junction with a waiting shed in the middle "donated by korean missionaries" at this point turn right on dirt-rough road, going straight be cautious on climbs as trucks from the nearby quarry share the same road. A mountain bike right now starting to sound GREAT as the 20' inch almost slick bike tires would slip on muddy road when your giving it gas. Shifted on lowest gear and slowly spun to avoid blowing it on climbs, mud-ruts and I do not want to mangle another RD. At the end of muddy road you will see two paths a narrow paved one straight from the main road, and rocky, mud filed one on the left going downhill. Take the one on the left and proceed down until you reach the river, cross the bridge and climb the rock filled road until you reach the farm gate on the right. When I arrived at the gate it was close with just a chain casually keeping cows from wandering outside, asked a couple of locals swimming at the river where the shrine was and they told me to enter the gate and go follow the path. Entering the place felt like trespassing on some haciendero property. Couple of meters from the gate there was mud so opted to pass by the field of grass with lots of cow-pies, and curious cows looking at this idiot with a folding bike and camera phone. The path reminded me of La mesa's ecopark fire road, it was surrounded with trees which is quite relaxing. Upon traversing the fire road you will encounter a makeshift bamboo gate which is cleverly constructed, couple of meters ahead you will end up on a paved road with horses. Climb the road until you reach a fork at this point you should be able to see the shrine at the right.
Environmental/entrance fee is P20 but during my Sunday visit it was closed. No dice but for couple of hours exploring cavite and doing it on the wrong bike it was all worth it.
Next ride: Tagaytay
Ernest Hamster
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