At first glance, there is something somewhat incongruous about the image: a little girl in a flowered pink dress, gaily prancing around as if she was not standing at the top of Mt. Pico de Loro’s famous rock column, more than 600 meters above sea level in Ternate, Cavite province.
Five-year-old Francesca Gabrielle “Gab” Sagabaen said she made it to the top of the forbidding monolith last May by riding in her father’s mountaineering pack.
Mt. Pico de Loro was not Gab’s first outdoor adventure. According to her father, Lawrence, a 30-year-old freelance graphic designer, she must have climbed about 10 mountains already.
Their first climb together was Mt. Batulao (811 meters above sea level) in Nasugbu, Batangas province, when Gab was only 2. Lawrence said it was one of their memorable climbs, recalling how they sat together on the peak—he with a can of beer and Gab with a bottle of milk—and watched the sunset.
Dad’s adventures
“I’ve always wanted my loved ones to see the places that I see,” said Lawrence, who has enjoyed outdoor sports since he was 20. “I take [Gab] to beaches, rivers and mountains, and tell her how beautiful a place is. She is always thrilled about it,” he said.
Gab is the older of Lawrence’s two daughters. Naomi is a year old. Both daughters live with Lawrence’s wife in Isabela province while he lives in Makati, where he runs a T-shirt printing shop. He describes his relationship with his wife as “complicated” and sees Gab usually only during school breaks.
But this has not hindered the father-daughter bonding while nature tripping. Whenever Lawrence comes to their San Mateo, Isabela hometown, he spends nights in a tent outdoors with Gab.
Social awareness
Lawrence believes that Gab’s early exposure to outdoor adventures and mountaineering circles has helped to build her confidence. She is on top in her preschool class and has always been emphatic about her adventure stories, he said.
Unlike most children her age, Gab has no fear of heights and never throws a tantrum when she is asked to hike for hours with her own light pack or pick up trash along mountain trails.
Lawrence and his daughter always hike with a group, as a precaution in case of an emergency. He is a member of Wilderness Search and Rescue, a volunteer organization that conducts rescue and responds to emergencies in the wild.
Their outdoor adventures are not only about the two of them spending time together but are also about instilling environmental and social awareness in the child’s young mind, said Lawrence.
Last year, Lawrence took Gab with him to Mt. Halcon in Oriental Mindoro province, where his mountaineering group donated goods to a Mangyan school in a remote village.
“When we went swimming in Daraitan Falls (in Tanay, Rizal province), Gab saw some people washing with soap in the river. Immediately, she went up to those people and told them that would harm nature,” Lawrence recalled.
Human bond
While most children these days are fascinated with gadgets and computers, Lawrence said he still preferred that Gab grow close to nature and build an “actual human connection” with the people she meets outdoors.
Next year, he plans to take her to Mt. Apo in Davao province, one of the more challenging mountains for hikers.
“I tell her she can touch the clouds up there. She likes the idea,” he said.
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