There’s a recurring joke out there that 99% of Ilonggos have visited Bucari Pine Forest mountain resort in the mountainous town of Leon, Iloilo (I may or may not have made that joke up). What’s true, though, is that I’ve seen a lot of my Facebook friends post photos of them visiting the place, complete with the obligatory shot of them posing in the now famous fallen tree overlooking a cliff.
For some unfortunate reason(s), I was a part of the 1% of people who’ve never been to Bucari (again, may or may not be an accurate stat) — the operative word being “was” because I finally got to visit the pine forest.
I can’t honestly pass off judgement just yet as to how I feel about Bucari, because 1.) it wasn’t as cold as I would’ve liked and 2.) it wasn’t foggy; two features of the place that make it very popular (it IS referred to as “Little Baguio” and “Summer Capital of Iloilo”). Maybe I’ll get to experience that next time.
As you would expect from a mountain resort, the path to Bucari is….. well, don’t expect a smooth ride because the winding road is long and at times steep — if you plan to drive, make sure your vehicle is well-maintained. Parts of the road have not been cemented yet, and while ripraps and other measures to prevent landslides have been implemented on the mountainside, visible piles of fallen earth and rock are found by the roads.
If you don’t feel like like driving, you can always commute to get to Bucari. There are jeeps that traverse the Iloilo City-Leon route located at the Jaro small market.
In Bucari, there are cottages where one can spend the night with friends or family. If one is so inclined, you can rent tents or, an even better option, bring your own tent! There is a camping ground area where one can…. camp and sing 🎶Kumbaya🎶 and stuff like that. You can even start a campfire and make s’mores!
I’m not going to go in depth about the amenities in Bucari. There are plenty of blogs and sites (like Bucari’s own website) that detail that.
Instead I’m going to give you photos of my smug ass in Bucari, including MY obligatory fallen tree shot.
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