Mount Sembrano is a

volcano A volcano is a rupture in the Crust (geology), crust of a Planet#Planetary-mass objects, planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and volcanic gas, gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Ear ...

located between Rizal and Laguna of the Calabarzon region in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Mt. Sembrano is situated about east by road from the capital city of

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

Geography

Mount Sembrano lies between the boundaries of the towns of Jalajala and

Pililla Pililla (), officially the Municipality of Pililla ( tgl, Bayan ng Pililla), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Rizal, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 71,535 people. It is surrounded by farms, small m ...

in Rizal province and the town of Pakil in Laguna. The mountain sits at the helm of Jalajala peninsula along the shore of Laguna de Bay and is surrounded by the lake on three sides. Along with

Talim Island Talim Island is the largest lake island in Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the Philippines. The hilly island is within the boundaries of the Province of Rizal, under the jurisdiction of two municipalities. The western side is part of the mu ...

, the mountain forms the southeastern rim of the

Laguna Caldera Laguna Caldera is a potentially active volcanic caldera and a geographical depression in Rizal, Philippines. It is broadly elliptical in shape, with dimensions of 20 by 10 km. It has a summit elevation of 743 m or 2,438 feet. The caldera forms ...

."Laguna Caldera"
Global Volcanism Program. Retrieved on 2011-12-16.

Hiking

Once a haven of

New People's Army The New People's Army ( fil, Bagong Hukbong Bayan), abbreviated NPA or BHB, is the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), based primarily in the Philippine countryside. It acts as the CPP's principal organization, aim ...

insurgents, the mountain is now a popular hiking destination offering a commanding view of Laguna de Bay,

, and the Tagalog provinces of Rizal and Laguna. ''Mount Susong Dalaga'' (Maiden's breast Mountain), a conical hill resembling the female breast which is the highest peak of neighboring

, is best observed from Mt. Sembrano. Other mountains visible from the summit are Mount Banahaw, Mount Makiling and the Sierra Madre Mountains.

Starting point

The most common starting point for the climb up the mountain is from the

Barangay A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolita ...

Hall in Brgy. Malaya in

Pililla, Rizal Pililla (), officially the Municipality of Pililla ( tgl, Bayan ng Pililla), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Rizal, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 71,535 people. It is surrounded by farms, small m ...

where climbers must register themselves. The hike to the grassy summit which is fully exposed to the sun, takes about three to four hours. Another trail starts from the Laguna side of the mountain in the town of Pakil, but is rarely used.

Our Lady of Maulawin

Mount Sembrano is considered sacred by some people and known for the legend of the miraculous discovery of the icon of Our Lady of Maulawin. In 1909, a group of loggers climbed Mt. Sembrano to cut logs. Felipe Reyno was the one who cut a ''maulawin'' tree. The 5 logs was sold in Santa Cruz, Laguna. In 1910, when an intended shelter for cows was started, the posts was prepared first. A carpenter took the ''maulawin'' log (molave) but his saw broke because not only it was young, it was also very hard. He borrowed another saw to continue the cutting, he was completely amazed to see an image of the Virgin Mary imprinted in it. It was completely supernatural because resembling like lead in a pencil, any part of the log if cut it has the same image even to the trunks and branches. Two chops of wood is now enshrined at the

Aglipayan church , native_name_lang = fil , icon = Logo of the Philippine Independent Church (Aglipayan Church).svg , icon_width = 80px , icon_alt = Coat of arms of the Philippine Independent Church , image ...

of Santa Cruz in Laguna, one in the side altar and another in an adjacent chapel dedicated for her. A small chapel is placed on the site where the image was discovered.

Other points of interest

Another point along the trail is a big boulder referred to as the ''Simbahan'' (Church) where pilgrims leave candles on the huge rock where footprints imprinted on top are supposedly left by the Virgin Mary. Five minutes off the trail is the small Manggahan waterfall, located left of the campsite if you are on your way up. The falls provide water for overnight campers and day trekkers.

References

External links

Climbing Mount Sembrano
from Pinoy Mountaineer
Mount Sembrano
from Metropolitan Mountaineering Society {{DEFAULTSORT:Sembrano Mountains of the Philippines Sembrano Extinct volcanoes Sierra Madre (Philippines) Sacred mountains Landforms of Laguna (province) Landforms of Rizal Tourist attractions in Rizal Tourist attractions in Laguna (province)