Ilocos Sur | Bessang Pass Natural Monument, Cervantes
Clouds billowed thickly in a sea of cotton as it hugged the mountain slopes of Bessang Pass Natural Monument.
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I occasionally hit my head against the glass panes of the van, as snaked through the zigzag roads leading to Cervantes. I eventually got my self together as the van came to a halt beside the highway. It was cold as we stepped out of the van to stretch our aching calves.
Malaya
The excitement eventually got the best of me as we set foot in Brgy. Malaya in the municipality of Cervantes, Ilocos Sur. We stopped for a while for a quick coffee and comfort room break. I was half expecting that this adventure detour is just as normal as any other stopovers in the Cordillera. Boy, I was wrong.
From afar the national monument of the “Battle of Bessang Pass” stood sentinel. It was set against a pine tree clad mountain with vistas of the low lying Ilocos Sur settlements.
This monument was unveiled in the year 1954 to honor the 1,395 “United States Armed Forces in the Philippines, Northern Luzon” (USAFIP-NL) members. They were killed during the successful and historic battle against the Japanese Imperial Forces under the watch of Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita in 1945.
This was Yamashita’s backdoor stronghold and last ditch of defense during World War II. Blood, sweat and tears were laid in that battle since the Japanese Army surely knows where to take their last stand. It happened to be here in Bessang Pass which is certainly not the ideal kind of hell for the Filipino Soldiers.
Glorious
As the van resumed the trip to Mountain Province, we passed through the Sabangan-Cervantes-Tagudin road leading to the Halsema Highway. We tried to take a nap again, but the unexpected gift of sunrise greeted us as we traversed the less taken route.
Clouds billowed thickly in a sea of cotton as it hugged the mountain slopes of Bessang Pass Natural Monument.
Declared as a natural moment in the year 2000, Bessang Pass, with Mt. Namandiraan looming from afar, is definitely one of the scenic routes that you should totally visit.
Initially a component of the Tirad Pass National Park, this pass lies on the southeast side of Langiatan Hill, Mt. Namogoian to the south and Magun Hill to the east. With the past still evident in the steep slopes of the Bessang Pass, the victories of the then and now still stands evident. Nature is surely a show-off.
We then resumed up to the Halsema Highway to start a one of a kind hike in the highlands of Mountain Province.
Updated as of May 12, 2019
