TRIPS: No delivery on a ‘Taal’ order (Luzon,Philippines)

For the second time in 30 days, I’m sitting within two hours of the famous active Philippine volcano within a lake within a dead volcano without the time to ride in for a closer look. The active Taal Volcano sits in the middle of Taal Lake, which it situated in the mouth of the giant dead volcano. Here’s the scoop on Taal from Wikipedia:

Taal Volcano is an active volcano on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. This is located in Talisay and San Nicolas in Batangas. It consists of an island in Lake Taal, which is situated within a caldera formed by an earlier very large eruption. It is about 50 km from the capital, Manila.
The volcano has erupted violently several times, causing loss of life in the populated areas surrounding the lake. Death toll was around 5,000 - 6,000 Due to its eruptive history and location close to population centres, the volcano has been designated a Decade Volcano worthy of close study to prevent future natural disasters.

As for me, once again it’s just out of reach this visit with a two hour drive one way from Manilla and a full schedule flying to and fro elsewhere. Next time, maybe I'll ride Taal and add on a day at Corregidor too.

For more on mountain biking in the Philippines, the Bugoy Bikers seem to have their act together. If you’ll be there in late March-early April, check out their ride across Northern Luzon.

Photos came from Wikipedia, various hiker sites and Virtual Tourist-Asia.