Climbing Sibulan’s Mt. Buribid Peak, 1410 MASL

 The newest hiking site which was opened in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur on August 31, 2024 is Mt. Buribid Peak, located in the more famous Mt. Sibulan before and now officially called the Buribid Mountain Range with more or less four peaks and stretches all the way to Binaton, Digos City – the last peak being Mt. Tambudlot of Digos. The bigger portion, though, of the mountain belongs to Sta. Cruz that covers barangay Sibulan, Tibolo, Jose Rizal and Sinoron. The first peak which is part of sitio Dariango in Sibulan, is the one considered for ecotourism activity based on the Memorandum of Agreement forged by the Sibulan Tribal Council, the Barangay Council, Municipal Tribal Council and the Indigenous Peoples Organization of the Unified Bagobo-Tagabawa Ancestral Domain.

Mt. Buribid is a dense forest of dipterocarp species, with bryophytes and other plant species available. Trekking distance is 6.5 kilometers from Sibulan Barangay Hall and elevation at the summit is 1,410 meters above sea level, making it the tallest minor hiking site in Sta. Cruz. The southern slope of Buribid Peak is consist of beautiful sceneries of Bamboo Peak, Langit-langit Peak, the enchanting Mt. Libodon and Mt. Dinor of Sinoron. The head waters of Biga Falls is also located here. Other good sceneries which can be seen and experience along the trail to Buribid Peak are Panulidan Waterfalls, Sibulan River, Century-old Balite Tree and Century-old Lauan Tree.  

Datu Gideon Tolentino, the tribal chieftain of Sibulan Cluster 1, is consistent in saying that the intention of opening Mt. Buribid for trekking is a mechanism for them to sustainably manage this portion of their ancestral land, noting that it may not be the best remedy for conservation but is definitely the only way. Following a very successful ecotourism project in their other area Tomari Waterfalls, Datu Gideon believes now is the best time for them to sweep opportunities of protecting the mountain through community-based, diversity-friendly tourism activity so that the member of its tribal community will also be provided with additional income. For now there are around 25 new mountain guides trained to propel trekking activity in Buribid Peak.

Camping will be strictly prohibited in the summit of Mt. Buribid, but the area of Datu Gideon in sitio Dariango serves as basecamp for guests who opt for Day Zero camping. Day hike is a cool option but it should be started very early like 5:00 to 6:00 in the morning to complete the trek earlier. It is mandatory to hire a local guide with service fee that starts at 1,000 pesos per group. A 50-peso registration fee will also be collected by the tribal council through its partner Indigenous Peoples Organization, the Sibulan Tribal Farmers Association.

The last water source available is at kilometer 4.2 (840 MASL) but not really reliable as it might be sometimes unavailable. The basecamp in Dariango is the best place to refill water and buy essential stuff before start trekking. The rest of the trail going up are pure farm lands and forest and for now no community providing services such as sari-sari stores and stopovers. 

For inquiries and further details about trekking in Mt. Buribid, please contact Datu Gideon https://www.facebook.com/datujun.tolentino or Mr. Joel Owe https://www.facebook.com/owe.joel with mobile number 09076932939. Again, the barangay hall of Sibulan (310 MASL) serves as the official registration site while the basecamp in sitio Dariango (540 MASL) is a monitoring station where permits will be checked.