The Shotgun
Among the steepest bike trails around the philippines The Shotgun trail in San Mateo Rizal is one of the most gruesome and hard trails known in the biking community, and it is sometimes called the death valley.
The Shotgun is located at Mt. Maarat, San Mateo Rizal. The death valley is considered as the most challenging climb, said by the biking community here in the country. It has a five kilometer ride of pure and torturing uphills, from the name itself The Shotgun, this place is not biker friendly.
The ride itself is not easy the only recovery you'll get while climbing up is the first 100 meters, you better save enough energy for the next 7 kilometers of pure steep slopes, with a bright and sunny day don't forget to bring enough water for the hell ride because there is only one store in the valley, you'll reach the store after the 5 kilometer run.
The rumors about the death valley are all true, the pain and suffering you'll feel in every pedal you make including the hot sun, the road doesn't have enough shade making the situation much worse.
After an hour and a half the group decided to rest in the hut near the store, halfway through the ride and we are already exhausted, our legs are shaking and almost giving up but our goal is to finish and survive the death valley. After the rest our group decided to ride the last 2 kilometers of the valley, another 2 kilometers of steep and zigzag roads.
We were so tired and almost gave up but we've made it, we never got the opportunity to take the picture of the wonderful view because the only phone we've brought ran out of battery. But our group got to enjoy the breathtaking view, from the top of the Mountain you'll be able to see a some parts of Metro Manila.
Some people have already been in this place because of Timberland, a country club for rich people, it is different from us bikers, the ones who suffered just to enjoy the view of a lifetime.
This is a big achievement for us, surviving The Shotgun Trail, but another challenge for us is the way down, the mountain is steep and can be dangerous, it can even cause a fatal injury when you're not careful. A helpful advice is focus on the road, keep your fingers ready near the brakes of your bike, don't ride down near each other, and lastly check any kind of problems in your bike, if there is.
Goodluck on your journey on The Shotgun Trail, have a safe ride and keep on riding Nomads.