Balatoc Mines Tour
January 2, 2009 by lisa
Filed under attractions & landmarks, benguet
“Be a Miner for A Day”
After registration at the Benguet Mining Corporation Visitor Center, we got all geared up, making sure that jeans were tucked into our boots because “the washing area can get a bit muddy.” By the way they also have available children-sized gear, for whole families who take the Balatoc Mines Tour. At this point I must say I believe little boys of school age will love this experience.
We were also issued our very own chapas (these are thin numbered “coins” made of metals that workers turn in at the entrance to the mines so that the folks outside can monitor who is inside and who have not yet returned. Afterward, we took home our chapas as souvenirs of our wonderful adventure.
Our lovely tour guide, Vicky Soriano, gave us complete information on how gold is extracted and “washed” and processed, from gold dust to gold bars. We also saw tons and tons of quartz with gold veins and discovered that it takes about 100 railway cars full of these rocks to make a single gold bar. She explained that independent contractors have been doing the mining since BMC ceased its own operations years ago. We met quite a few of them, too, as they went about their work for the day.
On our way to the Vegas tunnel for the underground tour (ooh, that was the most fun part and I will try to tell you as little as I can about it so you’ll want to take the tour yourself), we viewed mining equipment, including an interesting “Toilet Car” that moved around on rails collecting “personal stuff” from the miners so they would not have to go in and out to do their “thing.”
As we went deeper into the Vegas tunnel we noticed that it was surprisingly cool and well ventilated. We explored part of it on foot so we could see the walls and the different kinds of support to prevent the mines from collapsing, and which other tunnels were drilled and eventually closed up. Vicky showed us and explained the baby stalactites on the ceiling of the tunnel (”they’re just 50 years old”). We fit into recesses on the wall, had all safety measures explained, saw the BMC “anaconda,”
We met one of their most experienced and multi-awarded miners, Mr. Bart
And got to drill holes on the walls to stick dynamite in
And got to ride the underground train.
The Balatoc Mines Tour, for us, contained many surprises probably because so little information has been written about it, although a collage in the visitor center showed still photos of some Filipino celebrities who came to do TV features on it. I have purposely omitted many details of some other things we did inside the Vegas Tunnel, by the way so that your visit will not be anticlimactic.
Afterward, Vicky opened up the museum for us, and Nico tried to lift a gold bar with one hand. He had heard that if you can lift the gold bar, you get to take it home! Vicky said that a professional Filipino basketball player (they have large, strong hands) almost did just that.
We just...
Hi Lisa.As usual another very informative guide from you! Always been reading your comments,be it on where to dine,places to go,recently the shorter route to Baguio,and even local politics,haha.Thank you very much,and hope to hear another great adventure from you in the near future.When I was a kid,all I did was horseback riding and biking(at Burnham),now another new agenda when I bring my family there.
Thanks Eugene,
There are many things to discover about Baguio City, and many more reasons to visit. Even I have not explored all the nooks and crannies. And come on, for the kids, just the horseback riding, boating and biking already takes up all the vacation time!
Now the local politics part, that was never in the plan for this site, but it became necessary with all the mismanagement going on.
Honestly,the local politics thing is also important and very informative.I am a regular visitor of Baguio and I like being aware of what’s going on there.Though I’m not a resident of Baguio,I do care about the place.My hat’s off to your site,nothing like it
Thanks Eugene,
Baguio belongs to the Philippines, with us residents as mere caretakers. The issues plaguing the city cannot be localized or isolated. This is the best medium I can use right now. Thank you for understanding and caring.
Hi, I’m planning to organize a camp in Crosby Park. Do you know the contact details of the park? can I have a cellphone number of one who runs the park. Thanks!
No phone in the park. But you can call the Balatoc Mines Tour folks. Contact info available at http://www.gobaguio.com/balatoc-mines.html or check out http://www.benguetcorp.com. hope this helps
Dear lisa,
i am very glad for posting about balatoc mines.we will be leaving tomorrow for baguio to attend the pma alumni on sat. it is now included in our itinerary to visit this exciting place. i am positively sure that we all gonna like and enjoy it. thank you for this informative guide.
Hiya Nova,
Yup, you can take in the Balatoc Mines Tour especially because it is near PMA. Take note of the cut-off time though. You must be there by 2:00 p.m. Say hi to Ms. Vicky for me
Me and my wife have been treasure hunting, and we come across some items this lady has found in a cave, I need to find a gold buyer and I have some american currency of 1934 from a WQ.f. box
hi ms lisa, do you know where is Plaza-Balatoc-Acupan line?where can we find that?we are planning to go there this july and i wnat to go there. hope you can help me. do you have any miner or anyone contact number that can help me?thanks.
WELL…IM FROM ACUPAN CAMP 3,THE TURNING POINT OF THE JEEP….AND WE DONT HAVE PARK IN ACUPAN,WE ONLY HAVE CROSBY PARK BUT NOT NEAR TO THE ACUPAN…IT IS LOCATED AT THE SECOND GATE,IN THIS ALSO YOU CAN FIND THE THE STATEU THAT HAVE BEEN POSTED THE MAN WHO IS HOLDING A “MASO”…AND IF YOU PLANN TO GO TO ACUPAN WELLL……FROM NOW IT JUST ALI’L BIT DANGEROUS BECUASE OF THE LAND SLIDE…WELLLLLL JUST COME TO ACUPAN AND YOU WILL A EXPERIENCE HOW TO BE IN ACUPAN..K SEE YAH
We went to Baguio for the nth time but it was the first for my 10 year old boy and the second for my four other children. The Balatoc Mine Tour was the best! We had a blast (literally)! We enjoyed the tour. We had chapas and our certificates as important mementos. Our tour guide (ALMA) was very good. She patiently answered our questions. We loved the ANACONDA. I thought we have seen everything but this was the best Baguio experience by far. The P250 and P150 (student fee
I brought my kids to the Strawberry Farm and it was a letdown. If you pick strawberries, you pay P350/kg as against P200/kg if you buy them. I hope this tour becomes organized where a guide will talk to you about how strawberries are planted. How wine is made out of them with wine tasting or how it is preserved, etc. Travelling to Trinidad Valley was not worth the time and effort.
The Butterfly sanctuary at Camp John Hay was also a letdown. The butterflies were not active at all because of the cold weather. It was just good for photo ops. Skip this. We had fun though at the zip line and repelling at the eco trail of Camp John Hay.
Hi Bob,
The Balatoc Mines Tour is really great.
As for strawberries, I agree that it’s not so great. But I have to explain that the rationale for strawberries being more expensive at the farms is because so much is wasted when they are picked by non-farmers. Also folks are charged per kilo not per person. so if five of you went, it’s 70/person for the experience and photo opps.
Thanks for sharing your most recent Baguio experiences. I am sure other readers will appreciate the information!
Happy New Year!