10/10/2025
Father and Daughter Vanish While Hiking — 5 Years Later, Hikers Find Something Wedged in a Crevice That Reveals the Truth
On that day, at the end of the rainy season in Northern Luzon, the pale sunlight pierced through a thin veil of clouds. A group of university students from Baguio decided to organize a light trekking trip in the Cordillera range near Benguet. They had no intention of reaching the summit; they only wanted to breathe in the pine forest air and the mountain mist.
When the group stopped for lunch near a deep crevice, one student suddenly shouted:
"Hey, there’s something stuck in the crack!"
Everyone crowded around. Between two gray boulders, where rainwater streamed into the ravine, a dark object coated with mud was wedged tightly. Using sticks to pull it free, they discovered it was an old backpack, the straps already torn.
The group felt both curious and uneasy. They opened the backpack: inside were a worn notebook, some faded family photos, and a small, pale pink jacket—clearly belonging to a child.
A young woman in the group opened the notebook with trembling hands. The words were blurred but still readable:
"On the third day… heavy rain, the trail collapsed… I hope someone finds this."
No more was written. Everyone felt they had stumbled upon a forgotten tragedy. When they descended the mountain, they immediately informed authorities. News of the backpack quickly spread across the nearby barangays in Benguet, reviving memories of a disappearance exactly five years earlier: a man and his young daughter who went missing while hiking. Months of searching had ended in vain.
The backpack reopened the door to the past.
That year, Ramon—a construction engineer on leave from a long-term project—decided to take his eight-year-old daughter, Ana, on a hiking trip in the Cordillera mountains. He loved nature and wanted her to experience and toughen herself in the outdoors. His wife, Liza, was busy with work and couldn’t join them.
Father and daughter set out early, carrying food, a small tent, water, and a notebook. For Ana, it was her first adventure. She wrote excitedly in her neat handwriting:
"Today I went hiking with you. I am happy."
The first day went smoothly, but on the second day, the weather suddenly turned. Heavy rain poured, the trail grew muddy. Several sections collapsed, and familiar paths were blocked. Ramon reassured his daughter, though inside, he was deeply worried.
That night, in a flimsy tent amid the cold, damp pine forest, Ana asked:
"Dad, will we go back the way we came?"
Ramon hugged his daughter and gently lied: “Tomorrow the sun will shine, and we’ll find our way.”
In truth, they were lost. By morning, the map and compass were useless, as the familiar landmarks had vanished under landslides. Food supplies dwindled. Ramon tore strips from his shirt and tied them to tree branches as markers, hoping rescuers would follow.
On the third day, he wrote in the notebook:
"We are trying to find a way down. Ana has a slight fever. I’ll keep trying…"
But the rain would not stop. Father and daughter were forced into a dangerous area near a deep crevice. At night, the cold wind howled, and Ramon took off his jacket to cover his daughter. In the morning, while trying to cling to a mossy rock, the backpack slipped and got caught in the crack. Ramon tried to retrieve it, but Ana, exhausted, begged him not to. He only had time to slip the notebook and Ana’s jacket into the bag, praying that if someone ever found it, they would understand what had happened.
After that, father and daughter disappeared from the provincial rescue team’s search maps. Weeks of combing the mountains and forests of Benguet yielded nothing—only scraps of fabric here and there, torn apart by wind and rain.
The story faded into dust. Only Liza—the wife and mother—never gave up hope... Click link Read full here 👉👉 https://bhnews24h.com/archives/9518
