LEGAZPI CITY : Undeterred by a broken leg, Russian tourist Mark Yuchyugaev vowed to climb Mt Mayon again, this time with a guide to help him through the treacherous slopes of the volcano.
Yuchyugaev admitted he became fascinated by the perfect symmetry of Mayon when he started taking pictures of the areas around the volcano.
“I was so fascinated the first time I saw Mayon volcano that Sunday. I was not contented to just bring its pictures back home to the Republic of Yakutia in Siberia, Russia. I quickly decided to climb it, even by myself,” Yuchyugaev tsaid.
The 28-year-old was rescued last Thursday and brought to the Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital for treatment of his broken ankle.
Residents recalled seeing Yuchyugaev taking pictures of the Cagsawa ruins in Barangay Busay, Daraga, Albay, where Mayon’s foot-to-crater view attracts visitors.
They learned later that it was the Russian who was injured last Sunday while climbing.
Yuchyugaev said he fell just a few hundred meters away from the summit in the attempt to take pictures of Mayon near the crater rim.
“I fell that’s why my ankle was dislocated. The rocks and boulders are still loose at the upper slopes,” he said.
Despite his injuries, Yuchyugaev said he would not hesitate to undertake another climb of Mayon.
“Yes, I will do it again, maybe in the future,” he said, but was quick to add that he would hire an expert guide on his next attempt.
THE PHILIPPINE STAR
