... Sachin ...

My cousin woke me up at 5:30 AM, and for those who know me its like mid-night. "Sachin is batting, do you want to watch", he said. "Hell, yeah!" was my response. Bleary eyed I started watching the man many refer to as 'God of Cricket', batting on 12. I was glad that I didn't miss what could be his last innings. The way West Indies are batting; there may not be a second innings for India to bat. The Mumbai crowds were going berserk, just hearing the noise one could easily mistaken it for the death overs of a one-dayer or a 20-20 match. The energy inside the stadium was palpable. Even watching it on a laptop screen thousands of miles away gave me goose bumps.

He walked in with about 19 overs left for the day and India precariously placed at 77/2. He began the innings with an assurance not seen of him lately. With constant strike rotation and the odd boundaries he gave a parting lesson on how to build and innings after a setback. The one shot that defined his innings that day, was the one that has defined so many of his other innings too. One which he could very well file a patent for. The exquisite straight drive past the bowler.

Many articles have been written on Sachin. Every aspect of his game has been covered. His impact on them as individuals, on the Indian team, the Indian generation, the game itself, and even on the times he practiced his craft. All has been well documented. I have neither the skills nor the desire to add to that collection. 

I am just glad he choose a test match for his farewell. Although he revolutionized the one-dayers and his records, performances and unforgettable moments of brilliance in one-days will always over shadow those of tests. Tests hold a special place in the heart for many cricket lovers, I being one of them.  

Even as the sun was setting in the Arabian sea across the road, the noise showed now sign of relenting. As the shadows lengthened on the Wankhade Stadium the only thought going through my mind was that, he should remain unbeaten at the end of the day. Not because I want him to score another hundred,neither am I craving to see him on the crease just a bit longer. He has given us enough hundreds and over 25 years of memories to cheer and cherish.

...All I want is, for him to soak in the genuine love, admiration and adulation when he steps on the ground tomorrow.
...All I want is, for the 35,000 fans, to be able to express the deepest gratitude of theirs and those of million of fans all over the world through their vociferous cheering..
...All I want is to see Sachin walk down the pavilion steps one more time. Pads strapped, draped in white and a wielding willow is hand.

..All I want is to see Sachin walk, the way he was born to walk. with a bat in hand.

Euro trip - Day 4... "The amount of light should be just right, not too much, not too little, since having too much or too little light can both cause blindness" - Antonio Gaudi

One of the problems of not having concrete plans, is you need to make plans on the fly. So most of our limited time online has been spent making reservations and researching things. The unreliable and slow net connection did not help either. So, here it is, better late than never.

The Sagrada Família

Wonder-struck is the only word that comes close to describing my feeling when I first saw the Basílica. You step out of the subway tunnel and there in front of you the spectacular structure fills your vision. The brain is trying hard to process all the information which your eyes are capturing. Trying so hard, that for a few moments you are just seeing it in a state completely void of thoughts. 

What is even more astounding is that its only half way complete. Gaudi intended it to be a multi generation  project. For each each generation to interpret his ideas in their own way and express it on the two remaining the facade. The scale of the project is simply mind boggling.
Inside the state of wonder continues, the nave is filled with colorful light filtered through kaleidoscopic stein glass windows. The columns supporting the roof  resemble tree branches supporting a canopy. It is a unique Gaudi design continuing his philosophy of taking inspiration from nature. 
A nativity facade designed by Gaudi himself depicts his signature naturalistic style. Its very ornate and filled with minor details/ The entire face does not have a empty spot. One could spend hours just marveling at this one facade.
I can go on and on about it and still fall short of describing its magnificence. I have provided a link to a documentary at the bottom of the link.

To be honest I had not heard about Antonio Gaudi before, but I till after college had not heard about JRR Tolkein either. Sometimes one is introduced to great contributors and their greatest creations through travel, reading or friends. There are a lot of creations in the world, mad-made and natural that are spectacular even great. But very few have the capability to truly leave you wonder-struck.

The moment of Zen is one of Gaudi's quote and guiding principle about light.

Euro trip - Day 3... "Jabb biwi eak gaal pe marti hai to mien doosra gal aage karta hu, oppa Gandhi style."

Three in a row...,the travelogue has survived the third day. was a close call though.

... race day

We knew it was going to be a long day, so started the day with  a heavy breakfast. But, had to take care of the apt business first. Early am Gustavo gave give us keys to the original apt. By now, we have the travel to circuit figured out. Walk to Luice metro station, board the L3 to Sans Estacio, then renfe train to Montemello. From there bus to the circuit. 

The race itself was good one. Plenty of position changes in the beginning. But about midway through the race it was clearly evident that Mercedez desperately need to improve their car. Red bull's deficiencies are masked by the brilliance of Vettle. Lotus is going to keep on relying on Kimi's ability to get the car home on 2 stops. And Ferrari has unleashed a monster after the first break. For the Europen leg of the championship. They were so dominant that Alonso stopped thrice and was still ahead by 16 sec. An eternity in F1

... Catalunyaian trifecta

 Barcelona won the la Ligua, Alonso won the Sanish GP and Nadal won the Madrid open. What a lucky omen we are, we should have a work with the mayor to give us key to the city :)

Our attempt to go out clubbing was a big dud. We came in around 9 slept till 11:30 and then headed out. The one club we wanted to go was closed and the other said we were not dresses appropriately. WTH I thought Europe was less formal, nothing much to do we just got something to eat and called it a night.

...moment of Zen

after about the 4th round of Glenlivett the topic of discussion diverted to marriage. Kishore being the only married one in the group shared his secret for 3 successful years of marriage ;).  "Jabb biwi eak gaal pe marti hai to mien doosra gal aage karts hu, oppa Gandhi style."

Euro trip - Day 2 ... "Idhar aao meri Jaan"

I am trying to start a trend. The titles off all euro trip blogs are going to be quotes I hear, that leave an impression. At the end of the blog I will give the backdrop. It's like the 'Moment of Zen' showed on the daily show.

Day 2 started off with Hari joining the troupe. Trip to the circuit went on smoothly because Hari had done his homework. Circuit de Catalunya is in Montemello, about 20 miles from Barca. Won't harp much about how impressive it is to see and hear the F1 machines live. For F1 fans, this is a experience you must not miss. As an added bonus our seats were right in front of the Lotus pits.  Kimi as expected finished 4th. :|. After qualifying we decided to take advantage of gorgeous Spanish weather and walked back to the station.

Generally F1 teams setup exhibits somewhere in the city center and they are very good. That was our plan for later in the evening. Online search was not of much help so we decide to figure it out on the fly. As they say some of the best trips are the ones unplanned. Sri suggested we should go to Espana station , where she had seen some tents. When we got there we didn't find the F1 exhibition. But instead got to spend some time at the Plaça d'Espanya. Its a city square. The Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya on top of a hill with a cascading waterfall at its base, culminating in a huge musical fountain. It a treat to the eyes. Google it, I'll update some pics later.

Later on our way back got to participate in a Barcelona supporters victory celebrations. Barcelona won the Spanish la Ligua today. A big group had gathered near Las Ramblas to party. Perfect timing :)

...moment of Zen

Remember in the last post I had mentioned that the alternate apt was in a not-so-good neighborhood. This happened on our way back from the qualifying. We have to walk through a narrow lane lined with shops and pubs. Midway through there is an open space for people to congregate. Generally later in the day prostitutes setup their shop too. On our way back one of the Spanish prostitute tugged on my shirt and said "Idhar aao meri Jaan".

Euro Trip - Day 1

Historically I have had bad track record about maintaining a travelogue. Either the laptop runs out of juice, or we stay out too late, or it simply passes out of conscience. The reasons are as endless as my excuses. Sometimes I pen down my thoughts in drafts, to be edited and polished later. But later never comes.This time however I hav decided to just publish the blog every night without fail. So pardon the grammatical and spelling mistakes.

A day of travel...literally...

Started the trip with a late night Kuwait Airways flight from JFK to Heathrow. The three of us made an interesting trio. Me, the girl next to me and the guy on the other side of the aisle. Me, early 30s traveling outside of US for true first time that too for just 2weeks. The girl early 20s traveling to Europe for a college assignment for a month. And the guy in late 20s out on an 8 months long trip around the world. Had and interesting conversation.

Immigration was routine and when waiting for Kishore was informed by Hari that his flight was arriving at another Terminal. Had to scramble across, the only annoying part being I had to unload the cart before boarding the train and put it back on another cart at the other terminal. Kishore's flight was on time and we had a hour long drive to Stansted airport where we had to board our flight to Spain. Yellow flower filled fields banking the Motorway M25 constantly reminded me of DDLJ. The idea behind going to Stansted was to take a low fare airline to Spain. But after factoring in the checkin baggage fees and cab fare the price evened out. We would have been better off taking a flight from Heathrow. We however would have missed the Entourage moment of the day. An extra 10$ for priority  checkin brought us VIP treatment while boarding, where the entire flight crew was standing by the plane's stairs to greet us. 

Reached Barcelona and again thankfully immigration was quick. We however were in for a shock. We had booked our apt bang in the middle of Las Ramblas and had also paid a bit of premium for the location. After reaching there and seeing the party scene were feeling very good at that decision. But the booking agent told us that the apt we had booked was unavailable and he had arranged for an alternate. He said, the cables in out apt had caught fire and the repairs won't be done till Sunday. How convenient, we were furious. It was apparent that he had given the apt to a higher bidder. That left a sour taste in what had otherwise been a pretty nice day. Unhappily we took possession of the other apt and later went out for a stroll on Las Ramblas. Had dinner and am finally glad to get a chance to unwind. Eager to get some sleep. A long day awaits tomorrow 

Tour Davita - Day 1

few things I learned about Iowa

... the terrain is flat. Well, saying the terrain is flat would not be doing justice to the flatness. I The roads are so flat that at some point you start to feel that the curvature of the earth too does not have any effect on the landscape.

... the Roads are straight. The best crow couldn’t fly any straighter. I am not sure they even hired an architect to build it. They got bob the builder and said. "well Bob, you see the crow flying east. Just follow him and build us a road"

... Corn fields. You don’t need a maze to get lost here. Every intersection looks like the last one you went through. There are corn fields as far as your eyes can see. And. If you build the world’s tallest building. From the top of it you would still see corn fields as far as your eyes can see.

... like the sea people riders in Iowa should also be praying to the wind Gods. Boy, cause when they are angry and hit you with a 15 miles/hour head wind. You, learn so much about aerodynamics that a 4 year degree at MIT won’t teach you.

The result of all the above factors is that. When you start riding you have 15 miles an hour wind blowing in your face, you are in the middle of what seems like endless ocean of Corn fields and there is a point on the horizon you are aiming to get too. So you put your head down and start peddling. Then after an hour when you look up, you see the same corn field you left an hour ago and you are as much farther from that point on horizon as you were an hour ago.

But, after few hours your eyes get acclimatized to the surroundings. And you see that not all corn fields look the same. The wind that was blowing in your face also sends ripples through the fields making is look like a big brown ocean. And every so often you come across a big bright red barn in the midst of brown ocean with the bright blue sky behind it. Iowa is beautiful and stunningly so.

My 2 cents on buying DSLR

I love photography and have been trying to pull the trigger on getting a new DSLR. The fact that haven't, warrants its own blog :). I have been doing some reading on photography in general and DSLRs in particular. So here are my 2 cents, although a long winded 2 cents...

Camera...
D90 is probably the best DSLR there is. (PERIOD). Sure the D7000 (and the upcoming D7100) have more features, more AutoFocus points, more sensitive pixels. But for years the D90 has been the gold standard; not just for sub-pro cameras, but DSLRs in general. As with D70 and so with D5100 and D3100, they are good entry level models but if you get even slightly serious about photography. You soon start the realize its limitations and will curse yourself for not spending that extra on the D90. The D90 has all the features a photography enthusiast will need and then some. It falls ever so short of a pro DSLRs, but for its price the value is unbeatable. And for around 600 its a bargain. 

Lens...
The following experts are from various articles I have read on lenses. I claim no intellectual rights on them :). Before we dive into the technical nitty gritty of lenses let me make one thing very clear. Lens selection is greatly dictated by personal preference and usability. There is no one-size-fits-all here. You have to take into account what kind of subject matter you are interested in macro, landscape, sports etc.
Here is a management 101 :). It's funny cause its coming from a programmer. All lenses follow the typical Cost, Quality and Time (in our case Zoom ) trade-off triangle. A lens with a single focal length (prime) is easy to make, can be made with very good quality glass and at a decent price. Keeping the glass quality constant as you increase the range the complexity of making the lens increases and so does the weight. So to keep both the component and fabrication cost down most lens makers compromise of the glass quality. As a rule of thumb the wider the range the more expensive the lens or off its of lesser quality.

...you gotta have a prime.
You have to have a good quality lens where the fstops go at least to 1.5 (lower the better). Ideally one should have 2 prime lenses a 24mm and an 85mm for landscape and macro respectively. But if you have to pick one get a 24mm or a 35mm. Why you ask? One answer "SPEED" primes are super fast and the low fstops enable you to keep a high shutter speed even in low light. Yes, the inability to zoom in or out is a handicap at first. But you will get used to it and the lack of it also makes you better at composition. Plus, you can always crop the photographs later. Trust me once you start using a prime you will never use a zoom lens indoors and even for most outdoor family picnics. The sharpness, the contrast and the colour is just too good.

...na ghar ka na ghat ka.
I have problems with both the 18-105 and the 55-300 range lenses. The 18-105 has good lower focal length to be used indoors but does not have the higher range to be used outdoors. The zoom is just not enough. And the 55-300 has a good higher focal length but the 55mm is almost useless indoors. To get a group shot of 4 people you have to be at least  25-30 feet away. Now if you live in a house that big then its not a problem. But for most 20x20 living rooms, you pretty much have to take the picture from the front yard or porch. So you end up needing both, you cannot have one or the other. There are the 18-300 and 18-200ish lenses. But the good ones are way too expensive and the cheap ones are of bad quality. I myself am struggling with the choice. I think I am going to buy the 35mm prime and get the 200-400.


Flash...
Flash is another critical accessory greatly ignored by everyone. They are different techniques in using a flash and you can get that information from an good photography magazine or website

..its all about the light dummy.
You don't have to splurge on one, There are plenty good ones in the market, any decent one will fetch you for about 100-150$ 

Another Superbowl and Another loss to the Giants...

... not much to write here. Its going to be tough to get over this..

Kentucky Derby Marathon by garmin_mayur at Garmin Connect - Details

Kentucky Derby Marathon by garmin_mayur at Garmin Connect - Details

16 miles in Percy Warner Park- A Runners diary

....its not a run, its a right of passage....

that's how everyone in Nashville views the Percy Warner Park 11.2 mile loop.

Let me make a feeble attempt to paint a picture for you. The loop has a net elevation gain of about 1300 ft. Two massive hills, the 9-mile-hill and the 3-mile-hill cover half of it. Both the hills have an insanely steep climb of approximately 250ft spread over a mile(or slightly under). The remaining 900ft elevation change is spread over constantly undulating mini-hills. Throughout the entire run one is constantly running either uphill or downhill, you have a better chance of finding life on mars than finding a meaningful flat section.

To get the extra distance you go outside the park and run through an absolutely flat and gorgeous golf course. This gets you the extra 3/5 miles depending on if you are running the 16 miler or 18 miler. Running a 8:15/8:30 pace on this flat 3/3.5 mile section feels like a walk in the park. Well to be fair the golf course, like any other suburban golf course, is strictly OK. But its all the endorphins and adrenaline pumping in you veins, that transport you into the realm of Lothlórien.

Most runners don't run Percy Warner, they endure it. Our trainer wisely places this run towards the flag end. You are either running to test how strong you have become since the last time you ran it. Or to test if you are fit enough to run the full marathon. Very few worry about the pace. The idea is to run at a slightly uncomfortable pace and then in the end compare your times with previous runs.

Like the rain in Forest Gump, here too there are different kind of runners.

There are the crazy ones - Who simply blast the uphills like it is '2-mins-to-Apocalypse' and Noah is waiting with a stop watch on the top of that hill; summoning the last call. For them its a slap if the face if slopes slow you down. They live in a pre-Newtonian era, where the concept of gravity has not yet been discovered. If you stick with the fastest group till the base of first hill, you can witness these mad-men flying up the steep slopes. It is both awe-inspiring and highly emasculating.

There there are smart ones - For whom the climb is simply too long and simply too steep. Hence they simply walk up the hill. For them the run is like a game of chess. They gauge their opponent for weaknesses, walking the steepest section, running the moderate ones and prodding along anything in between.

Then there are runners like me - who are speed demons on flats and think of the hills as a necessary inconvenience to go from one side of the park to the other. For us it is simply a battle of wills between you and the mountain. Its a all or nothing battle where there is only one victor. If you are able to make it to the top without stopping or walking then you've won else the mountain gets to keep the scalp. Your ego being the scalp. If you win, your victory gift then is a long winding downhill, which you can fly down feeling the cool breeze caress your face, drying out the sweat and leaving behind battle scars. And by battle scars I mean the white salt residue which unfortunately you can't keep intact for show-and-tell :)

PS: I will chronicle my run in a later blog post.

Just an interesting article I found whilst trolling the internet. Its a fun read if you are interested in the history of technology

Chronicles of Conflict: the History of Adobe vs. Apple

PS: Geek alert

Shipping up to...

I haven't posted anything for the past six month. Every week I get a traffic report from sitemeter reminding me that I have a blog site and every week I am surprised to find about 25-30 visits to the blog. Every week I resolve to write a blog and every week ends with a failed promise...

.... except this week :)

To end the story on a happy note, and it was indeed very pleasant trip. I will mention the bad stuff first.

I think to maintain karmic balance my trip had to end on a bad note. Watched 'How to train your dragon', for all you dirty minded perverts its a kids animation film; grow up :B. Followed by the Oscars (or was it the reverse order). Anyways, Swati was sensible enough call it an early night. Me and Me2 sketched plans for the Zion camping trip and then went to bed earlyish too. I had a 7 o'clock flight the next day. All was fine and dandy till I woke up with stomach cramps, bloating and nausea; in the middle of the night; at 2 am. I will spare you the gruesome details but would like highlight Me2's compassion.

Awaked by my discomfort he came out to check on me. Actually to be blunt, my barfing would have woken up the neighbors as well. At 3am in 20F temp dude went out to find a store that would be open to get some meds. That, it was Providence did not help matters. With no shops open we were left with no choice but to find some home remedy. Whilst I was curling up in a fetal position on the sofa, he was looking up online. Finally his labours bore fruit and a hot pack subdued the pain and I was able to get some sleep. The next morning faced with a daunting task of flying 4 hours with an upset stomach. I armed myself with all the meds I could lay my hands on at the airport store.

As if the night's fiasco wasn't enough, my connecting flight was 2 hours late, it had to fly slow due to bad weather, went through a horrible turbulence and the pilot failed to land the plan in first two attempts. Never have I been happier to step off a plane.

The troubles aside I had a great time over the weekend. Every time I go there I get the feeling of going back home. I can see a few eye balls rolling on this comment. Let me tell you just because I haven't gone home in 5 years, does not mean that I have forgotten the feeling. OK! :p. Some highlights from the trip.

• Bhabhiji and Jaini as always were the most gracious hosts. Enjoyed every minute and had lots of fun reminiscing about the past. Hoping that they move to Raleigh.
• Nice to see Me2 and Swati staying as if they are in a 'live-in' relation even though they are married.
• Nice to meet ole roomies.
• Got a chance to lay my hands on the new 'PS3 Move' motion controller . Played on a home projection system and with audience :) sweet!!!!. It was interesting to get a glimpse into the psyche of ancient Romans. Archery, Tennis, Volleyball and Disc Golf were the least popular amongst the audience, Gladiator fights however were cheered the loudest.
• Driving, with the country side covered in snow.
• The 2 hundreds scored showed why the ODI format needs to be preserved. It gives true maestros enough time to showcase their art. Sachin scored his 47th ODI hundred and even though we snatched defeat from the jaw of victory after having snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. India was lucky to walk away with a point.
• Shopping @ Wrentham.
• and keeping the best part for last playing with JD (and his toys, sorry JD forgot to get a gift for you this time).

Just your regular day by the pool

I was a 100% sure the keys were in the car's trunk. Well where else could they be. We had searched the chairs by the pool, we searched around the tables, we had looked with squinted eyes at the bottom of the pool and we had searched mine and all of my friends bags. (After what ensued I am using the term friends very loosely). And it was a giant bunch of keys, very difficult to stay hidden. The last I remembered was opening the trunk to get my bag, so I've had to have left them in the trunk. Funny thing about memory it plays tricks on you and desserts you when you need it the most.

After our lame and futile attempts to wedge-in a long cane stick through the door, I had no choice but to bite the bullet and pay the auto mechanic 50$. Having gone through the ordeal before (read caused). I knew it was a 2 min drill. Wedge the door slightly, insert the inflatable air pillow, pump it up and create enough opening for a hook to go in and press the unlock key with the hook. The car goes bonkers with the safety alarms (as it rightfully should). But it is at times like this you feel the need for circuits with artificial intelligence. Circuits that can discern between an actual break-in and a much needed "authorized" break-in.

I however digress, coming back to the 2 min drill. Wedge the door.... yati yati yata... and unlock the car. Then you quickly get in the car, pop the trunk door, get you keys and stop the alarm. It is absolutely imperative that all the step after unlocking the car are done with surgical precision and lightning speed. If you fail the security alarm will, and I am not kidding, they will wake up the dead. And trust me you don't want to be dealing with the zombies and a bunch of angry friends at the same time. So the mechanic came and did his part, the piercing sound attracting attention even from the bats. I did my part with "surgical precision". Popped open the trunk and.......

I am trying to build up suspense, but by this time you would have guessed that the keys were not there in the trunk. I should probably have told you earlier that this was my friends car and he is an outdoors kind of person. He had so much stuff in his trunk that you can take the car in the middle of no where and not only survive, but also start you own civilization. With the sounds blaring at the background we were scurrying through the trunk to find the keys. One of my friend bravely decided to run by the pool and take a quick look again. Maybe she was looking for the crack that might have opened up in the ground and swallowed the keys. A potential homicide was averted when she got a "ohh my gwad, it's so comical" comment from a girl at the pool. Meanwhile back at the car I was trying to fidget with the locks to stop the alarms, but to no good. The auto mechanic was grumpy cause we were 12$ short so he had called the towing shop. My friend after being scorned at the pool took the call. The towing guys apparently inebriated thought it was a good idea and great timing to make a sales pitch for his 500$ Celebrity Chrysler. We had called a friend who live in the same apartment to loan us the 12$. He duly obliged (for which I am very thankful, and I you one), but was very happy to be a spectator.

It was amidst all the chaos I had my epiphany. I walked across the pool over to the trash bin and peered in. There it was cosily nestled in a pile of beer cans, cushioned in what I am desperately hoping to be ketchup.

PS: After reading the blog over I do realize that you have take your girlfriend with you in the middle of no where to have a outside chance of starting a civilization.

VEGAS BABY!!!!!!

So many tales to tell, So many stories to write..... Sigh, cant do it because of the law of the land..

Rocking in the rockies.. part II

...I try my best to stick to what I say, and I know I had promised to write part II of the Rockies trip but haven't done it. So, I should either learn to keep my promises, or shut my pie-H@*#...

But its better late then never, so here it is. Of all the great memories from the trip this is probably the one that's etched in forever...

...a single lane road meandering through a lush green valley flanked by ragged mountains on one side and rolling meadows on the other..... the black tar chugging along the footsteps of the mountains, marking a boundary between the Mountain kingdom and the Meadow kingdom....a peloton of bike riders lining the road's edge like spring flowers....driving alongside the bikers feels like being in one of the team cars in tour de france.

The only thing missing; crazy european spectators.....

..preparations

I had packed light for the Denver trip and was not carrying my hiking gear, so had to stop by REI. While deciding on a trail I would highly recommend talking with the local hikers (along with some online research). Most of them are very approachable and are more than happy to share their opinions and experiences something that is difficult to find online. I met with a few during the day and then after talking to the folks at REI narrowed my options to 3-4 trails. The folks at REI were really helpful, I do however have to give special thanks to Jenny. Jenny was awesome, not only did she give all the information about the trails, wildlife, local hazards etc. She also gave me a details about which routes are the most scenic to drive through and which ones to avoid for traffic. Armored with my gear and the information I needed I was all set for tomorrow.

* I am being very liberal in my use of the term gear, it was nothing fancy just a backpack, poles and crampons..

..the night before... or should I say the dawn off..

What was supposed to be a 2 hours trip to Red Rock Amphitheater turned out to be a late late night excursion. More details about the concert are in my previous blog. By the time we reached home it was 3-4 ish. I say 3-4ish because when you come home that late 3or4 its all the same. Having no energy to even stand, packing was not even and option. I just hit the sac with the hope of getting up on time to start early..

(hahaha early. I had initially planned to start the drive at around 6:30, what a fool..)

..the hike

Miraculously I woke up on time. Shawn, a friend of the guys I was staying with was going to join me. But, he too had late late Friday night out and bailed out on me. Having come this far I was determined not to let this opportunity pass by, so decided on doing the hike alone. Ticked off items on my hiking checklist, purchased food from Krogers and was on my way out, sharp 7:45. What I liked about Denver the most was; 30 mins of driving on the interstate and you are out in the country side. I had the GPS with me, but decided to take the route given by Jenny. And I thank her again for that. My whole drive was spent like a deer at a water pond, half my attention was on the road.and half on the landscape I was driving through. Stealing as many glimpses of the beautiful country side.

Though the snow clad peaks of the Rockies are visible even from the city, the first real glimpse from up close left me speechless and speechless is an attribute rarely associated with me, my friends will attest to that ;). While driving along the forest road the pine trees on the left suddenly cleared and there they were rising majestically across the valley, their peak still covered with pristine white snow. The COLORADO ROCKIES!!!!! I had read in one of the travel journals that the Himalayas and even more breathtaking. The first thought that came to my mind was, what a fool I have been to stay so close and still haven't see them, perhaps in the near future. From then on the peaks followed every where I went, all the way up to the trail head.

The hike, with and elevation gain of about 700 feet over 1.8 miles can honestly be rated as an easy-moderate. But luckily for me the trail was covered in snow which added to the difficulty :). On good thing about hiking is you can either choose to hike alone and no one with bother you. Or you always meet people to hike with. That's how I met Joel and Lucy. A very charming old couple maybe in their mid 60's. Our conversations ranged on a wide variety of topics. Their most fond memories were from their hikes to Mauna Kea, the highest summit in Hawaii. Having lived in the Rockies all his life Joel knew a lot about the regions geology and history. Needless to say the whole hike was very educational, I learnt a lot about the mountains, the region's native American history and also got some much needed pointers on snow hiking. Its not rocket science, but if you are not careful you can get into serious trouble. Now that I have completed a snow hike, the winters are open to hiking as well ;)

(Thank god my mom does not read my blogs)

..the Trail Ridge pass and the drive back

On my way down, lack of sleep for the past 3 days was finally catching up on me. Rather than risking driving into a ditch I decide to pull over and take a nap. Waking up refreshed I took a quick snack and was on my way to Trail Ridge pass. I was in no hurry so was pulling over every chance I got to soak in the scenic landscaped. Added elks to the list of wildlife I've seen in the wild. Trail ridge pass is the highest pass in US and crosses the continental divide. This comes with very high recommendations from Joel and is a must do, if you are in the rockies.

As you move up the pass the trees thin out and are non-existant at the top. Extremely hostile weather and high wind speeds make it almost impossible for anything but shrubs and grass to grow here. Years of wind erosion have given the mountain a bald look. A very narrow single lane road hugs the mountain slopes. With no trees to block your view you can see the road snaking up all the way to the top. No banking on the road make you feel exposed to the elements and you have to be really careful driving up the steep gradients and winding roads.

Certain sections have 20-30 feet tall snow walls flanking the road. Its a constant reminder of the amount of snow accumulation that happens over the winter. Its no surprise that the pass is closed all through winter and opens up only on memorial day. Huge show ploughs/cutters are employed to literally carve out the road.

I parked at the top and did a small 1 mile hike. It was a surreal feeling to have the almost hold you up when you lean into it. Spent some time taking pictures and admiring the beauty. Since it was getting late I decide against doing the complete loop. The drive back was uneventful and no matter how much time I spend in the mountains, I am always sad to leave them behind.

Instead of doing injustice to the picturesque mountains by describing it, I would do injustice to it by positing the photos I took. Its at time like these I wish I had half-way decent skills, either as a photographer or as a writer to capture the essence of the amazing places I get to visit.

(But then if I had a wish, I would really wish to be a billionaire)