yeayy...long weekend! Memorial Day - a much needed respite from the monotony of daily life! To commemorate the event, :) I went hiking with a few friends on Saturday, May 26th.
We chose a relatively easy hike in the New Jersey area itself, called Governor Mountain. This hike is on a Peninsula of state-owned land in the southwest section of Ringwood State park. It is located south of Skyland Gardens and Ringwood State Park. Out and back trail starts out going southwest, then it heads in a clockwise loop. There is a nice view of the Wanaque Reservoir from the top of Governor Mountain.
The day started off beautiful and sunny. Woke up around 5:30 am, got ready and went downstairs to meet up with the group at the local Starbucks nearby. It always amazes me how I can wake up at the crack of dawn, on a non-working day...and yet I can't get up on time for work to save my life!! Must be one of those mental psychological conditionings! :)
Anyways, we all drove out there (about 40 miles from where I live) and reached Ringwood Manor around 10:30 am ish. Got ourselves maps and instructions from the park rangers to the start off on the hiking trail. And off we went - the interpid hikers! there were 6 of us so it was a decent group. There was a lot laughter, jokes, songs and wise-cracks along the way to keep us all entertained.
It was a 6 mile round trip hike.....said to be comfortably doable acording to the maps in about 4-5 hours. But we got a little side-tracked initially as we ended up following an incorrect trail marker which looped around and brought us back to the road. The hike was pretty uneventful....we didn't see any fauna, however, there was plenty of flora all around. I was hoping a deer or two would jump out and give us a treat but i guess they had better things to do than come in the way of wandering humans. :)
The hike wasn't that steep at all, in retrospect. There was an initial incline followed by majority of semi-flat/hilly terriain. It was extremely dense in some places with trees & shrubs and we had to bend and crawl through thick curtains of green. A friend on the hike, Andy, nicknamed it the 'Liliputian crawl'.
We made it up to the top of the mountain and sat down to enjoy the view of the Wanaque Reservoir. It was beautiful and quiet all around - a soothing cool breeze all around us, fanning away our exhaustion and the humidity. I lay down and closed my eyes....and let my mind drift.
You know, it is a totally different experience altogether to be out in the wilderness.....away from the maddening crowds and the humdrum of cars, music, cellphones, restaurants, & people. It provides one perspective and most of all time to contemplate. To be one with nature...to absorb the balance that exists outside of urban existence, to realize that things exist in mutual harmony is truly a humbling experience. I opened my eyes and look around me. Nearby someone had left some beer bottles lying by. I felt a twinge of sadness! If only we human beings took more time to appreciate and participate freely with the bounties of nature, rather than destroying it....life on this planet would be much more happier. IF ONLY!
Anyways, quiet time over...and much as we would have liked to have stayed a while...we started our hike back down. By then my feet and ankles had started aching and I was seriously wishing I could paraglide or parachute down to the base or something. :)
we made it back down to the park in an hour and half which was real quick. By then it was exhaustion all around, and the first urge was a dip in a cold pool and FOOD!
But all in all...it was a day well-spent and absolutely worth the effort!!!
Next up, camping, white-water rafting or a more strenuous hike to Cakskills or Adirondacks/Lake George etc.
Monday, May 28, 2007
Dear Blog,
Can you imagine life without or before the 3W's???! Scary thought, isn't it....since you wouldn't be here without it either?! Actually, I'm trying to imagine my life before something called the "www" happened to me? :) How did I exist? what was I like, was I happy, was I as activeas communicative and was I as blessed with information both good and bad???
Gosh! how much we've all taken the internet for granted today, haven't we??!
Look at me.....I sit here in my room, all warm and cozy as I write out yet another chapter of my thoughts to you...and everything is done electronically on "The Internet" with the mere click of a few buttons! As a matter of fact, blog...you too are a part and parcel of this phenomena; without it...you would not exist!!!
What happened to your predecessors? I remember when I was in high school, I use to faithfully record all my thoughts and observations in an actualy physical diary/journal. It was my private haven and sanctuary. My escape from the world where I could unleash the power of the pen and write whatever came into my head! I kept it hidden on top my closet behind some stuffed toys and a few posters. Can't remember what I did with it or where it is for that matter. Hope it didn't fall into the wrong hands!
I stopped writing once I started University. I don't know how and when I lost the habit but I did and I didn't even realize it! Then it was all taken over by computerized typing right from submission of essays, projects to homework assignments! Exams were sometimes graded and submitted electronically, grades were posted online and even discussion boards for classes and various co-curricular interest groups found their homes on the internet.
Then along came something called "Email" and "Instant Messenger"....and that just added a whole new dimension to life! I stopped writing letters to my near and dear ones. I can't remember the last time I actually sat down and wrote a nice long letter to any of my friends or relatives. Instead, all I had to do was log onto "the internet" and voila!! I could either chat with them instantly or type out a few electronic lines and send it off into the unknown cyberspace. :)
I suppose this is what is known as advancement in civilization and the new technological age and all that jargon! But Blog, it is discerning at times...to realize how dependent my life is on this medium. It's like that fix of heroin...I just can't get enough it...the thrill of information at my fingertips that I keep coming back for more!! Help me! I feel trapped...yet I can't imagine a life without it?!
What do I do?
Can you imagine life without or before the 3W's???! Scary thought, isn't it....since you wouldn't be here without it either?! Actually, I'm trying to imagine my life before something called the "www" happened to me? :) How did I exist? what was I like, was I happy, was I as activeas communicative and was I as blessed with information both good and bad???
Gosh! how much we've all taken the internet for granted today, haven't we??!
Look at me.....I sit here in my room, all warm and cozy as I write out yet another chapter of my thoughts to you...and everything is done electronically on "The Internet" with the mere click of a few buttons! As a matter of fact, blog...you too are a part and parcel of this phenomena; without it...you would not exist!!!
What happened to your predecessors? I remember when I was in high school, I use to faithfully record all my thoughts and observations in an actualy physical diary/journal. It was my private haven and sanctuary. My escape from the world where I could unleash the power of the pen and write whatever came into my head! I kept it hidden on top my closet behind some stuffed toys and a few posters. Can't remember what I did with it or where it is for that matter. Hope it didn't fall into the wrong hands!
I stopped writing once I started University. I don't know how and when I lost the habit but I did and I didn't even realize it! Then it was all taken over by computerized typing right from submission of essays, projects to homework assignments! Exams were sometimes graded and submitted electronically, grades were posted online and even discussion boards for classes and various co-curricular interest groups found their homes on the internet.
Then along came something called "Email" and "Instant Messenger"....and that just added a whole new dimension to life! I stopped writing letters to my near and dear ones. I can't remember the last time I actually sat down and wrote a nice long letter to any of my friends or relatives. Instead, all I had to do was log onto "the internet" and voila!! I could either chat with them instantly or type out a few electronic lines and send it off into the unknown cyberspace. :)
I suppose this is what is known as advancement in civilization and the new technological age and all that jargon! But Blog, it is discerning at times...to realize how dependent my life is on this medium. It's like that fix of heroin...I just can't get enough it...the thrill of information at my fingertips that I keep coming back for more!! Help me! I feel trapped...yet I can't imagine a life without it?!
What do I do?
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