Mission Peak to Milpitas hike (January 9, 2010)

After starting the new year day by hiking Mission Peak with Prem and Promila; it was good to follow it up with some longer hike. We tried to do this hike last year, but nobody in group was aware of the route. So when Chetan proposed it, I jumped on this opportunity. I called at the Ed Levin park phone number, and left a message to find out which is the nearest place where we can park the car around 5:30 AM. The park ranger returned my call, and told me that nearest I could park was on Piedmont road which is around 1.5 miles from the park gate. There is no wonder why Ed Levin is not as frequented; apart from charging parking fee, the park is not friendly for early starters, as the gate opens at 8 AM. And as commented by many hikers before, the trail was not well marked.


Chetan, Nitin, Narayanan and I started the hike from Stanford Av parking lot at around 6 AM, we did get parking space this time. It was still quite dark and foggy; and suddenly I realized that we are 5 hikers instead of 4. Chetan got little freaked out by this creepy mysterious hiker who was walking with him closely for some time now; he almost went off the trail to give him/her the way. But he could not get rid of this hiker. I think the hiker was just waiting for somebody to go with at gate, and did not want to go alone in dark. Chetan started explaining that he had been constantly freaking out for last one week on anything sudden, after watching Paranormal Activity; and he kept pointing to some things in the fog. That is what a good horror movie could do, it awakened artistic visual powers in him and made logical IBM engineer see the world differently. He further mentioned that his house does not appear the same to him anymore. To be honest, we all got startled by presence of this mystery hiker, who kept with us, very quiet, for at least half the hike.


We were at top of Mission Peak in 70 minutes (I know, I know, slower by some of you guys’ standards). We decided not to have Promila’s ginger tea at that time, and do it on Monument Peak. Chetan and Nitin were surprised by Promila’s dedication to wake up at 4:30 AM, and make the tea. Once you reach the maze of cell phone towers; two boards have conflicting information; one says no trespassing; another point to same direction saying Monument Peak trail. If you look at the Google Earth; we missed the Monument peak by little distance.


As per GPS, total hike was 12.5 miles; that means around 9 miles was just straight and descent, after reaching top of Mission Peak. There was absolutely no other hiker we saw after Mission Peak, which was great, however there was a downside to it. The cows here are not used to humans. So they were really puzzled as what to do with us, and so were we. Finally we settled on one protocol which worked for us. We would go as close to them as 100 feet (so we still have chance to run just in case they decided to chase us); and just stand there so that they can make their mind. It was classic case fight or flight instinct on display. Out of around 10 such close encounters of 4th kind, we have to get off the trail only two times. And this is the first time I heard cows howling and that too for a long time.


With adrenaline pumping, we forgot the ginger tea, and had to sit at one point to have it. There was a pair of coyotes, just playing in the meadow besides us, which seems banal comparison to the cows. Finally after reaching Ed Levin, we saw around half a dozen hang gliders, taking off and practicing. There was no much wind, that is why they were not able to go up. After dodging some slices from Spring Valley Golf club near Ed Levin; we safely reached to the road and climbing down on Calaveras.


This was where we saw the ugly part of human foot prints. On the creek on our left side, we saw computers, monitors, mattresses and lot of other junk just dumped. It was around 11 AM, when we reached our car; so in all it took over 5 hours to do 12.5 miles. I think this is once a year hike; I think it is better to Hike Mission Peak from Stanford Ave, go to Monument Peak and come down via horse shoe trail back to Stanford Ave Parking lot – that could be done in 3.5 hours or less. So for all of you who missed it, we can do it anytime later.

Trip to Vaishno Devi – The Mother goddess (November 14, 2009)

When I came to India, I wanted to do one hiking trip at least, and nothing crossed my mind but to do Vaishno Devi hike. Last time I did this hike in 1982. I am thankful to Dr. Tarun (my brother) and Dr. Kapil (my high school classmate) who agreed to quickly drop whatever plans they had for that weekend, and joined me. It was quite reassuring to have two Doctors along with me, just in case I needed some medical attention durin

g or after the long hike of 30 KM ( 20 miles) and elevation gain of 3700.

We booked reservation in train using Tatkal (immediate) service, for which they charge 30% premium. Some time back there was a study, in spite of being Government run, why Indian Railways has been ridiculously profitable, even though they did not raise fares for a long time. Dr. Tarun explained some of that mystery. Some trains, only had 12 tickets in general category, and rest of the 128 tickets, available in Tatkal reservations only. If you want to book return ticket, there is extra charge for that in addition to regular fare; you get the idea. I was simply amazed at ingenuity and creative ways Railways Administrators found in making it profitable, of course, it helps that there is no competition.

We boarded the overnight train, from Delhi to Jammu. The compartments were comfortable, food was provided, along with water, blankets, sheets and pillow. Most of people who boarded the train, are meant to go for the Vaishno Devi pilgrimage. Our neighbors (two families),

confirmed that they are heading for the pilgrimage, and they have done it over 15 times. I was impressed, though they looked much younger than me, some of them were out of shape. Out of

curiosity, I asked them, how much time did it take for climbing up? After a brief pause one of them answered 3 to 4 minutes.

WHAttttttttttttttttttt?

They mentioned that they used helicopter service. That explained some of, as why India is now Diabetes Capital of the world. Even though there was a very well maintained trail with over 15 restaurants in 15 Km and tea shops through out, (literally, as shops were blocking most of the views of mountain/valley), I saw lot of young people using Helicopters and mules. This was not true 27 years ago, when I saw a lot more people on trail, chanting Jai Mata Di (hailing mother goddess), through out.

In my opinion, this shift in culture is primary due to increased affordability, import of western TV channels/programming coupled with fast food concept. North Indian food itself is heavy, and if you further add TV programming to it, it seems like 4 of your 5 senses (sight, listening, smell and taste) have immediate gratification. Apart from 4 movie channels which show constantly

western movies, you could see Seinfeld, Friends and other popular sitcoms. Then there is Indian equivalent of American Idol, Bachelor, Big Boss (where you see outdated celebrities) and similar other programs. Besides, you have Indian Soaps which are hugely popular and Indian movie channels. Then there is cricket, 3 hours, one day and 5 days version.

After reaching in time at Jammu, thanks to Dr. Kapil, we had a taxi waiting for us to take to Katra (50 Km). It took us one hour to reach and another hour to find out that hotels at the top (Bhawan) are all full. So we decided to go and come back on the same day. We stayed at Niharika hotel, managed by Vaishno Devi Shrine Board. Shrine board has made the pilgrimage extremely affordable and facilities were real good. The whole trail is paved, the food is extremely cheap at restaurant managed by Shrine board. They have free sleeping facilities through out the trail; and also dorms, rooms and AC rooms at nominal prices. Toilets and cloak rooms are available every where. Basically, from Katra to Bhawan hike, you do not have to carry anything, if you are planning to return the same

day.

I thought, based on my weekly hike experience, I would be up in 2-3 hours. However, Dr Kapil decided to make use every rest room which came along the way. It was clear something was

bothering him. He would not admit it. However, masseuses, which were available through out the trail, kept coming to him and offering their services. Soon, he succumbed to the pressure, and got a massage. Dr Tarun took the opportunity to shoot the video, which killed any further chance of getting a massage. We were offered mule ride also. It was painful to watch people who were riding the mules, as they seemed highly uncomfortable, and from their grunts, it appeared pained had shifted up from their legs. Some women and kids were crying on mule as

they were afraid to fall down. Palkhi or palanquin (four people carrying you in a chair with four poles) seemed more comfortable.

We reached at top, and have to wait around 30 minutes for a locker to be available, as camera, mobile, leather belt, valet were not allowed in the holy shrine. Again arrangements by Shrine Board were excellent, it took us no time. Shrine board controlled the offering which you could bring to the mother goddess, coconuts were not allowed. We bought offerings from Shrine board shop, and were little disappointed later on to find that it did not have customary walnut and dried apple.

We then visited Bhairon Ghati, which was another 2 KM (1400 feet elevation gain) away from

main shrine. For those who are interested in story of how this Pilgrimage came into being, please follow https://www.maavaishnodevi.org/mata_vaishno.asp

We did not take much time there and started climbing down. We started the hike at 11 AM, and it was around 6 PM when we started to come down. There were a lot of monkeys on the way down, they were somewhat aggressive. By this time, Dr Kapil was liberally using the Bengay, I brought. He was remembering his wife, Dr Alka, every 5 minutes. Whenever, we see Maggi stall or corns, he would say Alka really would have loved it; how she helped him with his diction etc. Needless to say he was missing (read fearing) her. Somebody has rightly said that a man's wife has more power over him than the state has.

On further asking, as why did not he bring her, he told me that only those people could come to the pilgrimage who had been called by the Mother. This may be somewhat true, as 27 years ago, when we visited the shrine, my dad had the dream of the place. On describing the dream to

coworkers, they told him that it might be Vaishno Devi. I remember still that on reaching the place in night, he did mention that this was what he saw in the dream. I did feel some energy/vibration before entering the holy cave.

At 9:30 we finally reached back, ate north Indian food at Sagar Ratna; a South Indian Restaurant in extreme north of India. Food was good. Back at hotel, Dr Kapil was liberally using Bengay, took a pain killer and we all had a sound sleep. In morning we took breakfast again at Sagar Ratna, and ready for some local sight seeing.

We went to Patni Top, which could literally means, ‘Wife on Top’. A lesser known hill station,

which is not frequently visited by visitors, it still had the neat outlook of a small hilly town, at

elevation of 6500 feet. It had few resorts, almost no recognized restaurant chain. It was chilly, foggy and picturesque. On asking what generally people do here, like hiking trail etc, locals told us that tourists spend most of the time inside the hotel room there, probably inspired by the name of the place. We visited Nathatop, which was further up and it was raining there, so we quickly came back to Jammu. We still had time after dinner in Jammu, so we visited famous Raghunath temple.

After boarding the train, we noticed that there were some girls who, sitting in the next cabin, were limping. Dr Kapil, started squeezing the last ounce from half a kilo of the Bengay (Indian Iodex) tube, liberally applying to his knees, hoping that some girls in need might approach him. However, one girl, who was limping, said loudly that where was this bad smell of Iodex is coming from, and that she could hardly breath. This naturally curbed Dr Kapil’s enthusiasm. Train was 3 hours late, so we got down few miles before our station, on tracks, and got a taxi to head back home.

As per Dr. Kapil, this is his secret of keeping the balance between Mother and Wife, i.e. to visit the Mother first, followed closely by wife (Patnitop); not sure if Dr Alka would agree with that. This is somewhat true that no man succeeds without a good woman behind him. Wife or mother, if it is both, he is twice as blessed indeed.

For photos of the trip visit

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2039406&id=1524900175&l=7354c78ece

Year 2009

2009 proved to be a memorable year with a lot of hikes and camping with family and friends. This year I was able to document most of my experiences throughout the year on my blog.

I remember that one of the highlights of 2008 update was Prem’s asthma control. This year proved to be another good year for Prem, he had couple of episodes, but nothing which we could not control at home; visits to ER seemed to be a thing of the distant past. Again diet and some natural cures continue to control his triggers very well. And I am very thankful for that.

In tail end of 2008, I had an elbow injury, so I stopped playing tennis. This proved to be a big blessing, as I switched to hiking. Starting in January 1 of 2009, Rajesh who was my tennis buddy, joined me for the first time in hiking. Looking back in 2009-January album, I see that Raj Oberoi, Thomas, Deepu, Prakash, Jitu joined the group. And in the same month, Promila and Radhika started hiking too. In later months we were joined by a lot more people. There was a lot of energy in the group, and apparently hiking proved to be very addicting to most of us. People were itching to do more than Mission Peak; so we decided to do Half Dome in Yosemite as soon the cables were put up. Most of the group was able to do Half Dome on June 6. I did Half Dome second time, giving company to Som on father’s day, June 21. Hopefully, hiking Half Dome would become a tradition in the coming years. Most of you have read my blog for both the trips; if you have not, here are the links

http://maneeshagarwalfamily.blogspot.com/2009/06/half-dome-hike.html

http://maneeshagarwalfamily.blogspot.com/2009/06/half-dome-decoded-fathers-day-june-21.html

In March 2009, Promila did Mission Peak for the first time, and I am hoping she would do Half Dome in 2010. Thanks to Promila, while I was hiking Half Dome, Prem made it to Yosemite Jr Park Ranger and Little cub. He also joined baseball Jr Giants, followed by soccer league Little Tigers. Promila accompanied Prem on most of the school trips, whether it was going to Oakland zoo or going to a play “Charlotte’s Web” at Chabot College.

Prem was finally able to climb all the way to Mission Peak on August 22. This was a very proud moment for the whole family. Prem again did it in December, a lot more easily the second time around. To read about Prem’s conquest

http://maneeshagarwalfamily.blogspot.com/2009/08/kid-is-growing-up-fast.html

We went to Hiller Aviation Museum, Cal Academy of Sciences in April, followed by Prem’s favorite place, Snoopy town (in his own words) – Santa Rosa to see Charles Schulz Museum.

http://maneeshagarwalfamily.blogspot.com/2009/05/charles-schultz-museum-santa-rosa.html

In May we visited Monterey Bay Aquarium and Chabot Space Museum. In June we visited Bass Lake with Maria and Mimi’s family and I was able to do Half Dome with Som at that time. In August we went camping with Raj, Ajith, Thomas and Renuka’s family at Little Basin. After that we went to New Jersey and New York for a week. I was able to meet two of my cousins – Garima and Vivek; and we were able to spend time with their families. We met Promila’s friend Jaysree and her family too, besides meeting briefly with Nidhi and her kids. Prem enjoyed NYC skyscrapers. We made a trip to San Jose Family Camp in Yosemite with Jose and Sathish’s families.

http://maneeshagarwalfamily.blogspot.com/2009/09/san-jose-family-camp.html

In November, I visited India for 3 weeks. It was great to catch up with family and friends. It was a great experience listening to mother’s sitar and father’s singing. I was able to do pilgrimage to Mata Vaishno Devi with Tarun and Kapil. For that trip, see my blog at

http://maneeshagarwalfamily.blogspot.com/2009/11/trip-to-vaishno-devi-mother-goddess.html

Promila’s parents visited again this year. Promila and Prem was able to have some fun time with them. While I write this today, we are at Lake Tahoe resort enjoying snow on Christmas. We did some snow play and sledding with Sathish’s family. To steal from one of my earlier blog –
Somebody once said, “Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.” This was one such year, where there were plenty of such moments, literally, while pulling up the cables on Half Dome, being chased by the bear, looking at the Giant Sequoia trees, reading what Prem wrote for ‘Father of year’ entry, taking oath to become US Citizen, Prem & Promila completing Mission Peak hike, looking at tile mural at Charles Schulz Museum made from cartoon strips, listening to mother play Raga Yaman on Sitar, Papa sing, sliding down in snow on sled in Tahoe.

For year2009 in pictures, please visit
http://picasaweb.google.com/ManeeshPAgarwal/2009AtAGlance#

Happy holidays and we wish you a happy, healthy and peaceful New Year 2010, filled with laughter and joy.
with love (Prem)
Promila - Maneesh

San Jose Family Camp

Thanks to Jose, we were able to enjoy the San Jose Family Camp. Do not confuse it with camping, as you are provided with tent, bed, electric outlets and great food with lots of selection. Yes, there was no cooking or cleaning involved at all. It was truly geared towards ensuring that you enjoy as a family.

With 5 boys ranging from 3-7, it was lot of fun for Prem. Camp grounds offer variety of activities for kids and adults, like Tetherball, Ping Pong, Archery, camp fire and hiking to Rainbow Falls. Of course, we did it all. Our team, Prem, Jonathan and myself won the Ping Pong tournament and were awarded with Ice Creams. I soon found out though archery might look easy and a lot of fun, it took me three tries to get a hang of it. On my first trial, I hit only 1 arrow, second try Zero and third 4 out of 5. For record, women did better than men here, which was not a surprise as they were better coordinated, flexible and more open towards learning something new.

Besides, there was a stream which went through the camp grounds, and this was where we spent a lot of our time. Again, thanks to Jose, we all were able to enjoy the boat and tube. And as you can imagine, it was a lot of fun to soak each other. Jose ensured that nobody felt left out and we were all drenched multiple times by end of the day.



After the campfire and marsh-mellows, kids slept quickly, and between 5 of us, we emptied 3 wine bottles; though women would naturally argue that between me, Satheesh and Jose we finished it. The discussion was very pleasant, when we started talking about drinking shots and throwing up. Jose shared some ‘throwing up’ photos at the right moment. Needless to say, we did not drink anymore after that.


Promila and Sebi failed to understand as why men drink shots and then suck on lime to overcome queasy feeling? Where is the fun in this? Is it just a typical boy thing to show off that one can do it or how much alcohol one can hold? Well, I know that it is more typical for boys to play and enjoy competitive sports; that’s the way they learn and relate. I would not be surprised, there may soon be Tequila Shot competition on ESPN, now that they have Live Poker on it.

Again there was confusion on as why certain people throw up but not others. It seemed that Satheesh had PhD in this area as he explained the science behind it, that it depended on a lot of factors, as what you had eaten before drinking, how long ago you had eaten, body temperature, intervals between the shots, air temperature, music blaring/spouse yelling and smell of trashcan/restroom. He further explained that drinking of oil before could increase your capacity to hold more liquor. Jose modestly concluded the discussion that it generally takes him one drink to get loaded. Trouble is, he can't remember if it's the thirteenth or fourteenth.

Kid is growing up fast !

August 22, 2009 (Saturday) – A very special day, as Prem went all the way to the top of Mission Peak (Elevation Gain: 2100 feet, distance 6 miles) by himself, for the first time, still couple of months shy of his 6^th birthday. It took almost 4 hours, which included 1 hours 50 minutes to reach at top, 45 minutes stay at peak and 1 hour and 20 minutes to climb down.

On Friday, August 21, 2009, after completing a high energy day at school, followed by a grueling one-on-one swimming session, he came back and slept in living room at 6 PM. I thought he would wake up around 8 and then we will have dinner together. I still remembered my last week hike at Mission Peak, where we met a family of four, youngest girl 5, who reached at top around 7 AM. After talking to the family, they told me that they put the sleeping kids in car before 5 AM, and start hiking at 5. This gave me some perspective, as what should be a reasonable time for such a young kid to complete the hike. Also I took the photo of this family to show it to Prem. After looking at the photo, Prem was upset and spoke in tears to take him to Mission Peak. I promised that I would, some day. Now that Prem was in deep sleep even at 8 PM, I recognized this as an opportunity presented by some cosmic powers.

I thought, I would wake him in morning, and see if he was still as enthusiastic as he was a week ago. At 5 AM when I woke him up, and asked gently if he wanted to go hiking, he was alert, and immediately noticed the quiet of night, and opened the bedroom curtain and told me that he did not want to hike in night. I told him this was morning, and by the time we would start hiking, day would start breaking. He understood. Kid is growing up fast.

On previous occasions, when Prem hiked Mission Peak till Bench #4 (little bit more than half the

distance); though he had wanted to go all the way to top, he would complain about pain. He might have been sensing my impatience, and did not want to continue. Now armed with knowledge of expected time to complete the hike, and self promise of practicing patience, we started the hike at 5:45. Of course, I did not get any parking spot, and had to park the car another 1/2 mile away.

I remembered that last time Prem had hiked till bench 4, he had the company of two other 5 year old boys. It made the hike real easy. I was worried, that he might get bored soon. I had to quickly remove these negative thoughts from my mind, and decided to just go with the flow, take breaks and practice patience. We took break at each bench, and amazingly Prem was ready to go with in 5 minutes. Promila, as a typical Indian mom, brought tea, yogurt and sandwiches and did her best to stuff Prem at every opportunity.

After reaching bench 1, Prem said, “Look at the lights, so beautiful.” It was still somewhat dark, and you could see the lights of valley. Promila mentioned that it seemed like a mini-vacation, as family is enjoying something together, away from daily hustle-bustle. And I thought, “I am

fortunate to have such a low maintenance family which is so

easy to please.” She kept repeating this throughout the day, when we went to Prem’s last baseball game of the season, followed by a baseball pizza party given by Milpitas Police.

Through out the hike, Prem got lot of encouraging words from fellow hikers, going up or down, which made him more resolute to complete the hike. He started complaining about the pain in knee and feet after bench 4. I knew he was not pretending. I tried to pick him up, but by now, he was too proud to be seen in my lap. To my further amazement, he said, “Papa, my legs are getting stronger as they are in pain”. He remembered. Kid is growing up fast.

However, with a few minutes break, he wanted to move further. He did not like getting past by other hikers. On last stretch, where I had to hold his hand tightly, as the path was rocky, his hand was sweaty. And he figured out a way, by moving around me so that we changed our

hands every couple of minutes. One can say, that we tangoed all the way up to Mission Peak.

Met Rajesh just before reaching the peak, and he gave Prem a big hi-5. You could tell he was real thrilled to see Prem up there. Soon after that, Prem asked Mommy, that once we reach to the peak, she should take photos and put it on Facebook for all his friends to see. I reminded myself to talk to Promila later about Facebook impacts. Kid is growing up fast.

Half Dome Decoded (Father's day) June 21, 2009

Half Dome Decoded :

Hiked Half Dome on father’s day (June 21, 2009). Though the first time (June 6, 2009) was special, as it was my parent’s anniversary, and it was dedicated to them, this time was extra special, on father’s day, for Prem. This hike turned out to be more exciting than I thought. I knew that weather is going to be fantastic, and it was sunny, with cool breeze in 70s.

I asked Som, who was not regular in our hiking group, to hit the gym and do 60 minutes for last 10 days. He did. We started on Saturday morning around 10 AM, big thanks to Som, since he drove, I could enjoy all the scenery. This time we stayed in time share condos of Manoj E at Bass lake. Just for the record, they were fantastic for the price we paid. Three families with small kids could have easily stayed, it has fire place, full kitchen and 2.5 baths; heated swimming pool and hot tub.

June 20: We reached Bass Lake around 1:40, and just went into town, walked around and then went to beach (yes, lake had couple of artificial beaches). Maria’s and Mimi’s families joined us later. We ate dinner already, thanks to Swapna for very tasty fried lemon rice. She packed up so much that it lasted us three days, even after we all ate them twice a day. Som was complaining, that there was no way he could lose weight. Chris and Anand were cooking dinner, and boy they know their cooking; everything was sinful. I liked Shrimps, and on asking about the recipe, I was told, just grilled with a slab of butter and basil garlic powder. Now that explains why I weighed 3 pounds more after the hike; I felt corrupted. Just got my cholesterol checked today, it was 24 points up. Thanks Chris, Anand and Swapna, next time I will be careful !

June 21: Thanks to Promila, both Som and I had a woolen cap, she knitted whole night, while chatting with Mimie and Maria. When we woke up at 3 AM, she finished knitting and made us breakfast. We started from Bass lake at 4 AM, after reaching at Trail Head parking lot, Som was not feeling well. The coffee and sandwich, along with windy road for one hour and 30 minutes, did not sit well with him. He had to go the rest room. When I told him that restroom is 10 minutes from here, he was incredulous. I could see he has some doubts about the hike. Just at that time, another car stopped near us, and there is young Brazilian woman came out and asked us if we are going to hike the Half Dome, and if she could accompany us. And in no time, all of the Som’s doubts disappeared. By the time we reached the restrooms, which were on the way to hike, he was comfortable; and was saying walking helped him. But we all know what really motivated him.

We took the Mist Trail, and were on top of Nevada falls in 1 hour and 40 minutes, took a break of 30 minutes there. We met the Brazilian woman there. After another two mile hike, we met Tom, from San Mateo, who chatted with us. He wrote a book on hiking in Santa Cruz mountains, which was apparently in 8th edition. He showed us his pictures, when he hiked Half Dome, first time in 1969; he was 19 year old. It was astounding to see that The Cables looked exactly the same. With all the technology advances in last 40 years, one would think that they would put an escalator up there ! He was backpacking and carrying just 15 pounds, which was 4 pounds less then what I was carrying.

Finally, we were at steps, took a break of 20 minutes, and this time I felt like the mouse in the maze who gets to his food faster second time. As per recommendation of my office colleague, James, I bought the latex coated gloves from Home Depot. They had a really good grip, and we were up in 20 minutes, and total time it took this time to go up was 5 hours and 20 minutes. This time it was much easier, no pains or stiffness or cramps at all. It is just amazing how much part mind plays over matter, if one is relaxed, know what is expected, the task get easier and easier. I felt like I could hike another couple of miles from there easily.

We spent over an hour up there and met Veru, the lone shy hiker, from southern part of India. It was his first time too. He wanted to do Mt Whitney and was preparing very methodically for that. We exchanged some information, like his favorite heroine, when he was 15, was Urmila; and he sometimes thinks about her, mostly in shower; he is 27 now but as we all know that childhood memories last forever.

Coming down, again this time, couple of women, got scared, and could not look downwards. It took much longer. After coming down the cable, Som’s backpack was bitten into by squirrels, they cut the zipper, so it was no longer working; and got two of his power bars and a sandwich. He was mildly upset and looking for a shoulder to cry on. Now he was chatting with everybody, showing up his backpack, men were laughing, and women were naturally sympathetic.

We climbed down at a fast pace. And met Nandu, my office colleague, coming down. He reminds me of a humming bird, thin and tiny and always full of energy. He was doing the hike after 10 years. Just before we reached Nevada falls, we were shushed by a couple of hikers, who showed us a rattle snake. In another 5 minutes of walking, Som stopped me, pointed a bear, less than 50 yards away. My perception of bear was from the zoo, that they are big and lazy, and move slowly. This bear was really big, probably over 10 feet but very quick and nimble on feet. We saw two cubs around. She saw us and charged towards us. At that time there was nobody else on the trail. There was no way we could have outrun her. We moved a few steps back. I think the bear did not want to move much away from the cubs, so she stopped. By now, other hikers had joined us, nobody knew any alternative path, and the bear and the cubs were just playing on the trail. Nobody wanted to come in direct sight of the bear.

Finally, we remembered, as Prem told me in his Jr Ranger training, if you are confronted by a bear, raise your hands and make loud noises. It did work, and bear, along with cubs, finally relented. Som tried to whistle, but could not. I thought his hands were shaking; first mauled by squirrel, then seeing a rattle snake and finally being chased by bear; it was only natural. But as per him, it was due to salt from the sweat.

After reaching Nevada falls, another woman started chatting with him, as if she knew him. “Good to see you again”. He kept playing along. “Did you complete the hike, I just went up 300 yards on cable and then came back; however, photos shot by me are better than my boy friend’s. He did go all the way up.” After few minutes of listening, he did not know what else to say, Som blurted, “Happy Father’s day”. And she said, “Thank You”.

When we were at bottom of Vernal Falls, a South Indian woman asked Som, “How far is it?” Som replied, “How far is what?”. She was confused, and asked incredulously, “Did you go all the way to Nevada falls ?” And when Som replied, politely, “No not Nevada falls, Half Dome.” She exclaimed, “Ayyoooorammma !”

We took a bath at Curry Village, and had a beer. Promila and Prem joined us and told me about their exciting day. Unlike last time, I did not have any pains. I think having good hiking boots, extra pair of socks, hiking poles with rubber grip at bottom, stretching your muscles periodically, good company and support from your family are key to a successful Half Dome hike. While I was hiking, the super mom was able to get Prem into a street play. This was an impromptu play and it was pleasant to listen to what Prem did in it.

June 22, 2009 - Morning we started for Mariposa Grove, to see the giant redwoods. These are the biggest living creatures in the world. Some of them over 3000 year old. This is the first thing that came under Government protection. Back when, there was no concept of National Park, Abraham Lincoln, signed up a law, that Mariposa grove is not to be touched or used for any commercial purposes. I think, everybody could sense, that this grove is sacred and needs to be protected some way. Gaylan Clark, in 1850s, was diagnosed with Tuberculoses, and was given 6 months to live. He came to Mariposa grove, and lived here for another 40 years. When ranger was telling us this story, an old man asked, I heard that later he married to a 27 year old woman, was that correct? Ranger did not know if it was true, but some said, yes that was true, and that the ageless nature of redwoods rubbed on the people who lived around it. Well, for all the good reasons to remember and visit Mariposa grove, this is the one that stuck in people imaginations.

Well, the day was not over yet. We reached back Milpitas at 5 PM. And were ready to go to Father’s day recognition dinner organized by Milpitas Post and Kiwanis club, at Omega restaurant. We walked to the restaurant, and I have to read what Prem wrote for me (as dictated by Prem to his mommy Promila). It was published in Milpitas Post.

“Why is my dad is the best dad in Milpitas? Because he talks nicely and plays ‘Goal-Block-Goal’ with me and he does his work nicely. He watches cricket and he plays Cribbage on computer (I just played once on computer to teach him the rules). My dad also plays Cribbage with me too. I was teaching dad soccer. He is playing soccer well (not true). He hikes with me. He hikes on big huge mountains. He does rock climbing down the mountain (not true). We go to Snoopy town (Santa Rosa) and Snoopy Museum (Charles M Schultz Museum) with my dad. He cooks with my mom and eat fish sandwiches a lot for breakfast. And my dad picks me up from school and he puts me in the school (sometimes). I love my dad. ”

Somebody once said, “Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.” This was one such weekend, where there were plenty of such moments, literally, while pulling up the cables on Half Dome, being chased by the bear, looking at the Giant Sequoia trees or reading what Prem wrote for his father !

For all pictures and videos related to this trip, please click on

http://picasaweb.google.com/ManeeshPAgarwal/2009June#

2008 Update

The year 2008 has been memorable for me in many ways. It has been proved to be a breakthrough year in controlling Prem’s asthma. I would like to hope and think that he is cured of it too. For last 3 years, Prem has been having asthma episodes almost once a month. Whenever he has runny nose, we were told to give him steroid (Pulmicort) for three days. We have nebulizer at home. Last time he had an episode was in June this year, when we were unable to control it at home. ER visits did not help much either, as Doctor said that keep doing what you have been doing, and it has been taking longer for him to come out of the episodes.

We have been looking for alternatives to western medicines for some time by now. Finally, it clicked. He had no more episodes, and mainly it is because we just did some simple diet changes and adopted some breathing techniques & natural cures to take care of his triggers. Yes, he has been drug free and I am not that anxious around him anymore. It is showing up in his overall growth.

I always want to be a role model for Prem, and after his birth, whenever I am in a fix or feel lazy, I would think what I would want my son to do in this situation. And I thought I had been keeping up very well in this regard, but alas, I soon realized why it was said that ‘Child is a father of the man.’

At the start of this year, Prem hardly could do the monkey bar. I wanted to encourage him, not by just empty words. So I tried doing it, and failed miserably. I rationalized that there are other areas I could still be role model. Well, one day in November we went to the Murphy Park, and he showed me that he could do all the three bars, continuously, forever. I tried it, and failed again, in spite of his courageous words, ‘Practice papa practice, you will get better. Do your best’. The kid is growing up too fast. After two weeks, I was able to do the monkey bar. And now he is encouraging Promila.

We have been reading to Prem since forever. Now this year, back in February, he could hardly read alphabets or write anything. When we put him in preschool, we were apprehensive and were thinking to keep him at home for another year. However, with Promila’s constant presence in school and help at home, he has been able to catch with rest of the class, and doing really well in Kindergarten. He is doing very well on reading chapter books, writing, dictation and Mathematics. However, given the choice between school and home, Prem is still a mama’s boy.

Promila has been more regular in teaching at Milpitas Adult Ed this year, however, her primary focus is still Prem. She even joined Karate class with Prem, and I can not forget the first time they came back from the class, looking all cute in white dress, he showed me the punch, his hands could only reach below my belly, and I was doubling over on the carpet next moment, not even able to scream. Both found it funny. They were again together in swimming class, but not in Lego, music and dance classes. Promila’s cooking has been great as ever. Apart from adding healthy contents like Flax, she has involved Prem in cooking. I do not think I could ever do that. Prem has been a regular helper in making dough, rolling puris and cooking ginger bread men. He looks forward to cooking. For Christmas they made Ginger Bread tree.

I was able to meet two of my classmates, Jit and Pankaj, during these trips and had a great fun with Deepak, Rajesh, Maria and Baskar’s families. With lot of activities for kids, and camp fire at night, these were memorable trips. Promila’s parents visited again this year and Prem was able to spend some time with them. We had a marathon of theme parks this year in Southern California, and enjoyed Disneyland, California adventure, Universal Studio, Sea World and Animal Safari.

Another new thing I learnt this year, apart from monkey bars, was juggling balls, and I was very proud of it. I also tried finger whistling, I can do it 50 % of time. Besides playing tennis and some times working out at gym, this year, with the help of Paul, I was able to start hiking every week, sometimes more. I never knew, hiking in Bay Area, with lot of trails like, Mission peak, Alum Rock, Almaden Quicksilver Park and Henry W Coe State Park, could be so enjoyable.

For a small video highlighting the year, visit
http://www.motionbox.com/videos/0a9ddfb61b1de3c587

Happy holidays and we wish you a happy, healthy and peaceful New Year 2009, filled with laughter and joy.

with love (Prem)
Promila - Maneesh
"People do not grow old, they become old when they stop growing."