A different hike to Monument peak

We have been to Monument peak once in 2022!

That was our first experience sharing trails with cows that would just not move!

We also visited parts of this trail to just see the wild flowers.. but did not go to the peak on that day. Multiple folks ended up with nosebleeds thanks to all the allergens on that trip!

We made our second trip to the top today. Except this time we decided to take the steep hike for the last 0.2 miles to the peak directly instead of going an extra mile around the peak to reach the top! That made it really interesting.

There were no allergens this time. It was a barren trail. It was cool but the sun was in our face and I did get sunburnt. And yes, we had to step outside the trail a few times to avoid cows and the calves.

some photos of this hike.

this cutie posed for me when we walked past.. while the mom was calling for it to just come to her!

We were admiring the way these tall anternna towers were anchored on three sides.. 

A highlights video of the hike..

Thoroughly enjoyed the hike today even though at one point it was incredibly difficult. We made the 10.3 mile hike close to 4 1/2 hours because there were no breaks till we got to the top. Every now and then we stopped for a minute tops to sip water or take a photo and kept moving. There was one 20 minute break at the top for Chai and biscuts and a photo session. 

This turns out to be a great time to hike here. There are no snow covered peaks in the background but the fog and clouds and the layers of mountains with a clear view of the valley make for some amazging views. Felt great at the top!

Something tells me we might hike this again.. 

A day in Monterey

In what seems to be ages ago, San and me did a day trip to Monterey earlier this year.. this was between the India trip and our anniversary trip! 

It was a trip to go hiking with our jigiri dost's from morning to evening. Given our kids were not home, we drove early in the morning to meet them and started hiking.

It was cold and foggy as we made our way along the trail to see the coast line. 

Amazing views, lot of birds, deer, (some insects buzzing about) and seals in a cove with their little ones! Lot of work wtih the macro option as well ..

slide show of landscape photos..

and the rest of the highlight photos

 

We then went back to their place to have lunch. Had chai and then went back for another hike down to the beach! 

It was almost a private beach that day. Enjoyed that walk long the beach and drove back to bay area. 

It was a ton of fun and there were 200 photos and many video clips from that day..

Here is a video highlight

It deserved a blog post! 

We really enjoyed that day and still remember it! it was San's way of prepping me for traveling alone with her again and still have fun. 

It was a long drive in bad traffic on the way back. We realized there was no way we will make it home by dinner time.. so we stopped on the way at an Indian restaurant (my first time there). The food was good! 

Still have 2000+ pictures from that anniversary trip to Europe. It will take 2 years to write blog posts on that.. if my memory doesn't fade..

Closing out a trip in style

The previous post in the series is here..

We slept early after the long gruelling hike. Woke up in the morning and after having Chai in our room we were all ready to go to the Vista point on our way back to Phoenix. 

All nine of us had matching T-shirts to wear. It was great to spend almost an hour taking photos at the vista point.

We were delayed by an extra 30 minutes with the "photoshoot" and raced towards Phoenix.

There was a 30 mintue stop for lunch in Flagstaff at a nice Indian place. It was really good food, great ambience, quick service! If we ever visit Flagstaff, will definitely go back to this place!

We made it 20 minutes before boarding time to the gate! 

It took me two days to be able to walk normally again and be able to sit down and stand up. Was mostly standing and walking all of Monday and Tuesday. Did yoga last two days and finally able to do squats again.

All said and done, it was a memorable trip. Will I go back to the south rim again. Definitely not. 

This was one of the most challenging hikes we have done to date. Enjoyed the trip and most of the hiking except for the last three miles!

Glad it is done!