Counting it Down – 50 Travel Memories (Part 4)

This post is in continuation with the previous “Counting it Down” posts. Check out Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 for a list of my top 31-50 memories! I am more thrilled as we get closer to the top 10 🙂 But for now, let’s count down travel memories 20-11!

20. Rafting at American River, Lake Tahoe – Summer 2007
I mentioned in one of my previous posts that I am not too fond of water. I say that today, but a few years back, I was petrified of most water activities. So, when a bunch of friends signed me up for a rafting adventure, I was skeptical. While we got our paddling instructions, I prayed not to fall in the river. But half a day of instructions + class 3-4 rafting + not falling in the water = a super happy me and a long lasting memory.

Rafting at American River, Tahoe

19. Crater Lake, Oregon: Bluest of blues – Summer 2009
I had read a lot about Crater Lake being the bluest of all lakes, but my definition of a blue lake changed after our Crater Lake visit in Summer of 2009. As blue as it can get :). What made the trip more memorable was reading up stories of Llao and Skell at each vista to discover how the crater and the lake within were formed along with great hikes, camping and picturesque views.

Wizard island – Crater Lake National Park

18. Seattle, Washington : The emerald city – Spring 2011
We only spent 3 days in Seattle and absolutely loved every bit of our stay. I wish we could have stayed longer. I did not know whether to pick Pike Place Market or engineering marvel at Ballard Locks or views of Seattle downtown from Kerry Park or the underground tour of Seattle’s historic district or colorfully yukky Gum Wall. It was definitely a great vacation!

View of Seattle Downtown from Kerry Park in Queen Anne

17. New York Downtown – Summer 2006
The first time I went to New York was for a 2 day job interview for one of the Big 4’s. 2 days in Times Square and I knew what all the hype about it was. I visited New York again with my family after my graduation and fell in love with the place all over again! Though I do want to visit New York during winter when it is snowing!

Rockefeller Center, New York

Outside UN Building, New York

16. Camping at Lake Huntington, California – Summer 2011
Although I have written this earlier, I have to repeat it. Repetitive reading is good sometimes!

Pitching tents, sleeping in cozy sleeping bags, waking up to birds chirping, experiencing living in the woods surrounded by trees, moonlight strolls, star-gazing under open skies and finding the time to admire the beauty of nature from our busy and technology dominating lives: That’s what is CAMPING FOR ME in a nutshell!

Out of the numerous camping trips I have taken I pick Lake Huntington Camping. Why? A last minute reservation, amazing star gazing, late night hike to a freaky lake and spotting shooting stars (No, I did not have time to make any wishes). I was just in awe that I got to see them!

The joy after building the tent 🙂

Those campfire stories 🙂

15. Off-road Adventure at Canyonlands National Park, Utah – Spring 2008
M likes to off-road and so do a few of my friends! But little did I know that a person like me who absolutely was against the idea of off-roading would end up putting this so high up in the list of travel memories. This makes me believe that the more you explore, the more you discover – Things that you did not know about yourself 🙂

Off-roading at Canyonlands NP, Utah

Poison Spider Trail, Canyonlands NP, Utah

14. San Francisco Walking Tour, California – Sometime in 2010
I have been in the bay area for over 5 years. And every time we have a visitor, we take them to ~~cliched~~ (not for the visitor I assume) touristy places. For once, we signed up for a full day guided San Francisco tour. And that has been one of the best days I have had in the city in all these years :). From Pier 1 Farmer’s Market to Grace Cathedral to Victorian Houses to Sausalito to Muir Woods – trip had it all. I highly recommend this for all bay area locals!

Grace Cathedral, San Francisco

Victorian Houses – San Francisco

13. Zip Lining at base of Haleakala, Maui, Hawaii – Thanksgiving 2010
This was my first zip-line adventure. Five courses with each course gradually increasing in length and depth! Whoa what fun 🙂

Zipline adventure tour, Base of Haleakala, Hawaii

12. ATV Adventure (a.k.a Accident) at Pismo Beach, California – Spring 2009
I have visited Pismo Beach multiple times and unfortunately none of those trips have been accident free 😦 Our Spring 2009 trip was memorable because since this was my third time on an ATV, I was more confident (or rather over-confident!!). I tried a jump on one of the sand dunes and had a bad fall with the ATV on my leg! A permanent muscle scar is bound to make such trips memorable! What say?

ATV at Pismo Beach – One of them is probably me 🙂

11. Snorkeling, Multiple places (can’t pick one particular place)
The first time I snorkeled it wasn’t fun. It takes time to get used to the gear and learn the tricks, but once you get the hang of it, it is a lot of fun. We snorkeled in lagoon waters of Tahiti and Moorea almost every day we were there and for a couple of days in ocean waters of Maui, Hawaii. Snorkeling in lagoon waters is quite different from snorkeling in the ocean, but nevertheless, I can’t pick since each trip was memorable for different reasons! I enjoyed all my snorkeling excursions except for the first couple of times!

Snorkeling @ Black Rock – Maui, Hawaii

More Snorkeling

I hope you enjoyed travel memories 20-11 and are looking forward to the top 10. I am surely looking forward 🙂 My half century in the blogging world is coming up soon. Stay tuned!!!

Counting it Down – 50 Travel Memories (Part 3)

It’s been close to 2 months since my last post, and I am lagging behind on the deadlines by which I wanted to complete my 50 posts. But I’ll try my best to not take a break from blogging at least until I am done with the top 50 countdown. For those of you who just started reading, this is a series of 5 posts where I count down my top 50 travel memories :):):) If you’ve missed 31-50 on the list, you can read about those here (Part 1) and here (Part 2).

30. Riding an ATV in Moorea, Tahiti – Winter 2008
In winter of 2008, we visited a couple of exotic islands in the French Polneysia. We decided to go for an ATV Quad Tour to explore the mountains and farmlands of Moorea. Although it wasn’t our first time riding ATVs, the experience was fantastic since the tour was really on all-terrains. From concrete roads, to flats, to climbing mountains, to riding in the farmlands accompanied by rain, dirt and panoramic views of the mountains and the oceans, the tour was worth every penny!

ATV Quad Tour – Moorea

29. NatGEO Tour at Grand Canyon – Fall 2007
I strongly feel that if you visit Grand Canyon for just the vista points, after 3-4 vista points, the views all look the same. To really appreciate the beauty of Grand Canyon, you need to hike down the canyons. We signed up for the National Geographic tour at Grand Canyon where the guide took us on a mini hike down the canyon. It was the best part of my Grand Canyon trip.

Nat GEO Mini Hike at Grand Canyon National Park

28. Parasailing at Tahoe – Spring 2007
I have been petrified of water almost all my life, so for someone who’s afraid of water, any water adventure feels like an achievement 🙂

Parasailing at Tahoe

27. Niagra Falls – Summer 2006
Niagra falls has been one of the most hyped destinations, but if it’s a trip with your favorite people, you are bound to have great memories associated with it. I graduated in Summer of 2006 and I made a trip to the East coast with my family. It was my first trip in the US with family and I loved every bit of it.

At Niagra Falls

26. Shasta Trio – Summer 2009
We’ve visited Shasta a couple of times, and it is one of the most beautiful drives in Northern California. When we travel, we like to make the most use of time so that we can cover as much as possible. Shasta was one of those trips where we used almost 14-15 hours a day for travel and very little time to rest. Great weather and picturesque hikes was the reason why Shasta trip of Summer 2009 was so memorable.

Mount Shasta

Inside Shasta Caverns

25. Yosemite National Park: The car lockout incident – Thanksgiving 2006
Yosemite is one of my favorite places in Northern California. You can visit it any season and you’ll be amazed by the variety of things the park has to offer. Also, a lot of friends would know why Yosemite trips are so memorable 🙂 Our first trip to Yosemite was unforgettable, because 5 of us got locked out of our car on our way to Tenaya Lake at a random vista point and it started snowing. Our jackets were in the locked trunk, and we only had 2 phones with minimal battery with us. Ranger calls, waiting for AAA, rescue by a family from San Diego, and a white Thanksgiving! How can it not be memorable 🙂

First trip to Yosemite – Car lockout and a snowy white Thanksgiving 🙂

24. Lassen National Park – Summer 2009
Lassen has the prettiest lakes out of all the national parks in North Eastern California. And these are frozen until mid June after harsh winters. Lassen was our first hand experience watching climbers summit the Lassen peak with uphill skiing skills like I have never seen before! That was a first making the trip pretty memorable. And of course, we were awed by the frozen lakes.

Frozen Lake Helen and Lassen peak in the background

23. Skiing at Sierra at North Lake Tahoe – Winter 2011
I started skiing since winter of 2005, however; it took me a long time before I actually started enjoying it. There were a few seasons when we missed out and I can only ski green slopes after these many years :(. With a surgical knee, I have always been scared of hurting it again and that’s the reason why I have tried being extra careful when I ski. Needless to say, I still don’t have a ski trip when I haven’t bruised myself but Winter of 2011 was memorable, because that was the first time I tried a few stunts (mini ski jumps) with the help of an instructor. And since I do try and keep going back, I wanted skiing to be one of the 50 memories!

Spot me! I am not even sure if this was taken at the trip I am referring to, but I hardly have pics of me skiing!!!

22. Zion National Park – Fall 2011
I love Utah and all that it has to offer. Zion was memorable since it was a great family outing! I am hoping Zion will climb up the top memorable places list once I hike the Narrows some day 😀

Riverside Trail along the Virgin River – Zion National Park

21. Colorful Hot Springs at Yellowstone National Park – Spring 2010
Yellowstone has been one of my most cherished travel destinations. But M and I had totally different agendas when we planned our YNP trip. I love to paint and I wanted to explore the colors on the trip and M’s sole purpose was chasing wild life! The best natural color palette did make YNP’s colorful hot springs a memory just a tad bit shy of the top 20 🙂

Morning Glory Pool – End of Old Faithful Loop at Yellowstone National Park

Hope you enjoyed 21-30 on the list. Top 20 travel memories to follow soon 🙂