I AM BACK

I could not have asked for better summer as I had the opportunity to walk alongside thousands of bison at Badlands, see four presidents carved in the Black Hills of South Dakota, climb the Rocky Mountains, climb and stand on top of tallest sand dunes in North America, stand next to largest single stem tree, hike to the top of a volcanic mountain, touch persistently clear Crater Lake, hike Half Dome, drive many long winding scenic drives and much more. You can see the list of places that I went to on my previous post and I have also updated the National Parks map. As of now, I have made it to eighteen national parks; I still have forty to go. I am very thankful to all my friends who have supported me in my endeavor. They have accompanied me on my trips, provided rides to airports, provided accommodation, answered my calls when I was stranded, and let me borrow sleeping bags, tripod and other equipment. I have a lot of catching up to do in the coming days and I also have a lot of pictures to organize. I will be posting them in the days to come; you can find them in my Flickr account.

Summer is about to be over soon but the best part of the year is yet to come, the fall. The temperature will be perfect and the fall foliage will display different shades of colors. And then winter, I cannot wait for snow. I love being outdoors during the winter season. My classes are already in full swing so I will be spending most of the time doing school work and research which means less traveling. But this fall, I am definitely going to the Great Smoky Mountain, revisit Shenandoah National Park and go see my brother in Dallas.

College football season has already started, not happy with last night’s loss against Boise State; Reds have a six game lead over the Cardinals, they are going to make their first playoff appearance since 1995; and the NFL season will kick in this week.

GO COLTS!!! GO REDS!!! GO HOKIES!!!