One of my favourite hobbies, which combines almost all the things I like in this world - adventure, sense of freedom, a sense of detachment from city life, physical exertion, time to reflect on life and relations, birds, wildlife, awesome scenery, and myself.

I got interested in trekking when I was in Bhopal, but what I did then would be mostly termed as hiking rather than trekking.Satpura ranges are heavily forested and are great for wildlife enthusiasts, but not very daunting for climbing.

After joining IIT Bombay, I regularly went on treks in the Sahyadris (Western Ghats) though somewhat infrequently in my last year.I have been to the usual places like Bhimashankar (twice), Harishchandragarh, Nakhind, Naneghat, Kulang (this was my best), Mahuli (another of my favourites - reasons withheld!), Chanderi (my first trek in the Sahyadris which got me hooked), and a few others.

I owe my mountaineering interest to IIT too, as it was through the Mountaineering Club that I got to go for the Basic Mountaineering Course held at Manali. This was a fabulous experience - one full month of adventure and that too real cheap!
Learnt the ropes literally. This introduced me to rock-climbing, snow and ice craft, artificial climbing techniques etc. etc..
And a character builder too - and I am not just quoting Calvin's dad!