Week 9 ~ Oct 16th 2006

Once I was in a bay cruise around the San Francisco bay and had my ears glued to the captain Nemo commentary blaring from the ship. This commentary describes interesting facets of the bay and its prominence in the history of San Francisco's evolution. One interesting commentary went like this... "During the gold rush days of 1880s when gold was discovered in San Francisco, visitors flocked to San Francisco in search of work and fortune. There were plenty of ships visiting San Francisco to play their part in the discovery of wealth. These ships often had to encounter the treachorous fog that engulfs the bay often. During these testing times it was the light house operating from a nearby island called the Angel Island that showed them the way. This island also served as the detnetion center for the chinese immigrants who flocked to San Francisco to escape the miseries from their own country."...

Angel Island fascinated me at once and I was determined to visit it. I didn't have to wait longer. To visit Angel Island one has to take the ferry across from the Fisherman's Wharf. There is only one service on a weekday whereas there are 4 services on a weekend. I decided to take the ferry that starts from Fisherman's Wharf at 9:45 AM to savour the island for the day. I arrived in Embarcadero by BART at 9:00 and decided to walk the 3 miles to Pier 41 from where the ferry starts. There was a long queue to purchase tickets and I was running short of time. Fortunately the ship held fort till I purchased the tickets. I was not sure if it was a round trip or one way.

I went to the deck to take in fresh morning air. I guess it was one of the coldest days in the bay as I began shivering after a few minutes though I was well protected with a jacket. I held forth and started moving around the deck and aft to avoid shivering. The ride to Angel Islands took 20 minutes and there we were in a desolate island. The island had a nice water front but apart from that it looked lonely. My first stop was at the cove cafe, the only shop in the island. I purchased tickets for the 1 hour tram tour around the island. The "tram" was a wagon pulled by a car with open ended seating arrangements. The quorum for the tour was atleast 5 members. We managed 10 and the tour started in right earnest.

The tram follows a paved path around the island with stop overs for photo-op. (There is a walking trail along the perimeter of the island for around 5.5 miles). Our first stop was Camp Reynolds, a US civil war garrison. There were plenty of run down dilapidated buildings which served as the army base during the civil war when California was part of the union. We stopped at the site where the cannon batteries were placed to shoot oncoming ships in the bay (especially from Oregaon and Washington states which were under the confederate). We also saw the pearle beach which has since been closed for winter.

Angel Islands has plenty of scenic spots with clear views of San Francisco's major bridges viz. The Golden Gate bridge, Bay bridge, San Mateo bridge, San Rafael bridge and the Dumbarton bridge. It has 2 sides, Windward side and the Leeward side. The Windward side faces Golden Gate bridge and is cold whereas the Leeward side is more warmer. Next stop was Fort McDowell which served as the recruiting point and then the dispersion point for soldiers serving on the pacific theatre during WWI. The garrison is replete with a huge mess, administration building and a hospital with 70 beds. These structures are in delapidated condition but has been preserved in ruins. We also stopped over at the water plant and stores for the army camp. Next stop was the chinese immigration and detention center. Unfortunately we could not go near as the site is under maintenance. Our tour guide mentioned that there was a poem scribbled on the run down walls of the detention center scribbled by a chinese immigrant lamenting his condition as well as his fellow prisoners. As far as the chinese are concerned, Angel Island is a dark chapter in their history. We soon returned to our starting point within an hour.

I had well over 1 hour to beat the time to catch the next scheduled ferry to San Francisco. What better to do than rent a bike and ride the trails. I've never rode a bike in the last god knows how many years and I was inching to have a go. I chose a bike from a pile that had comfortable seats. The same tram driver doubled up as bicycle renter (manpower is scarce on the island). After paying the rental fee of 10$/hour, I started on a steeper trail. Though unaccustomed to riding on steeper routes, I enjoyed the intial few moments of a thrill ride only to feel the heat as time wore on. The ascension was getting steeper and I was panting and breathing for air. I managed to ride for around 3 miles with brief stopovers. When the going became tough, I decided to call it quits and started my way back. By the time I was in the line to catch the return ferry, I was highly exhausted with an aching back. Overall it was a fascinating trip that could engage you for not more than a few hours. But for the cold, it was thoroughly enjoyable

Week 8 ~ Oct 8th 2006

Week 8 ~ Oct 7th 2006

Week 7 ~ Oct 1st 2006

Week 5 ~ Sep 17th 2006

I woke up early making plans for the day. I took out all the brochures in my possession and ploughed through them looking for some adventure sports. Most of these were expensive costing anywhere between 90 to 120$. But one particular sport caught my eye. It was Parasailing. I could view from the advertisements that Parasailing was about sailing by a parachute over the beautiful lake. I had no idea how one sailed by parachute over a lake without the parachute being secured and what happens if the chute snapped. Still I decided to test the waters and go for it. I called the company to learn that they were 3 miles from the Stateline which meant I could walk all the way. While walking towards Timber Cove Marina where the watersport company Action Watersports was located, I called another company LakeTahoeTours to arrange a adventure jeep ride to Genoa peak. The jeep tour was to start in another 2 hours and I would be picked up from Mont Blanc casino's parking lot. 3 Miles is a hell a lot of distance for even a casual walk. I found that after walking on and on and numerous phone calls later still couldn't locate Timber Cove Marina. I was beginning to lose patience. Why did I have to undertake such a long walk when I could have cosied under the bed covers for a few more hours? I finally located Timber Cove Marina. It is a serene place with a shore where water laps against just like a beach. Action Watersports looked deserted and after a chance encounter with someone nearby, I was directed towards the shop. The cost of parasailing is directly dependent on the height that the chute would take a person. For a height of 600 feet, the cost worked to $55 while a height of 1200 feet costs $85. I opted for 600 feet to minimise the cost. I was directed towards a speed boat that had a parachute attached to the hull. The parachute is secured by a rope which rolls over a pulley. The pulley is hand operated and can be used to secure the height at which the parachute flies. There were 2 guys who introduced themselves as the captain and the first mate. I asked them plenty of questions as to what happens if the chord snaps or if there is a strong wind. They were patient enough to explain to me the safety mechanism that was built in the pulley. I was surprised to hear from them that there were no accidents reported (though it was hard to believe)

Our boat began to gain speed and we were cruisng along when I was asked to wear a life jacket. My body was secured to waterproof vests with the parachute protruding out. I was slowly pulled upwards with the release of the ropes and there I was sailing over the lake. As the parachute began to ascend, I felt the thrill of sailing 600 feet above the lake. The Lake looked gorgeous from the surrounding. There was a steady breeze which kept me off balance for a while but my hands were tightly gripping the ropes that secured the parachute. After sometime I began to feel the nagging pain in my hands as I began to grip the ropes tightly afraid that I would fall. It was an experience that brought fear as well as thrill. My palms became sweaty and I was afraid I would loose the grip. After 30 minutes, the boat slowed down and I was slowly pulled back. The final landing was as smooth as the ascent. I was thrilled and was beaming all over. I gave a thumbs up to the boat guys and thanked them (they were clicking snaps with my camera when I was sailing). With the thrill slowly fading, I walked toward Mont Blanc resort for the jeep ride.

Even as I was midway there were frantic calls from the LakeTahoeTours company to know my whereabouts as the jeep was waiting. I never realised that 2 hours had passed since I left the hotel. I started walking fast and met the jeep at Harvey's parking lot instead of Mont Blanc's as Harvey's was nearer. Our Jeep driver was Collins and there was 3 of us on tour. Myself in the front and a couple at the back. Our ride was towards Genoa's peak, a inhospitable terrain for travel. But for a 4 wheel drive and probably a mountain bike, it is impssoible to travel along the terrain. Collins explained to us about the history of the place as we embarked on our tour. Genoa's peak is in the Nevada side and was less picturesque. We stopped at a couple of places for Photo-op where we could see the glaring differences between a green and scenic California to desert like Nevada. We stopped at a place where Collins showed us Bear marks. Yes, this place has plenty of bears (not the grisly ones). These bears enter houses and have a particular liking for trash receptacles (infact the trash has been designed for Bear friendliness). Collins gave a personla glimpse into his won life. He was born and brought up in San Francisco, worked there for 10 years but had given up and came to Lake Tahoe for a living. He used to double up as a store manager cum guide. He explained to us that winter in Lake Tahoe was special because of the snow (which sometimes is over 6 feet) and the adventure sports on snow. He himself was a snowmobile guide. All along the route we could see snow measuring PVP sticks embedded along the ground. Since the travel was along a dusty terrain, Collins had given me a bandana for protection. But bandana or no bandana, it was a dust bowl and I couldn't help but see dust settling all over my attire. We arrived at Genoa's peak in an hour. The peak had no special signifance except a earth station and couple of big steel pipes. We walked around and clicked snaps from near the peak (The peak itself is closed to public with barbed fencing). After a while we started the descent. The ride was bumpy but adventurous. We were dropped at the Mont Blanc parking lot and I took leave of Collins with a small tip...

It was already 3:00 PM and my bus to Sacramento leaves at 3:20 PM. I made my way to Stateline Transit Center for the journey back home. Overall it was a fascinating trip and the blue lake still glints in my eyes. I vowed to return to Lake Tahoe someday in the future...

Week 5 ~ Sep 16th 2006

I had been waiting to make the decision to visit Lake Tahoe. There it arrived. Buoyed by the arrival of a new guy to join our onsite team who was keen on travelling just like me, we decided to travel to Lake Tahoe. We decided to take the Amtrak to Lake Tahoe and stay there for the weekend. I should say that though I was all pumped up, I started doubting my decision. By this time I had grown independent and travelling with another person especially a guy I knew little about was causing discomforture within my innerself. What the hell I could still give it a try!

We were supposed to take 720 Capitol Carridor train to Sacramento and transfer to an Amtrak bus that would take us to South Lake Tahoe. The Capitol Coridor leaves Richmond station (the station that is nearest to my place) at 7:00 AM which would mean that I had to get up early and complete my chores. I woke up well in time and reached the Amtrak station around 6:45 (ofcourse there was no fumbling at the ticket booth this time). Time was ticking by and there was no sign of my colleague. I resisted the urge to call him wishing he might be travelling. The Capitol Corridor arrived at 7:00 AM and still no sign of my colleague. Once seated I called him to hear that he had overslept. Strangely this didn't bother me as I secretly cherished the idea of travelling alone!

We reached Sacramento at the precise time (9:30 AM). The Amtrak bus stand adjoins the railway station and I had no difficulty in spotting the bus. The bus had few travellers but a lively driver. As is usual I dozzed off as soon we were aborad. The bus journey took 3 hours along a winding highway. The first stop (a few miles before South Lake Tahoe) saw almost all passengers get down except me. These passengers were mostly campers who take the weekend off for camping along the numerous mountains in Lake Tahoe. I had an opertunity for a casual chit chat with the driver during our lonely ride to South Lake Tahoe. The driver rues about the poor marketing strategy of Amtrak management in not attracting the public from using a cheaper public transportation. He blamed the californians free/liberal mentality which drove them to do things independently (like driving a car all alone from San Francisco to Lake Tahoe). He also suggested that I take a trip to Eureka mountains and rent a log cabin in the woods. Eureka according to him had great redwoods and was quite scenic. (One of my clients later put down that spot as "Not so great"). I got down at the Stateline transit center in South Lake Tahoe. Stateline denotes a road that seperates 2 states viz. California and Nevada. Lake Tahoe lies partly in these 2 states. While California is green and scenic Nevada is more of a desert. Nevada has casinos while California doesn't (Las Vegas, the famous casino city lies in Nevada). My first stop was at the visitor center that lies close to the stateline transit center to know more about Lake Tahoe. With a helpful host I was able to get more details on Lake tahoe including maps and brochures on must see spots. I decided to check into my hotel which lies on the stateline for a quick stopover. When I reached the reception, I was surprised to see portraits of Shirdi Sai Baba plastered all over the walls and it turned out that the hotel was owned by an Indian family. After pleasantaries I checked into my room. The room was not plush but comfortable for a overnight stay. I was feeling hungry and with directions for an indian restaurant (courtesy of the hotel help desk) I decided to walk 1.5 miles for a sumptous lunch. But after a few minutes, I thought I had lost my way as there was no sign of the restaurant. So I decided to make my way back to the Stateline and go to a Subway instead.

Lake Tahoe has a Gondola (rope car) ride that takes you 10,000 feet above sea level over treachorous slopes to a fantastic view of the lake. The Gondola ride was fascinating and it gives a great view of the surrounding sierra mountains. Some of these mountains are snow capped and are a treat to watch. The rope car's first stop was at a mesh deck which was situated at 10,000 feet for a picturesque view of the lake and the mountains. I spent sometime wandering around the deck peeping through telescopes (I could spot a helicopter upclose but failed to see that with a naked eye). The next stop was a little further where the Gondola drops you to hike around or take other rides (most of these other rides were deserted and closed). I had well around 1 hour to take a hike as I had planned to take a catamaran ride (starting at 3:40 PM) around Lake Tahoe. There were various trails ranging with varying levels of diffculty. I decided to take the trail that would lead me to the StageCoach. After hiking for a few minutes and taking countless diversions (all along the route there were plenty of rope car rides that were deserted), I decided to return back. There were clear signs pointing to the Gondola all along but these became confusing after a short while as the signs became contradictory. They would point point to one direction and after a few meteres in another direction though you might be travelling on a plain straight trail (atleast they appeared to confuse me). After sometime I reached a point which appeared a few feet below the Gondola station and appeared to have lost my way. There was a motely crowd of youngsters hiking their way down and I asked them if they knew how I can reach the Gondola Station. They pointed to a spot a long way up and I felt dizzy at the thought of covering the distance. Time was fast ticking by for the catamaran ride and I had hardly 10 minutes to catch the Gondola back to South Lake Tahoe. I started climbing fast but started panting after a few minutes. I could climb no futher and my head started spinning. I wanted to rest but time was of essence. With great difficulty I pushed myself harder. At this point I passed a bunch of hikers (who appeared Oriental). As I passed them they remarked "You are so fast". I didn't understand. I looked back and asked them what they meant. They said that they had passed me uphill while I was climbing down sometime back but was fast to catch them uphill (I never remembered passing them). I thanked them and reasoned that I was late for a catamaran ride. I waved them goodbye and said "Catch you later". They waved back remarking "We will never catch you, you are too fast for us". Buoyed by their compliments I started walking fast but started noticing that I was well past the time. Disheartened I began to trek at a leisurely pace. My mind was occupied on the next course all through my way down the Gondola ride. At the Gondola station I sat down to plan on what to do next. Lake Tahoe has a few companies that offer cruises along the lake. Most of these start from Zephyr Cove resort. The Zephyr cove restort is 4 miles from the Stateline. I zoomed in one such company that offers a catamaran sunset ride around Lake Tahoe for 2 hours. The tour starts at 6:00 PM and ends around 8:00. To reach Zephyr Cove one has to take a cab or use the not so frequent blue line public buses. I decided to opt for the public transport. The boarding point was at the Stateline Transit Center. I waited at the transit center for an hour before the bus turned up. The bus was more like a mini van and hardly had a passenger (no wonder the town offers less public transport). The 4 mile ride took 15 minutes and I was dropped at the Zephyr cove. I purchased tickets for the catamaran ride and waited anxiously to board the boat. After a few minutes wait, we were cheerfully welcomed aboard by a genial crew

The catamaran was infact a trimaran. It had 3 hulls. Though it had a inner deck where seats were avialble, the top deck had beds and quilts for passengers to sit/lie and relax and view the sunset. I lay down on a sleeping bag on the open deck with a sweeping view of the lake. Near me were a bunch of ladies chattering and jabbering all the way. One of them confronted me and engaged in a pep talk. They were curious to know where I was from and what took me to the Lake Tahoe. After the initial niceties, It was my turn to pepper them with questions. The ladies were obviously touring as a group to "escape from their husbands" (sic). They were from texas and were buddies for long. When I quizzed them as to what attractions/places texas had, prompt came the reply "Nothing". "It has only cowboys"!!

Leaving the ladies, I wandered all along the deck watching people sip Champagne. The boat was serving complementary champagne. I have watched champagne corks being popped and the froth sprayed in sports events like Formula 1 but haven't see the drink upclose. What was it like to taste champagne? I have heard that champagne was one of the costliest drinks. Thinking of all this made me wonder if I can taste one. What happens if it has high alcoholic content? Will it make me cringe and puke? I was still in half minds but what the hell it would never cost me to taste one (after all it is complementary). I went to deck downstairs and ordered a champagne. Only when I sipped did I realise that it was infact a sweet wine. I took my position on the sleeping bag and began to sip champagne watching the sunset over the beautiful lake. Lake Tahoe is over 1600 feet deep and doesn't freeze in the winter due to a convection mechanism (the lake absorbs heat during the day and radiates it during the night). The Lake was formed due to a volcanic activity millions of years ago. Lake Tahoe has crystal clear water and bottom of the lake can be viewed for a few miles from the shore. The lake stretches for around 73 miles and is situated across California and Nevada states. One of the most scenic spots along the lake is Emerald bay. It is a narrow stretch of water along a valley. It was most relaxing to sip champagne and watch sunset over the lake. With time it was getting colder and my jacket was not aiding my cause. I began to shiver and had to go downstairs to the warm deck for a while. But soon I was on my feet again and started taking rounds around the upper deck. I saw the captain and the first mate sterring the ship and engaged them with questions on Lake Tahoe and their adventures. The first mate was very forthcoming with his suggestions on which casions I should visit. It was getting increasing cold and I thanked the stars when I see the shore on the horizon. I didn't have to wait longer as we reached shore around 8:00 PM. I walked out waving a goodbye to the texas ladies and wondering how to get back to my hotel. Before coming to Zephyr Cove I had checked the bus schedule and found that there was a bus to Stateline from Zephyr Cove around 9:00 PM. But the crowd was thinning fast and within a matter a few minutes I was the only one left in the resort. It was extremly cold and dark and I was getting worried. Fortunately for me there was a gentleman sweeping the floors of a closed restaurant whom I could view from the closed glass doors. I signalled to him if he knew where I could get a cab. I was not sure if I could convey those words by signs. But fortunately for me, he understood and opened the doors to give the number of the cab company. Thankfully the cab arrived in 10 minutes after my call. I requested the friendly driver to take me to an Indian restaurant. He suggested a few and came up with his own choices. "You know this restaurant doesn't serve sag paneer. That restaurant does serve a good biryani....." Finally he threw the name of "Taj Mahal" restaurant which was near the Stateline (This was the same restaurant I had gone in serach of in the afternoon). He called the restaurant and booked a table for me. So kind of him. I thanked him with a generous tip. After a sumptous dinner, I walked all the way to the stateline. As mentioned earlier, the stateline seperates 2 states viz. California and Nevada. Nevada has a thriving casino industry which meant that the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe had plenty of casinos. The most famous among these were Hurrah's, Harvey's and Mont Blanc. I decided to take a look at the casinos. My first stop was at Mont Blanc. The casino was so huge and there were plenty of games all around. I took a trip around the floor watching curiously the card games, the roulettes etal. Though I was not interested in playing any myself, I was content to watch the games from behind. I visited Hurrah's and Harvey's and took in the mamoth games floor. There were hundreds of customers huddled around slot machines, roulettes and various computer terminals concentrating hard on the outcomes but I could never spot a happy face (probably most of them were losing!!). After a tiring day, I retired to my hotel for a much needed rest and looked forward to the next day......

Week 4 ~ Sep 10th 2006

San Francisco's market street (the financial district) was awash with festoons of the Asian Art Museum when I first arrived here. May be there was something happening there but I wouldn't know then. I had made a mental note to visit there sometime. The oppertunity soon arrived when I woke up late after a tiring visit to Point Reyes. Shunning the urge to take an afternoon nap, I decided to visit the museum. The museum was situated in Civic Center and can be reached by BART. I had a map of San Francisco which suggested that the museum was located in the Larkin street. I was confused when I reached there as all I could see was the huge San Francisco public librart building and a bunch of vagabonds loitering around. I walked all the way around the public library only to reach the farmer's market. I couldn't spot a decent guy to ask my way. I decided to walk back to the public library and ask the guard there when I ran into a guy who was leisurely smoking. He explained to me that there was a huge building parallel to the public library (the building was once a public library but had become the Asian Arts museum since). I thanked him and quickly found my way to the museum. The Asian Arts museum is housed in a huge building with 3 levels. We have to surrender our bags, jackets, water bottles etal... There is a audio set which guides the visitors with history of the artifacts. I decided to take the 3rd floor first as that was the East Indian section. The Asian arts museum is seggregated into various sections viz the Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indian and Southeast Asian with a new section on Pakistani art. The Indian section was further seggregated into East, North and South Indian art. Much of the North and East Indian sections were devoted to Budhism and artifacts on the growth of Budhism in India. The place was replete with Statues of Buddha and the various Bodhisatvas. The South Indian section had art from the tamil kingdoms to the great vijayanagaram empire. A beautiful statue of Lord Nataraja caught my eye with Nataraja in a dancing pose. There were other splendid statues and I was amazed with the same god in different depictions across the 3 cultures (North, South and East). The statue was that of Lord Vishnu and each culture depicted him in their own splendor with stark contrasts. (I had whipped my camera out to click a few snaps when one of the staff came in and requested me not to use the flash. The museum has many artifacts which are sensitive to light, so I was told)

I took plenty of time reading through the history of Buddhism in India and the role of Bodhisatvas. My next stop was at the chinese section. The chinese are the most ancient civilization in the world and they have plenty to offer from their scrolls (caligraphy) to their pottery (china). The chinese section was amazing with plenty of exhibits which takes one into pre-historic days. I was more intrigued by the printing section with words embossed on clothes. There was a wide range of bone china collection with artisans touch everywhere. The chinese are one of the best when it comes to art on clay. The Japanese and Korean sections were much simillar with religious overtones (Budhism, Taoism).

I had well run out of time by now as I was spending a longer time reading and enjoying the exhibits. We were informed that the museum was about to close. I walked out with my heart still in the museum. I also rued the chance to eat at the cafteria there as it had boasted of all asian delicacies (may be a few indian too)

Week 4 ~ Sep 9th 2006

I was bragging to my colleagues about my travels and the fact that I've pretty much covered San Francisco when one guy quipped "What about Point Reyes? Have you gone to the light house?". Point Reyes as I was to learn from him later was a national park which had a lighthouse close to the bay. I couldn't ferret much details other than the above. After a few searches in the net, I had all the details about Point Reyes. Point Reyes is a national park with redwoods where the San Andreas fault runs. The public transport to Point Reyes was limited and the only known transport was provided by the West Marin Stagecoach. To make matters worse, on the weekends the services are less frequent with a bus every 3 hours. I decided to take my chances

The first bus to Point Reyes started at 8:10 from San Rafael Transit Center which meant that I had to wake up at 5:30, finish my chores and head to San Rafael. San Rafael which lies in the marin county can be reached by bus from El Cerrito Del Norte BART. The Golden Gate transit runs bus#40 every half hour. I arrived in El Cerrito Del Norte (The ride to this station takes 3 minutes from El Cerrito Plaza by BART) in time to take the bus#40 at 7:07 AM. The bus reaches San Rafael via Richmond and San Rafael bridge. (Richmond is a predominantly African American neighborhood and has a high crime rate) On the way to San Rafael, I spotted many native Indians who were huddled in groups chatting. That seemed quite odd as to why would people gather and talk on a Saturday morning. I reached San Rafael Transit Center at 7:50 AM well in time to catch the 8:10 bus to Point Reyes. The transit center had more buses than people or so it looked. I was initially confused as to where the transit center lay as the one I got down didn't really look like a bus terminus. I walked down the city center but returned to the place where I got down as I was afraid I would loose my way. I inquired a man who wore the overalls of a bus driver about the West Marin Stagecoach. He stated that the West Marin Stagecoach does not stop in San Rafael Transit Center and would be doing so only from the next week. I was confused as the website as well as the West Marin customer service had clearly intimated that West Marin Stagecoach did indeed stop in San Rafael. I showed him the bus schedules and maps that I had downloaded from the internet and again queried him on the same. Though he empathised with me, he was emphatic that the West Marin Stagecoach does not stop in San Rafael. I conveyed to him my predicament on catching the bus by 8:10 else I had to wait for 3 hours to catch the next bus. He offered a way out by suggesting that I catch the bus in San Anselmo which was 30 minutes ride from the transit center. There were 2 possibilities. Either I could take his bus and reach San Anselmo within 8:45 (His bus took 15 minutes more than the normal ride) or wait for a bus which took a shorter time (30 minutes) to reach San Anselmo. I decided to ride his bus. He told me that I don't need to pay him but pay the Stagecoach directly as GoldenGate and West Marin Stagecoach enjoy transit arrangements. After a few minutes ride, he stopped the bus and got down to smoke. I was absolutely baffled as to what was happening. I was racing against time and here was a driver enjoying a quite smoke with passengers waiting. Only then did I notice that there was a new driver who walked in and started the bus. Apparently a change of shift was happening there. I politely inquired with the new driver even as we reached Lakespur ferry terminal whether the West Marin Stagecoach would wait till we reached San Anselmo. But he shrugged and said he didn't have the schedule details of the Stagecoach. We reached San Anselmo hub (a small bus stand) well ahead of the 45 minutes that I thought it would take. Once in San Anselmo, I called the West Marin customer service to see if the bus had left. I was told that the bus would arrive there by 8:43 (a full 5 minutes more...). I was at once elated with this heartening news. But what puzzled me was the fact that the customer service mentioning more than once that the bus was coming from San Rafael. I double checked with them and was told that the Stagecoach had a stop at the transit center (This was nothing new and had been happening for quite sometime!)

The Stagecoach was like a minivan and could seat upto 15 passengers. The genial driver welcomed me with a booming "Indeed we are going to Point Reyes. Please enjoy your ride". There were a handful of passengers, a couple of them with huge backpacks (may be camping equipments). The ride through marin county was quite scenic with wooded forests on both sides of the road. The ride to Point Reyes take 1:30 hours and the drop off is right at the doorsteps of the national park's visitor center. It should be mentioned that the drop off inside the national park is only on Saturdays. On the rest of the days, one has to walk a mile from the point where we are dropped. The Point Reyes visitor center is situated right at the entrance of the national park and has a few exhibits explaining the history of the park. I inquired about the park tours and was told that there was a guided tour around the San Andreas fault that was begin an hour and a half later. I was also told that Point Reyes light house was situated 23 miles from the visitor center and was accessible only by private vehicles. That ruled the chances of visiting the light house as I depend on government welfare in so far as the transport is concerned. The ranger at the visitor center pointed me to a couple of hiking trails before I could get in time for the San Andreas fault tour.

There were 2 trails that I was interested in. The Beer Valley trail and the Horse trail. I decided to take the Beer Valley trail first. This trail extends for around 3.5 miles intersecting other trails along the way. The trail was along a widened mud track with picturesque mountains and parched white grass all along. On the way, I saw the path leading to the Morgan horse ranch(The Point Reyes park has one of the largest horse ranches in California) with plenty of trailers parked. The hike was cool and relaxing with few hikers around. I walked for around 3 miles and decided to return back (surprisingly my cellphone had good signal even amidst the woods!). I arrived in time for the guided tour. Our tour guide was a bloke named John Golda who had a salt pepper beard. The tour did not elicit much visitors and at the end there were only 2 people on the tour. Just when we were about to begin a couple joined us which meant 4 people + the guide. John took us through a paved path explaining the history of the San Andreas fault. The San Andreas fault runs along the edge of 2 mammoth plates, the Pacific plate and the North American plate. This meant that one half of the park lied along the Pacific plate while the other half in the North American plate. The land here was undulating but other than that I could not find any difference between these plates. The 1906 earthquake which measured 8.3 on the Richter scale had resulted when both plates had collided releasing huge amount of energy. Due to the result of that collision, the NA plate has started sliding under the Pacific plate with the result that certain land masses are being pulled apart. It is said that in a few years San Francisco will be as far as 10 miles away from where it is now. John explained about the geographical conditions prevailing during and the aftermath of the eathquakes. Point Reyes did not record much damage during the Loma Prieta (1989) earthquake though the epicenter lay nearby. He recounted how horrified he was to see his wooden house tilt precariously during the 1989 quake. There was no recorded proof of any loss of life forms during the 1906 earthquake in Point Reyes (The national park came into existence in 1960 after the government started acquiring lands from private owners). The couple excused themselves after sometime as they were running late to visit the light house which left us 2 guys. The other guy was quite informative reeling statistics from different earthquakes (He was from Atlanta). John explained to us the concept of earth's crust, mantle and core by breaking peanuts and comparing their layout with that of the earth. In the process John doled out some peanuts which I devoured like a wolf. We also got to see some photos of a ranch which lies just along the San Andreas fault before and after the 1906 quake. The quake had moved the fencing by a few yards. (The entire San Andreas fault along the park has been lined with a blue fence).

We were nearing the end of our tour when a couple confronted him to ask about their chances of getting a park ranger job. The lady was a social worker and wanted to become a park ranger. John explained to them that getting a park ranger was turning difficult with competition though he didn't have much difficulties during his time (He studied history but got this job through a family friend). It was interesting to know that people are interested in a park ranger job which in India would have been discarded as a lowly one. There are 2 types of rangers in Point Reyes, one who facilitate the visitors and the other who look after the forest. John doesn't carry a weapon as he belongs to the 1st category. I took leave from John and started on my next trail.

The Horse trail runs around the Morgan ranch where I got to see the feeding and the training places. The park authorities have recreated a Miwok village near the ranch. The Miwoks were a native Indian tribe who habitated the forests. The village had plenty of huts where the Miwoks worshipped Pagan gods (this looked like a tunnel) to their houses. I circled along the village and lost my way only to reach the visitor center by a round about way. I still had 1 hour for my return bus and I decided to spend it at the visitor center. The visitor center was previewing a 20 minutes video show on the history of the park. This video was on demand. I decided to watch the video but slept through most of the 20 minutes as I was exhausted by the long walk along the trails. By the time my bus arrived, it had turned very cold in the park and I was shivering (it was only 4:00 PM). Overall the trip was satisfying as I got to learn a lot about nature