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 My
love for the mountains and hiking started when I was a
teenager. As a child growing up in New Delhi, we spent summer in
the Himalayas to escape the heat. Cars were not allowed in the
mountain towns and the roads to waterfalls, streams and mountain peaks
were scarce. We walked everywhere. We walked to temples on
mountain peaks like Tara Devi and Vaishnu Devi. When I came to
the US life took over and hiking took a back seat, until one day I met
an ADK member who invited us to join them on a hike they were
leading. The rest is history. I soon started leading day
trips, became the social chair, and then outing chair and I am now the
Mid Hudson chapter chair.I retired from IBM in 2003 and in spring of 2004, I took my first ADK Adventure trip to Chaco Canyon. It was my first camping trip and my first trip without any member of my family. I enjoyed the experience and realized that with ADK I can have traveling companions with similar interests and hiking capability. I love traveling, researching and organizing trips. I have planned many trips for my family and friends, so I decided to become an adventure trip leader and share my passion for travel with fellow ADK members. My travel adventures include, climbing Mt. Fuji, Japan's highest mountain. We climbed at night to summit in time for the sunrise. I completed a Mule trip to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and hiked around Phantom Ranch. At Sedona I hiked among the Red rocks, visiting and hiking around Indian ruins at nearby National Parks, Painted Desert and Petrified Forest. I have been to Alaska, Hawaii, Lake Tahoe, British Columbia and Quebec. I have visited France, Switzerland, Germany, Wales and Spain. In Asia I have traveled in India and Japan visiting Kyoto, Hiroshima, Kure, Miyojima, Tokyo and Okinawa. In 2004, spent 3 weeks in Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and China, where I walked a section of the Great Wall. I have a BS in Botany (Honours), MS in Agricultural Economics and MS in Computer Science. Numerous professional development courses in Negotiation, managing projects, team leader. I took courses in Travel Agency and freelanced as a travel agent for 3 years from 1993-1996. I am an avid photographer and have numerous pictures of my trips. I am chair of the Conservation Association Committee for the town of Union Vale, executive committee member of the Duchess County Environmental Management Committee and volunteer educator at the Institute of Eco System Studies. For 2006, I have planned a trip to the Mid Atlantic region in spring when the wild flowers and mountain laurel should be blooming. Please join me in walking ledges of the Canadian plateau, forests of 300-400 year old Hemlock and white pine, C&O Canal, Shenandoah National Park, sections of the AT and end at Harpers Ferry, home of the ATC. Contact Lalita |