WE DID IT, To Santiago Peak on March 15, 2015

We did it, YES, we did. I and Krishan reached to the top of the Saddleback Mountain at Santiago Peak on March 15^th at 1.00 PM.

The journey to this peak started on Sunday 15h March morning with an alarm clock buzz at 4.30 AM. It was forctasted to be record breaking heat in SoCal, but we had planned it for three months, so I and Krishan decided to push ahead, but not sure if we will be able to make it to the top. WE DID IT, and we are so happy.

We planned to be ahead of the game by starting early, so we reached to the base camp just before dawn after driving 10 miles on a very bumpy mud Road. We took a 15 minutes break at the base camp. We checked our backpacks and made sure we have extra water and food, and then started hiking for the top to Santiago Peak. We had planned to hike 1/3 to the lower Holy Jim trail before taking any break, and this part of the trail is dense and beautiful with lot of shades, trees and flowering.

The second part of the trail to peak is where we start to gain elevation. It is a very narrow trail going back and forth on the mountain slope and after each round, we could feel that we are conquering few of the mountains. This is the best section of the hike with plenty of shaded and open space to look back and look under to get the exciting feeling that, in deed we are in and getting closer to the destination, but peak was still far away and unknown.

We completed second section of the hike and reached divider road for the last hike, which is called Upper Holy Jim. We stared to feel cool, but not cold as temperature below at the city was 91+, so it worked better that as we gained elevation the temperature remained in the comfortable range. Upper Holy Jim is not only the most difficult part of the hike, and adding to it is that we were tired too. It is a complete dirt road with lot of boulders and diches and the views are blocked by big trees. 


We stopped at many places to take pictures. After completing half of the Upper Holy Jim, we were hungry and wanted to break for the lunch, and here we started to feel that we are going to make to the top. So, we decided to push forward and will have lunch at the Santiago Peak. At every stop, we make sure to look down and we could see all of the mountains below us, except one, yes Santiago Peak was still more than a mile hike away on steep elevation.

Note this, was our last push, we put camera and phones in the back-pack, and just have a water bottle out, got fully determined to make this a final push and stop only at the peak, And YES, we made it, it was around 1.00 PM, we were at the top, we had conquered Santiago Peak, the tallest mountain in the Orange County and in the Saddleback Mountain range. We truly felt at the top of the world at that moment, all of the fatigue was gone and all of the preparation as well as wishes from the friends, family and had paid off. Called my wife and kids and asked my son and daughter to come out of house and look at the mountain around you. The one you find the tallest one, look that that peak and I am there, your dad is there on the phone talking to you.

Way back to the base camp was as full of adventure with some good life story from Krishan, the encounter and welcoming by snake, the play and petting of wild peacock, and the chime of birds, and water creek, a true experience of being submerged in the nature. It was such a rewarding and fulfilling experience for both of us.

In the journey of life we meet many people and all good people in good and not so good times. We always look for one person that is your true friend and it is hardest to find that one. The one, who can be on your side when you are right and most important, even you are not right. And, the one who will take risk with you and go miles and miles with you. And, I am one of the lucky people to fine one such friend, thank you Krishan.

We look forward to conquer another mountain peak during the summer of 2015 for this good cause and for the love of my village in Bihar, India.

Thank you guys for your donation and support.

Rajiv Singh