What NOT to do at Mt. Diablo

Disclaimer: The facts that you are about to read are all based on my personal experience-nothing is imaginary! I might try to tempt or confuse you with the way I narrate the details-it is upto you if you really wanna fall into the trap! I should not be held responsible for the consequences!! :D 

So here we go!!

• Dont look for any information beforehand.
  

Whats the fun in being a nerd and jotting down all the information like how the place is and how much time will it take to reach to the top or what is the difficulty level stamina/strength wise..Pump the gas and hit the road-why care about those boring stats!!

• Start trekking without a trail map.
  

Well if you are those adventurous kind of creature then you might wanna try what we did: Landing up without any trail map! Where's the "surprise element" if you know exactly which way are you going and what you will face along the way to the summit! There's no other thrill like getting lost! Oh and btw you'll find many "natural artifacts" engraved on your way to the top(pic below)-these might not help you in any way but some of the comments will surely entertain you! (Btw I thought these things happen only in India-I was wrong!!)

• Go without the required trekking gear.
  

If you are well covered and well prepared, equipped with proper gears; then would you really get the "feel" of adventure?? Naaah!! Be natural and walk out the way you do when you go out to stroll in the park..Now thats how you get "in-tune" with the nature and feel its "beauty"!

• When in doubt; ask the wrong guy!
  

I'm sure you must have also experienced that whenever you get lost or need any information, the first person you ask will never have any clue!! Salute to Mr.Murphy-his laws appear more Universal to me than anything else! Coming back to our instructions for the hardcore trekker; never ask more than two people at these times..You get to see "more" and have varied "experience" when you get lost-So cheer up: your journey will surely get more exciting!!

Well thats all about what NOT to do-Now here's what to do:

Always have a good group like ours so that you never stop till you have achieved what you targetted when you stepped out of the home. As you can make out, we mis-judged this one-we thought it will be small 3 hour trek but it turned out to be an entire day trek which really tested our patience and stamina! We trekked continuously for 10 hours; but when we reached the top, it was all worthwhile! We had a blast all along the way! It was fun!!

Personally I really enjoyed the whole experience..the view from the summit(3850 ft.) was fantastic! We treeked from the southern side and I wish to do the same from the north side (which looked picturesque)  during winters when it'll be covered with snow!

Finally, if you are still set out to go to a place that you know nothing about, then atleast try to find out the what the name of that place actually means! We ourselves could have saved a lot of trouble if we would have known this little piece of information beforehand:: Diablo is a spanish word which means "Devil"!!