by Smitha Nair

Mount Wachusett is a beautiful mountain with stunning views and one of the best places to go hiking in the summer. So, that’s what the India Society of Worcester planned, a fun hike for all ages on June 18 with about forty people and a beautiful day. What started off as a normal hike, ended with meeting friends, unknown neighbors and learning new information about our community.

We all met at the ski area at Wachusett to start off the hike at 11:00 AM. Right away people started talking and introducing themselves, creating multiple friends for the hike. Once we started everyone seemed ready to climb to the summit and our ambition only grew as we reached our first and second viewpoints at the top of a ski slope.

After completing the Balance Rock trail and taking some selfies at Balance Rock, the group split up. Some went up the easier pavement path and others dared to follow the steeper challenge of the Old Indian Trail. Throughout the Old Indian Trail it was enlightening to see people help one another across steep areas and everyone was overjoyed to reach the summit and take victory pictures at the top of the mountain. After lunch at the small fish pond near the summit, and a wonderful group photo of accomplishment, we all started down the mountain, taking the road for the first half and finishing off the hike the way we started, through Balance Rock trail.

Overall everyone had a fantastic time and many people were wondering when an event like this could happen again because of the exercise and the friendships that came out of this trip. Wachusett is an amazing area in Massachusetts for recreation and I am proud to say that ISW, definitely took advantage of it.