Have you always wanted to climb a mountain, navigate a canoe, bungee jump, trek, but haven’t had a chance? It’s time then to touch base with Roopa Giridhar. A senior business analyst, Roopa, and her husband Giri, run TAG, an adventure group that encourages people to take a break and connect with nature.

“We started this group six years ago and have over 150 members. The group comprises techies, homemakers and students and we go on regular adventure trips. It’s a great way to meet new people, stay fit, see awesome sights and do our bit for the environment as well,” Roopa says.

From the Himalayas to the Andamans, skiing or bungee jumping, nothing is impossible for TAG members. “We are environment conscious, have a strict no-alcohol policy and never leave any garbage behind,” says Ramanathan Kannan, a TAG enthusiast. 
 
Srinath Prabhu, a chartered accountant is one among the 40-member group, Trekking and Tripping (T & T). “Whenever there is a long weekend, one of us chooses a suitable locale and posts it on our website. Whoever is free signs up and we either go on a trek or a wildlife adventure. We have been to the Himalayas thrice and once even teamed up with Youth Hostels India on an 11-day trek to a place called Harkidhoom, which is 12,000 ft high,” he says.

The Centre for Adventure and Rejuvenation of Environment (CARE) was started 30 years ago by S K Sheshadri. “I introduced adventure sports to Bangalore and have 13,000 registered members on my website,” he says. He conducts parasailing and paragliding sports every weekend and on public holidays at Hoskote on Old Madras Road. “Even if it’s just five minutes you feel like a bird soaring into the sky. It’s an amazing rush,’’ he says.

And there is yet another adventure group called Wishbone Interactive run by Kaushik and Gerry. Gerry, a wildlife biologist, has worked for National Geographic. The duo organises wildlife and adventure tourism trips that are mostly South India centric. “We limit our activities to this region as there is so much to see and discover from mountains to rivers and seas.The diversity is amazing and there is no dearth of exciting places to explore,” he says. From surviving the wild to rappelling, trekking, white water rafting, they conduct adventure sports customised for people of different ages and backgrounds.

 Log on to tagindia.net or email TandT@yahoogroups.com for details.