(Note: You can listen to the Audio & The written version with some pictures is below.)
Overcoming Adversity: Part II
In my last post, we last left off with our weary, mountain backpackers seeking protection from the thunder/lightning storm, above the tree-line near the peak of Mt. Clay.
My daughter, Jessica and I had just summited Mt Washington at around 1:00pm and were on our way to Mt. Clay, Mt Jefferson, and Past Mt Adams, (12 miles in all), over very rough terrain, to overnight in a lean-to called “The Perch” along the ridge line Just Northwest of Mt Adams.
Although there is no shelter above the tree line, we were able to seek refuge next to a boulder where we pulled an emergency mylar blanket over us to ride out the flash storm. The rain pelting the mylar, combined with the thunder was deafening and slightly nerve-racking but after about 20 minutes the storm past and we we came out of our make shift shelter and got on our way.
It was calming to realize that the quick decisions that my daughter and I made, together as a team, made the best of a potentially dangerous situation and allowed us press on towards our destination.
As we hiked on, the weather had cleared and it was now chilly but relatively comfortable. And although we were soaked from the previous deluge, we were starting to dry out. We both figured we could make better time towards our destination. But, for those of you who know these mountains, even in the best weather, every step is a measured one over rock, stone or boulder.
We pushed on for about another hour and a half towards the peak of Mt Jefferson. And to our surprise the weather started to turn again. Yes, that’s right…From clear weather, up Mt Washington, to Flash thunder storm on Mt Clay,… to clear weather,… to worse weather again! Oh Boy!
Now, the rain starts to get heavy. Back on with the rain jackets. The silver lining was that, at least there wasn’t any thunder or lightning with this round. The bad part was that the rain was heavy and we had wind gusts from 30-50mph.
Now, if I hadn’t said it before, I have been hiking many times before with my family, but my daughter hadn’t carried a backpack of this weight before and had never done a hike of this magnitude, even in good weather. Her perseverance and calm under pressure didn’t surprise me, but impressed me.
Realizing that the current storm would not abate any time soon, we decided to move forward at a slow pace now understanding that the storm was not our only challenge. You see, because of the weather slowing our pace, we were in danger of not reaching our destination before dark!
Now, making your way over trails in the Presidential Mountains in dry weather is tough. Doing it in the rain can be dangerous. But negotiating these trails in the dark and in the rain was not something I wanted to be challenged with; especially not with my daughter. Not that she couldn’t handle it. I am sure that she could. I just didn’t want to press our luck any further.
At this point of the hike, my daughter and I kind of got into a groove. I was taking the lead and she was following relatively close behind any where from 10 ft to 5o ft back. Often there were boulders we had to climb up or down and in the rain we may slip here and there. If one of us slipped, the other would say; “You Good?” and the other would say”Good” or “All Good”. We did this all day and it was kind of a comfort and a cool back and forth between us.
The next slip came from me when I misstepped and fell off a 6-7 foot boulder and was falling down to the next jagged boulder. I was able to turn my shoulder at the last second and my backpack took the brunt of the force but my leg twisted under me and I had to stay there to make sure nothing was broken.
Jessica called out; “You Good?” and my reply was; “Nope, Not Good” in a bit of a joking but painful voice. She knew it was a bad fall this time and not just a small misstep. Because of the rain, she was not able to see me until she came upon me twisted between two boulders. The pain on the inside of my left knee was searing but thankfully, I could still move it. I got up, took a few steps and was relieved that I was able to keep going.
You quickly realize on a hike like this, that you are 4-5 hours away from any help and getting towards dark in the pouring rain. If you break a bone or get seriously hurt, the consequences can be serious.
About an hour into the second rainstorm (Now about 9 hours hiking), visibility is very low and we had trouble seeing the next trail markers called “Cairns” (stacked rocks into a small pillar used to mark trails above the tree line). At each trail junction we took out our waterproof topographical map to make sure we were on the right path. A mistake in this weather, this visibility and this close to dark could result in a big problem.
For a time we had thought it might be better to change our course to end up at a mountain hut that would give us more shelter but we later decided that the lean-to was closer by a half mile and that could make all the difference and we needed to get to shelter ASAP. While a half mile doesn’t seem like a lot, over this terrain, it could take you 30-40min and that could mean darkness before we reached “The Perch” lean-to.
Just when we thought the rain wouldn’t stop, the clouds started to clear and the sun was breaking through. At the next trail junction, we checked our location in reference to our map and we now were confident that we could make it to the “The Perch” lean-to a little before dark.
A sense of relief and safety came over us. We look off into the mountains and we noticed we are above a portion of the clouds and we remember why we love hiking in the mountains and why we came in the first place. For me, hiking is my meditation. It allows me to focus and “Re-set” my mind and “Center” myself.
We were genuinely happy and exhausted when we reached the ‘The Perch” site and knew that we were safe. we met other hikers that had reached that point and been through similar experiences that day and we commiserated for a few minutes. Now, this lean-to and two other mountain huts, that are within a 45 min hike of each, other are on a “First come, first serve” basis. And guess what…It was full!… probably because of the severe weather.
The Perch Lean-To Near My Adams
So after, hiking almost 12 miles over 12 hours, we had the wind knocked out of our sails when we realized we had to move on the the next hut called “Gray Knob”. While it was only .7 mile away, that meant another 45min hiking, over rough terrane, when the sun was starting to set. So we quickly decided to get going, to reach our new destination, ASAP for safety.
That last .7 mile was, not the hardest but maybe the most challenging, mentally because we had reached our first goal only when soon realized we would have to press on to a new destination. We had to quickly re-set, focus and set our minds and actions towards a new task and goal. Why…because we had no choice. Moving forward was our only option. So we did.
As we watching the majestic sunset start to disappear below to peaks of the mountains in the distance, we paused to take it in and snap a few pix but we also quickly moved on because we knew that we only had another 10-15 min of light left.
Neither one of us would say it but we knew we might have to put our headlamps because of darkness. Just then, we came to the trail junction that said; “Gray Knob Hut 750ft “. Ahhhhh! At last we could rest easy knowing that we made it but we weren’t sure if they would have space for us.
As we came up to the hut we met the RMC (Randolf Mountain Club) Hut Caretaker, “Anna” that greeted us. She let us know that there was still some space available on the floor. The caretakers work in 10 day shifts where they stay on the mountain and look over the lean-to and two huts that are along this ridge line below Mt Adams and Mt. Madison in the Presidential range.
While there is no electricity or water that hut was a welcome site and after the day hiking we had, the most comfortable place we could have imagined that night.
While we were soaked, we were starting to dry out and all of equipment was damp or wet. Luckily our sleeping bags were mostly dry. We ate food, told stories, nursed our many blisters and slept, mostly well, with thoughts of the amazing day we had and what we will accomplish the next day.
I woke to see the sunrise which I can tell you; to see the sun set behind the mountain peaks the night before and awake to the rising sun from the east and bathe the ravine we were overlooking, was spectacular.
We made our plan for when we had to leave the hut, to reach the trailhead where a shuttle that we set up 2 days earlier, would take us back to the main, Mt Washington lodge/Trailhead where our car was parked.
With sore legs, and our minds filled with the excitement of the day before, we started the steep, challenging hike down the northeast side of Mt Madison. After four hours of hard hiking, great conversations with my daughter, Jessica, that I will always cherish, and some sore joints and muscles, we ended up at the trailhead 15 min ahead of our scheduled pick up time. We made it!!!
This blog post was only supposed to be a quick list of the highlights of my trip but, as I was writing, it became much longer than I expected. I thank you for being patient and allowing me to tell the story of our wonderful weekend together backpacking in the White Mountains.
You see, as I looked back on our hike, I realize we overcame significant obstacles, in our journey, to successfully reach our goal. We kept moving forward! We made numerous decisions at each crossroads and obstacle and we made them together, to move forward toward our destination.
You see, We had to reach our goal because that was the destination that we wanted to reach when we planned this trip but also because, for safety reasons, when were were half way through our hike, we HAD to reach our destination because we had past “the point of no return”. If we didn’t reach or destination they may have been significant consequences!
I also realized that, while reaching our destination was the endgame, like the cliche says, “it’s the journey” that’s important. You see, even though we had some “dicey” moments and challenges that were dangerous and could have resulted in injuries, and we were hiking in conditions that would be considered, miserable, I would not trade them for a second. Jessica and I will remember that hike for the rest our lives and the challenges that we overcame together only made us stronger.
As she moves forward into the next phase of her life, I can only hope that she will draw from the things she learned from our backpacking trip together; about life… and about herself. Whether she consciously draws strength for her future activities because she now knows what she can endure or she subconsciously understands on some level her abilities. Her ability to Set Goals, to Make Plans & Strategies to reach a Goal, To Be Flexible when the inevitable obstacles in life, work and family face you and to keep moving forward, no matter what, to reach your goals in life.
In the next post, I decided to do an “Overcoming Adversity: III” so that I can expand on setting goals, making plans and strategies and how we can all look at challenges and adversity in life and to meet them head on.
Thanks again, for read and/or listening to this post. And Remember,….
Be Positive, Be Motivated, Be Focused & Be Well
Mark
