I have always wanted to climb a mountain. A severely mountainous one.
Experiencing the Thrill of the Mountain
When I first returned from Vietnam, some brothers and I traveled to Mount Washington in New Hampshire. We arrived at 0400 and wasted no time. WE knew the Trailhead we wanted and hit the trail hard. The goal was to arrive in time for the sunrise.
Mt. Washington is a bit more than 6000 feet tall. There are surely some treacherous passages there, but we were not there for that challenge. We were there for the time trial. We’d done the deed in two hours during daylight using a more gradually sloping trail. No traversing, just up the mountain as straight and fast as we could.
Eight made the attempt. Three made the time. It was the most glorious sunrise ever and I nearly got blown right off the top. The weather station atop the mountain has recorded the strongest winds in North America at 220 mph (I think – you can read the details in the link above if you’re interested.) It was cold so I put the blanket I always carried in my pack over my shoulders. My best buddy did too.
Well, imagine two very startled young men being lifted off the earth by the sails their blankets had become. Two very large brothers grabbed hold and pulled us back to our beloved Mother.
That was close but still the best sunrise of my life, other than the first one stateside May 1, 1972.
So, that was supposed to be the beginning of an extended expedition to every mountain I could reach so I could climb it. Yes, very impractical for a poor man.
I really did want to hit McKinley, The Matterhorn, Everest, but yeah, life occurred at about the same time and at the speed of light. I missed that expedition by about two or three million $.
Popi Sends.
PS: All the extraneous stuff on my posts is kind of silly sometimes. The joys of templates and making your SEO app happy.
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PS: WOLVES: 28 almost in the books. (Pun not intended but accepted.)