The Hiking Journey

Our crew got off to a later start then anticipated. We had a 14,000 ft. mountain to climb ahead of us, and not one of us seemed a bit worried about that. We mapped our trek, shared a smoke and headed out. (Yes you read that right).

The first quarter of the trail seemed fairly easy, we took in the wildlife, breezily talked with some of the fellow hikers on the trail, and even caught up with each other. I hadn’t seen one of my brothers in over a year, and I had trouble staying focused.

Some of us argued over our pace and mentioned we were pushing daylight. So we began moving faster. Further along the trek, we came up on the rugged jagged edges of Quandary Peak, they were harder to navigate. It required a bit more technical footwork than I anticipated. And also, I was HUNGRY. We stopped to snack and catch our breath, but waiting too long meant we might not be able to summit.

Snow had come to the Rockies early in 2018, This was late October; we were shocked to find so much snow and ice toward the peak. We hadn’t brought any ice cleats for our boots and were fearing injury if we moved on. Feeling a bit defeated, we made the very tough decision not to summit the mountain that day.

We were super bummed, but the pivot in plans allowed us to spend a bit more time taking in the magnificent sites on the loop back down the mountain, and focus more on each other. (The purpose of the hiking trip was for us to catch up and bond with our buddy who lives in the great state of CO, and had recently lost his long time partner.) This trip was so special to me, I had my husband and two old best friends doing what we love most. Exploring in the Wild.

No we didn’t summit, but I wouldn’t trade the journey we did have. I learned some valuable lessons about preparation and better timing, and hope to use those mistakes to become more successful on our next adventure!

Remembering our humble story about just four kids who wanted to accomplish a days worth of grueling tasks, reminds me of the real heroes I see everyday, my clients. The clients I work with weekly are trying to overcome a whole season or even a lifetime of grueling things. Is that you? Please don’t give up. You might not see the light at the end of the tunnel now, but it doesn’t mean it’s not there. Stay positive and make the next right move.

Hope improves our relationships, our parenting, our careers, our financial security and even our health. No one has it all together, everyone will struggle. Relationships have unexpected turns, plans will get derailed, dreams get dashed along the way, and visions may fade out, but if you keep trekking, fight the fear about moving forward and make progress, YOU WILL eventually get somewhere, and you will have the healing, the joy, and the success along with it.

Thank you for reading about our hiking journey. On our next blog post, Ill take you through this same crew’s journey, a year before, rafting Gore Canyon, a world class whitewater experience. Wait until you hear our blunders 😂.

Peace to you always, 

Jen