Climb a mountain

So, I "climbed" a mountain this past weekend with a friend. It was... I thought.... a typical hike up and down. It would be a 3.75 mile hike up 2500 feet, and then back down. Now I have done hikes where you went up 2000 feet in 2 or 3 miles, so I didn't think it would be so hard. Wrong!

The last 1/4 mile I thought my legs were going to give out... and that was just to get to the ridge! Once on the ridge we had another 1/4 mile to the top! To get to the top we had to "climb" up rocks. It looked daunting, but also fun... and for some reason my legs kicked in and we scrambled up to the near top without much trouble actually.

We didn't go all the way to the tip top because we weren't sure which "road" to take. We were told to stay to the right, so we took a trail that went off to the right. The road less traveled apparently and I am so glad we did! We were treated to our very own secluded ridge to sit and eat lunch while we watched the mountains to the east turn into crevices and trees. The valley to the west with more mountains cascading down to the West Valley below. No noise, no people, just me my friend and a few butterflies flittering around... Oh, and a rattlesnake!

Yes, I got to see my very first rattlesnake in the wild. I could not have been more thrilled!! He was big too... or she? I didn't get THAT close. We kept our safe distance and it kept it's safe distance. But I got some wonderful photos of it. I could have stayed there and watched it slither all day, but at one point it did raise it's tail (did not rattle though), so I didn't want to upset it too much.

We hike our merrily way down. You would think going down would be super easy. NOT! It was easy at first, probably because of the rattlesnake sighing and my adrenaline flowing. The last 1/4 mile was the hardest once again. Even though we were going DOWN, I just felt like I could not take another step! Luckily with my friend's encouragement I inched down to my car and felt exhilarated, victorious, exhausted and a few other adjectives. I am so glad I got up at 530 on a Sunday morning to do it and that my friend joined me!

I have been in a little bit of a funk lately and this "climb" was just what I needed. So, if you are feeling a little down I highly recommend "climbing" a mountain, whatever that mountain may mean to you. To me, Mt. Olympus will hold a special place in my heart even if I never climb her again.

Now Go Out and Hug a Friend Today, but not a snake!