Its amazing how pictures can do so much as they get older.... Or the further away we move from when the picture happened.
These pictures haunt me. They remind me of the most amazing experiences I have ever had.
The top picture was from my first time in Alaska. A million miles from home, covered in sunscreen, smelling the worst a human can smell, and feeling just how dangerous nature can be. We were caught in a storm at about 15,000 feet and for the first time in my life, I was scared by a force that had no idea I was there. It was so windy, So cold. I remember walking to another tent and being blown down off my feet and rolling across the snow. I never thought that was possible.
The second picture was in the middle of an ice climb in Colorado. A route called "7 year itch" Named for the fact that it only comes in every 7 years. And the year we climbed it it came in FAT! The last "step" is a 140' piece of ice. Smooth and straight up...... I decided not to do it. I was tired from what turned into a sketchy approach and did not have the mindset to give it a shot...... It was the first thing in my life that I turned away from.
The last picture is from Mt.Rainer. It was my first climb....Ever. I went to WA alone and did a climb along with some really great classes. It was my gateway drug. It opened something in my life that I have never been able to get rid of. It showed me a world with the most amazing challenges. A world where you could be as fit as you have ever been, you could be as prepared as possible, but you are under complete control of nature... You have no idea what could happen next, no control, no power. It is you vs. a piece of rock. And it is like nothing you have ever felt or experienced.
Its intoxicating.
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