I arrive at a road closure sign 5 miles from the Pole Creek Trail head. My excitement quickly turns to a feeling of defeat. The Forest Service is working to improve the Pole Creek access road after a fire from last summer that consumed over 26,000 acres. 

My mind fills with thoughts of quitting. After all, this closure will add 10 miles to my round trip adventure.  I can turn around and go somewhere else. But, where? 

I begin filling my mind with positive affirmations to combat the bad thoughts. “This is an opportunity for me to follow the rules and obey the closure.” You are prepared for this.” “You will be stronger for making it through these extra miles.” “Just pack up your bag, eat some food, lace up your shoes and start walking.” 

I accepted this as an opportunity to test my mental, physical and spiritual strength. The walk started at 6:00 PM.

The next 5 miles gave me a chance to respect what had happened last summer and the work that others were doing to restore this beautiful place.

I see four deer as I near the trail head around 7:15 PM.  My feet transition from gravel road to ash covered trail. I start noticing the small ounces of life among an otherwise dead environment. Baby pine trees are sprouting through what looks like a battlefield. Bugs, birds and a cool breeze remind me that this is life after death.

As the next few hours pass the sun begins to drop down behind North Sister. My feet take me from a blackened forest to one that is green and lush as I leave the Pole Creek burn zone.

As darkness sets in I pull out my headlamp and the sounds of of the forest come awake. I hear crickets, mosquitoes and the crackling of branches. I cross a stream and nearly lose my way, but manage to get back on track.

Around 10:30 PM, I walk over a hump and drop down into a glacial pond. This will be camp for the night. I am exhausted from my 11 mile run that morning followed by an unexpected 12-13 mile hike. I feel a sense of peace and happiness, my eyes and mind melt into the stars as I drift asleep. This is life!

I awake at 6:45 AM with the rising sun. Today is a new day to reach the top of a mountain. I cook some oatmeal, pack up my camp and walk to Camp Lake where I will leave my pack.

I mentally break the 3000 vertical feet into three different sections. It is much easier to tackle a large goal if you have small goals along the way.

I reach the summit two and half hours after departing camp, phone the parents, snap some photos, take in the panoramic view of the Cascades and beautiful forest below and mentally prepare myself for the 15 mile hike I have to get home.

The first thousand vertical of my descent was plain sketchy. Every six or so footsteps a rock would roll out from under my feet and I would have to catch myself. No wonder more people get hurt on the way down.

When I reached the snowfields my shoe ski skills got put to work. This was the fun part of the descent.

I arrived back at Camp Lake around lunch time, relaxed for an hour and took my favorite photo from this adventure of an Indian Paintbrush with Camp Lake and South Sister in the background.

During the hike out my mind was filled with positive reflections of the great people, places and things I have in my life. 

To say the last 5 miles of gravel road were easy would be a complete lie. My feet hated me for travelling roughly 42 miles in the last 36 hours. I could feel two new blisters forming, which means there was four or five. The mountain bike tracks in the road made me wish I had mine. If only the road were open.

I had to snap out of these “what if  thoughts” and just enjoy the fact that I was walking through time. I was in a beautiful place and had just conquered another mountain that taught me priceless lessons about life and myself.

When at the end of the road I feel overjoyed with a sense of accomplishment. One journey has ended and another will soon begin.

Thanks for reading!

"Summit as Friends!"

Failing to live in the moment could kill you.

I was wandering near the river trail in Central Oregon looking for some shade, when I stumbled upon a small cave like spot that looked out over the river. I started creeping through a small hole in some rocks and felt a spider web embrace my face. 

In most prior similar encounters I would have just pressed on through the webs then looked back at what I had just destroyed. Today, for some reason my reaction was different. I immediately backed out of what I was about to crawl into. After moments of analysis I noticed this creepy poisonous looking spider hanging out on the overhang that I was about to walk under. 

Today, I am thankful for the moment and instinctive reactions to do the right thing. 

I am often alone in thought, like this single indian paintbrush next to a mountain stream. These are some of the moments I am most thankful for. The moments I realize that the little things are what really matter. If it were not for the little things then nothing of substance would ever be possible.

For example, we do not set out climbing to reach the summit, but rather to step one foot in front of the other. If we fail to recognize the beauty of each step then then we will miss the adventure in getting to where we wanted to go all along. And, the adventure is where the true miracles happen.

"Nothing compares to waking up on top of a mountain and watching a new day come to life."

Life awakens with the rising sun. Sunrise hours are some of the most powerful of our day, for they set in motion the tone and mood that we will carry throughout our waking hours. You get a chance to reflect on how small you really are and just how vast a landscape surrounds. You feel grateful just to be where you are.