Sunday, June 23, 2013

Hiking Mt. Nebo with three people that look like Golem

OK, when I said the Mt. Timpanogos hike was a butt kicker, I was wrong. I was also a bit fatter last summer so maybe that's why it was such a butt kicker. The Mt. Nebo hike was much more of a butt kicker. It wasn't as long but it was way more dangerous and crazy. Half of it was normal hiking. It got your heart pumping going at an incline but after about 3 to 3.5 miles that stopped and then the crazy stuff started. The incline increased and for the next 2 hours you were feeling a little like Golem because you were on all fours a lot trying to get up the rocks. I felt very much like Golem as I'm sure a few of my hiking partners did. Atticus, Wendy, and Alexandra all ripped their pants so basically they ended up wearing rags just like Golem does. Going back down the shale and rocks was so unsteady you'd be lucky if you didn't fall at least once. I fell once. Ouch. Right on my butt. But since I was wearing posh shorts especially for hiking, my shorts didn't rip. So, if you ever hike Mt. Nebo, wear the androgynous and very non-feminine looking clothing they sell at outdoor stores and you won't have to show off your underwear to all the non existent people that also hike Mt. Nebo in the summertime. OK, we ran into 5 other people as we hiked. On our way up there was a man and his teenage son coming down the mountain looking quite beat. This is how the conversation went:

Me     So, how much farther have we got?

Guy   blank stare

Me     So, is it really bad?

Guy   Yeah, it's hard. Are you taking kids up there?

Me     Yeah (can't you see my son, he's standing right next to me) How many more miles have we got do you think?

Guy    The mileage is done. You've done it. You should just leave the kids and go up yourselves.

Me     Yeah, well we'll see how it goes. What time did you start?

Guy    Five thirty. What time did you start?

Me      Eight.

Then we kind of kept walking and I went off in a huff because it was obvious he thought that my kid couldn't cut it. We'll I was going to show him! He has no idea what I feed my kid. He's super kid when it comes to hiking. And you know what? Atticus didn't complain one time. He just chatted on about what food I brought and where the animals were and I chatted about how I was going to eat my hostess (now Little Debbie brand) chocolate cupcake at the top as I enjoyed the view from the highest place for hundreds of miles around. Pretty awesome. I actually said that word out loud as we were hiking and Atticus said, "Mom, you hate that word." It's true. It's overused and has become meaningless. But I figure if I rarely use the word, I can be permitted to use it when I really really mean it. The view from the crest of the mountain was awesome and I loved being there. I felt like Rocky Balboa in Rocky IV when he was training to fight the Russian boxer Ivan Drago. I even started singing Hearts on Fire out loud. I wonder if anyone that reads this will know which scene I'm talking about? I wished Jonathan could have been there. Atticus and I were the first ones to the top. We ate our cupcakes together and chatted. It wasn't too windy. It was a beautiful moment. Too bad I didn't have a camera. All I have is my huge one and I didn't want to lug it along. I really need to invest in something small. Any recommendations?

 

 

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