WYOMING 117

Part 2 is the Sunday, the hike, and the night.

4:24 am.

Early rise.

Pack up tent and belongings.

20 degrees outside my sleeping bag and it’s pitch black.

Head out to the trailhead by 5 am arrive at 5:40 am. Pack snacks, fill water bottles and strap the headlamps to our heads. We lock the car and start walking. The first 3 miles of the hike were neatly paved and maintained. The basic trail you would see anywhere you go and hike. At about mile 4 it got rocky and began a 4-mile trek through a boulder field and very loose rock at the couloir.

At the midpoint of the boulder field I was quite a bit ahead of Eliza I wasn’t going to stay at her pace and she wasn’t going to try and keep at mine. I would wait at certain points so that she was able to have a visual of me and not get lost. The first time I meet up with her since getting to the boulder field she looks at me starts crying, she frantically starts going on about she was scared and how her body is shaking from fear but was reluctant not to quit. I don’t blame her until then she has never really been exposed to conditions like these. It was brutal and the wind was strong shooting a cold breeze down our jackets it was important to not get cold it slows you down and makes every movement so much harder but most importantly it was crucial to watch your every step. We get past the boulder field and into a section of the mountain that requires a bit of climbing not much exposure but some. I made the mistake of going on the ridgeline where there was no protection from me and death. I had assumed that was the route to take until I saw everyone else go around and climb an easier section. I also made the mistake of telling Eliza to follow me on the ridgeline and before it was too late to tell her to go the other way she starts it. She got maybe 2 moves in before she realized and I quote in her words “I’m not doing this fucking shit I’m done.”

I wait 5 minutes and I begin to downclimb to check on her I look slightly over the ridge and she is curled up in a ball scared shitless, she kind of looked like a little bobblehead with the helmet on. I tell her to go around and she makes eye contact with me and I could read her thoughts within those devilish eyes, most likely cursing me out and other foul thoughts. She eventually goes around the easier path and calls it quits explaining to me she doesn’t want to go any farther and that she is scared to be this high up. I wasn’t about to peer pressure her to keep going id like to say it was more of a motivational speech to uplift her from the fear she was feeling. She gets the will to push forward. I think there was only one time after that she was in a quitting mindset, she sat down and started lecturing me that I don’t take any breaks and that she will be taking longer than a 2-minute break. After a 3 minute break, this time we continued up and up eventually we reach the point where climbing with exposure was absolute to reach the peak and no way around it. Eliza decided to stay right below it if you’re scared already don’t attempt reckless shit that’s when vertigo and other things tend to go wrong. I climbed up I just wanted to reach the survey marker, it’s the metal round plate drilled onto the top of most peaks and other geological areas. They are placed all over by surveyors and I’m not entirely sure if it’s by the United States Geological Survey solely or the US Department of the interior. I took my pic and enjoyed my surroundings taking it all in. I down climbed to eat a snack with Eliza she had already begun munching on her knock-off sour patch kids she bought at the campground general store. I pulled out my marshmallow rice Krispy treats the ones you see at Starbucks, top 3 favorite snacks. We ate and she discussed how much she hated this I couldn’t help but laugh but at this point, we were both laughing. Seven hours later, three moments of intense crying, and lots of motivational talks we made it. The shittiest part was going back down.

Loose rock every step you take coming down the chute of the mountain had rocks the size of bowling balls rolling down the mountain, it was luck no one was below us. The entire hike back was another 7 hours and even harder than the hike up. Walking on steep declines are knee destroyers and chances of sliding on gravel and dirt is way more likely. We met back up at the trail head parking lot, Eliza came shortly after I got to the car I was in the middle of chugging a gallon of water since i ran out with 2 miles left and my mouth was dry as fuck to the point i was using my saliva to wet my lips to keep from cracking. We laid on the grass for 10 minutes and headed back into Jackson. Our only goal was finding somewhere to eat. Unfortunately, every restaurant in Jackson closes at 9 pm and had a wait time of 1 hour or more. Our first choice was a brewery but wasn’t accepting any more on the waitlist by the time we got there. I placed my name in 4 different restaurants and we would go to whichever one texted me first. It was Bubbas BBQ that texted me first so BBQ for dinner. I give it an honest rating of 6/10. It was good bbq but I’ve had better and it was nothing that blew my mind but then again i ate everything on my plate and more since Eliza takes 3 bites and she’s full.

I sign the check and we leave. It’s too late to camp somewhere and the motels in Jackson were well over $250, not something we could find the excuse to get for one night. We go to a pull-out on the highway right outside of town, grab our separate sleeping bags and fall asleep almost immediately.

Its Monday now. My last work outing is tomorrow and only for 2 days.

Stay safe whoever reads this and drink water.