Mt. Percival

Bixby, me, Rob, Robert, Will took 2.25 hours to find this little hole-in-the-wall mountain in the absolute middle of nowhere. When we finally did, we were all at once excited and concerned to see that we were the only people parked at the bottom. We had seen a few people at the foot of another mountain a couple minutes prior, but this one was just ours, it seemed.

The plan was to go on a 4.5 hour hike up two mountains, Mt. Percival and Mt. Morgan. It started off great. It was hot and pretty beautiful out, and we were moving at a pretty brisk pace up some pretty daunting, near-vertical faces. I was getting immensely into it. I started running at a couple of points, just totally immersed in my surroundings while simultaneously focused on nothing but what was ahead of me on the trail.

At third break, we stopped on top of this huge rock in this little clearing. We were approaching the summit, maybe about another 10 minutes and we were there. We had been hiking for probably about an hour. While Will and I were catching up (Will had a bit of a headache, and I wanted to make sure he was alright, so I stayed behind with him for a spell), I heard Bixby point out a dark cloud and say

"It would SUCK if a thunderstorm came right now."

Not more than 30 seconds later, the first clap. Here we are, the five of us, high up, surrounded by trees and without any semblance of a clue of what to do. A flash, and then immediately a surrounding BOOM. it's right over our heads. And we're stuck on a mountain. For a few minutes, we all feel like our lives are in genuine danger. I look to Bennett for solace, but for once, he's as worried as I am. We stay put. We stay put for 10 minutes. We just sit and wait for another thunderclap and flash of lightning to tell whether it's receding or still present. it's still present after ten minutes, and we're getting progressively more concerned. My heart won't slow down, and I feel like I'm starting to shake.

Finally, a sign from God. A hiker comes rushing down the mountain, and we stop him dead in his tracks. Help us, we have no idea what to do in this situation. Well, I wouldn't keep going up because the rocks will be slippery. Ok, thanks.

He doesn't even mention the storm that's all around us, but we take this as a signal to go down the mountain. Rob and I scurry down ahead with the car keys, but he starts slowing down. I'm still in a panic, so I take the car keys and walk as quickly as possible. There's still lightning and thunder as I'm descending, and I'm all by myself. I'm drenched, my pants are weighing me down and preventing me from going faster. Still the thunder, still the lightning.

So I start praying, of all things. And I'm not a religious person, I'm agnostic. But I was desperate and scared. And almost as soon as I started praying, the rain and thunder start to subside. And I'm thankful to whatever God I'm now going to choose to believe in. And now I know there's a God. But there's still the occasional rumble, and my unnamed God's telling me to be careful. And I say that I'll walk with caution from now, God. And I turn into a mumbling fool.

Finally, I spot the overhang that was our first big obstacle, and I know I'm close. And the last faint rumble. I clamber into the van, and wait for my friends. They all show up. Rob and Nesbit shortly after me, followed by Bixby and Will a little while after. We're alive, and we celebrate that we're alive by going to a fried chicken place in town. Chester Fried.

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i've determined that i'm giving up on the blog every day project.
quality > quantity from here on out.