run. pray. - Yellowstone Part One: Mt. Washburn Hike

December 2015, my cousin, April, and I registered for the Yellowstone Half Marathon. Little did I know, I'd end up running it alone (April is a vivacious soul and broke her foot a few weeks into training. We won't get into the details of how she did that). However, I had two of the BEST cheerleaders to tackle this adventure with. It seemed as though June 8th (our departure date) would never get here. But, let me tell you, it got here right when it was needed most - the first day of my summer vacation (teacher friends, you know what I'm talking about). 

 Matt and I flew out of Charlotte, NC and met up with April in Denver, CO. When we landed in Bozeman, MT, we got the keys to the rental car and the most breathtaking trip of our lives officially started. I knew it was going to be one for the books when my phone couldn't pick up service (Sprint must not have towers in MT and WY. Also, it cut me off from social media, & it was great!), and we walked out of the airport and saw that Rockie Mountain sunset. The sunset was April's first view of the Rockies and the west. My heart was so HAPPY for her!

Since our flight got in fairly late, we drove to Livingston and stayed the night in a hotel. Things I learned from Livingston:

 1. Better eat dinner before 9:30, because all the restaurants and stores shut down EARLY. They were all closed or had stopped serving food by 9:30. April and I had to eat a Cup of Noodles from the hotel vending machine for dinner. Matt opted for a beer diet from the hotel bar.

 2. You know it gets cold somewhere when they have HEATED parking garages. How come the south doesn't have AIR CONDITIONED parking garages?

 We slept well and were awake by 5:30 a.m. (thanks time change!). The hotel breakfast buffet made up for not serving food the night before. We nourished our bodies and hit the road to Yellowstone. It was about an hour drive on a scenic highway through Gallatin National Forest. There were lots and lots of ranches and the landscape was beautiful. We stopped numerous times for photo shoots along the way. The drive was  peaceful, and the car was full of excitement and happiness. Then, we arrived at the north gate.
Within the first 10 minutes, I spotted elk near Mammoth Hot Springs. I couldn't control myself. Matt pulled over, and we started snapping a million pictures. We hopped back into the car, found a parking spot, and explored Mammoth Hot Springs. I've never seen anything like it! The smell of sulphur filled the air, but the colors that radiated from the springs were unbelievable. I learned the colors we saw were thermophiles, microscopic organisms that survive in extreme conditions. So cool.
We spent an hour or so exploring and ooohhing and ahhing. Then, jumped on the Grand Loop. Our priority the first day was to hike to the peak of Mt. Washburn. So, we had to be careful timing everything out. Heading out of Mammoth Hot Springs toward Tower-Roosevelt Junction, we had our first bison encounter. Talking about excitement filling the car...I just couldn't hold it back! We were able to pull over and get a picture. IT WAS JUST ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ROAD minding its business grazing. 

 I got control of myself, and we started driving again. The views were definitely the work of God. We stopped to view the petrified Redwood tree. It was incredible to be looking at a tree that was millions of years old. As we got closer to Mt. Washburn, we started seeing all the snowcapped mountains up close. To see mounds of snow on the side of the road in June was mind blowing.  We found the pull off spot for Mt. Washburn and took off to the trailhead. 

 This hike was very spiritual for me. Matt and April noticed a building on top of the mountain...it looked so tiny from where we were on the trail. Little did they know, that tiny building was our destination - about a three mile hike up a mountain. As we climbed higher in elevation, snow covered the trail. It was tough to trek through, but we did it. The views and sights from our climb brought me to tears a few times (I'm so glad I had on sunglasses). About halfway up, we stopped to take some pictures, because the view was inconceivable. April and I were slightly ahead of Matt, because he was busy snapping some crazy awesome photos, and when I turned around to see his face as he approached this ledge, my heart melted. At that moment, everything in the world was perfect and peaceful. Matt's face was overcome with awe and true happiness. April looked as if she were in a place of utter serenity. I felt like God had paused life for me with impeccable timing. All I knew to say was, "How could you see all of this and not believe in God?"

 Once we all took our moment, we continued up the mountain. The wind was incredible, and we finally made it to the tiny building that Matt and April had spotted at the bottom of the trail. We were over 10,000 feet in elevation. There were big horn sheep grazing on the side of the mountain. We could see the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. I felt so close to God up there. It was like my prayers would reach Him faster, or He could hear me better. It was an overwhelming feeling of accomplishment (because we had finally made the hike up) and an overwhelming feeling of peace and gratitude. 

 Matt being the friendly guy he is met Darius. Darius and a friend of his have been living out of their car for the past year...by choice. His birthday was approaching (the next day), and we learned that Darius was on an adventure unlike any other. He and his friend were visiting all 59 national parks (a blog worth checking out http://59in59.com/). We ended up hiking down the mountain with Darius and exchanging numbers with him. We plan to meet up with him at Congaree National Park at the end of August.

 By the time we got down the mountain and to Canyon Village, we were all getting pretty exhausted. But, we managed a couple more miles of hiking around Lower Falls, and I'm glad we toughed it out. The Lower Falls view was ridiculous beautiful. 

 Needless to say we all slept like babies that night. 

 What I took from our first day in the park and our hike to Mt. Washburn is this: Humans are a tiny speck of what makes up the world. We are small. Yes, we matter, but God's world is much bigger than us. We are not in control nor do we have the almighty power to gain control. The universe brings people and experiences together for a reason, and if we do not take the time to slow down, pay attention, and take it all in, we will miss the smidgen of opportunity granted to us that connects us to something much bigger than we are. 





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