pray. - Love Carries You Over Mountains
August 2, 2017 marks our third anniversary. We arrived home from Canada this morning close to 1 a.m. It was one of the best trips we've taken. I'm not sure either of us expected the adventures we experienced, but often times, the unexpected adventures are the most memorable. When I met Matt the first time, I never expected to fall in love with him, but lord and behold, a year or so later we'd meet again, and he swept me off my feet. Ultimately, the unexpected is what life is all about. The unexpected is what fills life with life. It moves us out of habit into existence. The unexpected shapes us.
Day one in Canada can only be described as unexpected. We hit the road from Cochrane to Banff pretty early in the morning, after all, we were fresh and full of energy and ready to explore. We didn't have a specific plan other than to hike. I had a few print outs of scenic hikes, but we weren't really sure how to get to any of them. After entering the park, we passed the exit for Banff town center and just took the next exit. We stopped at a pull off where a small path led down to the river. It was simply breathtaking. At the top of this path was a sign that indicated we were close to the Cory Pass trail head. This was one of the hikes recommended on the print outs I had. So, we decided we'd make it our plan. After all, the print out said it was a 3 out of 5 difficulty level-moderate. We can handle that.
Once we parked, I saw a couple getting ready to start their hike, and we saw on the trail head sign to be careful since it was berry season (which means bears are likely). I remember reading that hikers should hike in groups of four. We were only two. So, what would we do? Lucky for us, God sent us two little blessings-Oudette and Nathan.
Oudette approached us and asked if they could hike the trail with us. It was a relief for me, because we didn't have bear spray (and they did), and frankly I was afraid of running into a Grizzly. Apparently, she was afraid of running into a Grizzly as well. And, so, our adventure started.
Oudette was close to 70 years old and Nathan was in his late 50s. We all started out as chatty Cathys, but the hike was easy yet. I found out Oudette was a retired middle school teacher, so you know, we had a lot to talk about. Matt and Nathan were carrying on and very quickly the hike got steep. We had been in Canada less than 24 hours, and without knowing so, we were embarking on an 8.1 mile hike with over 3,000 feet in elevation gain.
Conversing with our new friends and allowing them to pace the hike really helped pass the time and distracted our minds from what was really happening here. The climbing was tough, but we were enjoying ourselves. We were enjoying ourselves so much that some other tourists asked us to be quiet. Who keeps quiet in the woods with bear warnings? The purpose of hiking in groups is to make noise to keep the bears away. We attempted to inform them of these facts, but they didn't seem to want to hear it. Never had any of us been told we were being too loud on a hike...especially in bear country. Anyway, our climb continued...and continued...and continued...
As we gained elevation, our breathing started getting heavier, and as the morning turned into afternoon, the temperature started to rise. It was one of the hottest days Canada has had in 136 years at a high of 88 degrees Fahrenheit. We kept drinking water and taking short breaks.
We stopped at a few overlooks and at the third or fourth one Oudette pointed out the trail-on the other side of the mountain-that led to the summit of another mountain. She said we were almost there...it was at least an hour or two more and a chimney climb later. For you non-hikers (don't worry, I wasn't quite sure what a chimney was either until I had to climb down it), a chimney is a narrow vertical fissure between two rock faces or a in a rock formation (so says dictionary.com). We were REALLY high up and looking down was a really long fall, so I carried on with utmost caution. Obviously, I lived to tell about it, but you can rest assured, it was a suspenseful moment for me.
And, we kept climbing-in direct sunlight. The trail was raw, rocky, and narrow. To the left was a big, huge, humbling drop off and to the right were gargantuan mountain slopes. And, you guessed it, we kept climbing. We were feeling the pain. Matt's legs felt like lead. I couldn't look to either side of me without feeling like I'd lose my balance and go crashing to my death. All I could do was look straight down at the ground and watch my feet take one step at a time. I had to focus so hard.
Finally, we could see the summit. We made it to the pass. We found a grassy area to eat the reminder of our packed lunch. Then, Matt starts complaining about not feeling well. Matt never complains unless it's bad. He couldn't eat and laid down on his back pack to rest. When I looked over at him, his lips were blue-purple and his face was colorless. He looked really sick. He complained about his stomach not feeling right. Oudette and Nathan kept tell him to drink more water and eat. They kept saying it was most likely altitude sickness. It happened so fast.
After a few minutes, I asked Matt if he wanted to just start hiking back down in case it was altitude sickness. He shook his head yes. He made it about 20 steps before projectile vomiting. Every ounce of food and water exited his body on top that mountain. And, little, did we know the hike down would take 2-3 hours. After releasing whatever was bothering his insides, he said he felt better, so we started our descent.
The first half mile or more was a steep descent on slippery loose rocks. With every step, I thought I would just slide on down the mountain as if the rocks were rollers ready to roll me down. It was terrifying. I was cussing. I couldn't get firm footing or steady stepping. And, every time I looked back at Matt, he looked worse and worse as if he were going to pass out. I got worried. He was having to stop every few feet to rest. He was colorless again. He didn't have the strength to get down these f***ing rocks. It was hell.
Oudette and Nathan led the way stopping to wait on us. They were so patient and tried coaching us down with every step. All I wanted was to be out of the sun and away from these damn rocks. After about 45 minutes, we finally made it to the tree line into the shade and off the rocks. I thought it would all be better until I saw Matt's face again. He looked worse and was really struggling. Eventually, he just couldn't go anymore, and we stopped.
We let him lay on the ground to rest. My stomach churned, because I just knew we were going to have to get a helicopter to lift him out of these woods. He looked so sick, and we had three quarters of the mountain still to climb down. As we were climbing through hell, we ran out of water. Shortly after, Nathan ran out of water. Oudette had about 1/4 of her water left and shared it with Matt. As he laid resting in the grass, we kept telling him to sip the water. I remember him saying to me, "I just want to sleep." I remember thinking oh no, you can't sleep-you can't die. After about 20 minutes, he said he was ready to go some more.
The descent continued and Matt was a trooper. There were no more stops except very short ones. I don't know how Matt pushed through, but he did. And, as we got closer to the base of the mountain, the more social he became. His color starting coming back. His lips were red again. He sounded like himself. I could tell his was better-not 100%-but much better. As he got better, I felt better. And, all the way down that mountain, I praised God we had made it.
We ended up picking up two younger ladies on our way down. They were gassed and afraid of running into a bear. So, all six of us finished the descent together. When we reached flat land and could hear the highway again, we all cheered and clapped and shared how happy we were.
I've never been so happy to see a parking lot. We were wiped, and Matt was dehydrated. We all said our goodbyes, and we thanked Oudette and Nathan for all their help and patience. The unexpected had not killed us. The unexpected awakened us. The unexpected kicked our ass, yet we lived to tell about it.
God's earth is humbling. It's rugged, raw, and unforgiving. It's a reminder that we are not in control of this great big universe nor do we have any control of what lies ahead. We are merely specks. We are nothing without God's grace, protection, and love. God places people in the universe on purpose and for a purpose. Sometimes, their purpose is to embrace strangers at the base of a mountain and love them enough to guide them safely over God's toughest creations. This is as true for our unexpected adventure with Oudette and Nathan as it is for our marriage.
May you all find love that will carry you over mountains.
Day one in Canada can only be described as unexpected. We hit the road from Cochrane to Banff pretty early in the morning, after all, we were fresh and full of energy and ready to explore. We didn't have a specific plan other than to hike. I had a few print outs of scenic hikes, but we weren't really sure how to get to any of them. After entering the park, we passed the exit for Banff town center and just took the next exit. We stopped at a pull off where a small path led down to the river. It was simply breathtaking. At the top of this path was a sign that indicated we were close to the Cory Pass trail head. This was one of the hikes recommended on the print outs I had. So, we decided we'd make it our plan. After all, the print out said it was a 3 out of 5 difficulty level-moderate. We can handle that.
Once we parked, I saw a couple getting ready to start their hike, and we saw on the trail head sign to be careful since it was berry season (which means bears are likely). I remember reading that hikers should hike in groups of four. We were only two. So, what would we do? Lucky for us, God sent us two little blessings-Oudette and Nathan.
Oudette approached us and asked if they could hike the trail with us. It was a relief for me, because we didn't have bear spray (and they did), and frankly I was afraid of running into a Grizzly. Apparently, she was afraid of running into a Grizzly as well. And, so, our adventure started.
Oudette was close to 70 years old and Nathan was in his late 50s. We all started out as chatty Cathys, but the hike was easy yet. I found out Oudette was a retired middle school teacher, so you know, we had a lot to talk about. Matt and Nathan were carrying on and very quickly the hike got steep. We had been in Canada less than 24 hours, and without knowing so, we were embarking on an 8.1 mile hike with over 3,000 feet in elevation gain.
Conversing with our new friends and allowing them to pace the hike really helped pass the time and distracted our minds from what was really happening here. The climbing was tough, but we were enjoying ourselves. We were enjoying ourselves so much that some other tourists asked us to be quiet. Who keeps quiet in the woods with bear warnings? The purpose of hiking in groups is to make noise to keep the bears away. We attempted to inform them of these facts, but they didn't seem to want to hear it. Never had any of us been told we were being too loud on a hike...especially in bear country. Anyway, our climb continued...and continued...and continued...
As we gained elevation, our breathing started getting heavier, and as the morning turned into afternoon, the temperature started to rise. It was one of the hottest days Canada has had in 136 years at a high of 88 degrees Fahrenheit. We kept drinking water and taking short breaks.
We stopped at a few overlooks and at the third or fourth one Oudette pointed out the trail-on the other side of the mountain-that led to the summit of another mountain. She said we were almost there...it was at least an hour or two more and a chimney climb later. For you non-hikers (don't worry, I wasn't quite sure what a chimney was either until I had to climb down it), a chimney is a narrow vertical fissure between two rock faces or a in a rock formation (so says dictionary.com). We were REALLY high up and looking down was a really long fall, so I carried on with utmost caution. Obviously, I lived to tell about it, but you can rest assured, it was a suspenseful moment for me.
And, we kept climbing-in direct sunlight. The trail was raw, rocky, and narrow. To the left was a big, huge, humbling drop off and to the right were gargantuan mountain slopes. And, you guessed it, we kept climbing. We were feeling the pain. Matt's legs felt like lead. I couldn't look to either side of me without feeling like I'd lose my balance and go crashing to my death. All I could do was look straight down at the ground and watch my feet take one step at a time. I had to focus so hard.
Finally, we could see the summit. We made it to the pass. We found a grassy area to eat the reminder of our packed lunch. Then, Matt starts complaining about not feeling well. Matt never complains unless it's bad. He couldn't eat and laid down on his back pack to rest. When I looked over at him, his lips were blue-purple and his face was colorless. He looked really sick. He complained about his stomach not feeling right. Oudette and Nathan kept tell him to drink more water and eat. They kept saying it was most likely altitude sickness. It happened so fast.
After a few minutes, I asked Matt if he wanted to just start hiking back down in case it was altitude sickness. He shook his head yes. He made it about 20 steps before projectile vomiting. Every ounce of food and water exited his body on top that mountain. And, little, did we know the hike down would take 2-3 hours. After releasing whatever was bothering his insides, he said he felt better, so we started our descent.
The first half mile or more was a steep descent on slippery loose rocks. With every step, I thought I would just slide on down the mountain as if the rocks were rollers ready to roll me down. It was terrifying. I was cussing. I couldn't get firm footing or steady stepping. And, every time I looked back at Matt, he looked worse and worse as if he were going to pass out. I got worried. He was having to stop every few feet to rest. He was colorless again. He didn't have the strength to get down these f***ing rocks. It was hell.
Oudette and Nathan led the way stopping to wait on us. They were so patient and tried coaching us down with every step. All I wanted was to be out of the sun and away from these damn rocks. After about 45 minutes, we finally made it to the tree line into the shade and off the rocks. I thought it would all be better until I saw Matt's face again. He looked worse and was really struggling. Eventually, he just couldn't go anymore, and we stopped.
We let him lay on the ground to rest. My stomach churned, because I just knew we were going to have to get a helicopter to lift him out of these woods. He looked so sick, and we had three quarters of the mountain still to climb down. As we were climbing through hell, we ran out of water. Shortly after, Nathan ran out of water. Oudette had about 1/4 of her water left and shared it with Matt. As he laid resting in the grass, we kept telling him to sip the water. I remember him saying to me, "I just want to sleep." I remember thinking oh no, you can't sleep-you can't die. After about 20 minutes, he said he was ready to go some more.
The descent continued and Matt was a trooper. There were no more stops except very short ones. I don't know how Matt pushed through, but he did. And, as we got closer to the base of the mountain, the more social he became. His color starting coming back. His lips were red again. He sounded like himself. I could tell his was better-not 100%-but much better. As he got better, I felt better. And, all the way down that mountain, I praised God we had made it.
We ended up picking up two younger ladies on our way down. They were gassed and afraid of running into a bear. So, all six of us finished the descent together. When we reached flat land and could hear the highway again, we all cheered and clapped and shared how happy we were.
I've never been so happy to see a parking lot. We were wiped, and Matt was dehydrated. We all said our goodbyes, and we thanked Oudette and Nathan for all their help and patience. The unexpected had not killed us. The unexpected awakened us. The unexpected kicked our ass, yet we lived to tell about it.
God's earth is humbling. It's rugged, raw, and unforgiving. It's a reminder that we are not in control of this great big universe nor do we have any control of what lies ahead. We are merely specks. We are nothing without God's grace, protection, and love. God places people in the universe on purpose and for a purpose. Sometimes, their purpose is to embrace strangers at the base of a mountain and love them enough to guide them safely over God's toughest creations. This is as true for our unexpected adventure with Oudette and Nathan as it is for our marriage.
May you all find love that will carry you over mountains.
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