I accomplished one of my Colorado goals today by hiking a 14'er. ( For the midwesterners, a 14'er is a mountain 14,000 feet high above sea level. As far as I know, it's the highest type of mountain you can hike in the US.) AND I DID IT!
Last year when Erin called me one day all excited about climbing a 14'er, I thought to myself "Why would you do that to yourself? That sounds awful!" But, after moving out here, I realized it's just something you have to experience and I'm so glad I did.
Granted, it was AWFUL until you actually get to the summit (the peak), but as I've been told by some of my friends, if you can hike a 14'er, you feel like you can do anything in the world. It's true. I feel pretty darn good about myself haha. I sound cocky, I know ;)
We started out the trip by camping Friday night, and setting out early Saturday morning to get to the base of the mountain. We went to Mount Democrat, which is a 4 mile round trip hike (VERY short compared to other peaks, like Pike's Peak) There were four of us who had never hiked a 14'er before, so we stuck together and took ALOT of breaks. Like seriously, you would hike maybe 20 feet and need to stop for air or to give your legs a break. Half the time you didn't know if it was worse that you couldn't breathe or that your legs felt like jelly.
The trail was very rocky and steep, but thankfully, the weather was PERFECT and the company was great. We also had a few sayings to get us through the day: Si, se puede! (Yes, we can!) and Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." So, here are the pictures!
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| The four beginners a wee bit nervous about the big hike =) |
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| Dana and I only about a 1/8 way up. Notice how we are in tank tops in the snow. You have to bring so many layers due to the change in weather throughout the hike. |
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| Just gorgeous. |
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| Getting closer! |
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| The four beginners DID IT! Me, Katie, Ashley and Kim at the top. |
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| Mount Democrat. 14,148 ft high. God is so good. |
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| Do you see how close the clouds are? Probably why I couldn't breathe and had such a bad headache. And got burnt. =) |
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| Roomies! |
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| I just want my family to see that a WESTIE climbed up the 14'er! I was so impressed. Crystal would have NEVER made it up haha. |
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| I did it! Thank you Lord for giving me the strength and allowing me to see your beautiful creation! |
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Great weekend but I'm ready to crash. And I go home on Wednesday- I love summer!
4 comments:
I'am impressed that you all did the 14er, pics are good! you are right Crystal woud not have made it! Dad
How in the world did that dog climb a mountain? And where was your sunscreen? :) You look super cute and I'm very impressed. The pics are gorgeous!
Wow, how beautiful! I'm so impressed that you did it! But then again, you rock, and can do anything you put your mind to. Love you girl!
Your pictures are breathtaking! God is so creative!
I am proud that you set goals and then go about doing whatever it takes to accomplish them: I can think of quite a few just as I'm writing this that you have already completed. Can't wait to see you, baby girl. Love you, Mom
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