PART I
I have owed Rosie a backpacking trip for a year,
this Friday was finally her day. I was going to make another attempt at Lewis
Peak, with the hopes that an overnighter would get us there, even if on 5 yr
old legs. That was the hope. I had to work Friday so I thought I would simplify
the whole process and just leave right after dinner. Leave the stove and pots
at home. Good concept, but hard to get dinner on the table early when I'm
preoccupied with getting our packs ready to go. One delay after the next and we
hit the trail at 8:00, just past Rosie's bedtime. The first two miles is just
uphill switchbacks. Rosie is a good sport, but talks constantly and frequently stops
to help make her point. Cute enough, but we need to get to camp before dark.
Things go better when I take the lead and she follows along. She gets a little
tired, but quick breaks keep her going. We reach the ridge just in time before
dark. Didn't need lights for the hike, but needed to setup the tent. We enjoy
some freeze-dried ice cream and hit the sack.
Rosie sleeps really well, but I am reminded my
body does not enjoy sleeping on the ground as much as it used to. We get up
early, so Rosie went to bed 2 hrs late and got up 2 hrs early. This is going to
be fun. We chow and break down camp and are on the trail by 7:00. We move along
as best as can be hoped for for several miles. We make it just passed Eyrie
Peak and take a break in the shade. We are still a mile short of Lewis Peak.
Even if Rosie was up for it, I don't think we would make it back by lunch. I
don't think Rosie is up for it.
PART II
It is always easy to see afterwards where you
might have misstepped or misspoke. As we took our long break in my head I
thought, if I could just get Rosie to make it to Lewis Peak, then maybe she
could sit or stand on my tent and I could hike her out. It didn't seem like a
great or even possible idea, but I must have mumbled something about it as I
thought it over. Rosie took note. I decide for the 4th time in a row to turn
back short of a summit. Even after a long break she immediately is distraught
and not happy to be moving along or even be there. She drags her poles. She
cries real tears. I coach her along with a promise of another break at the next
spot of shade. By the time we get there she is incoherent. I offer her more
food and a nap. Yes and no. I have to dig myself out of this hole. The trail
climbs for the next half mile. I'll let Rosie ride my backpack, then all she
will have to do is downhill. She sits on my tent and holds on to her poles strapped
on my backpack. This is hard. Not just from a too-much-weight-for-an-out-of-shape-dad
type of way, but from a Cg way out of line type of way. I lean forward but each
step is fighting to stay upright.
Backpacking is about still going even when it's
hard. That's what I tell my kids. Fortunately it was hard for Rosie to hold on.
She realized walking was easier than this and got down after a hundred yards.
She was much more compliant the rest of the hike with almost a break down as I pushed
to get us off the ridge. I had a cookie for her afterward so it was all good.
We both walked right by a coiled rattlesnake less than a foot off the trail.
After passing I realized the rattle and hissing were not from the grasshoppers.
Close call. We finish the hike and are home by 1:00. I post a picture on
Facebook of Rosie on the trail, flexing her bicep and smiling with Ben Lomond
in the background. The caption says "This is Rosie. She hiked 7 miles
before lunch. What did you do today?" The fans go wild.
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| This is Rosie. She hiked 7 miles before lunch. What did you do today? -95 likes |
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