Back Home Again--family email

Well I got home last night and have had an entire day back and am still tired. I don’t know why. Over the past 12 days I rode or drove on two 810 mile trips (14-15 hours). The highlight on the way out was lunch and supper at Subway (in two different towns)! In between the bookend drive days, I climbed more than 17000 vertical feet and hiked almost 50 miles. Some of it had a really heavy pack on my back—I would need to pack less and lighter to do it again. I summitted two new mountains to bring my 14ers total to 7 (out of 54). I failed on the way up to Challenger Point—not a physical bonk, but an emotional one. The main mountain the first trip was Uncompaghre. Here is a photo from first light after sunrise when we had just got on the trail. It’s over 4 miles away and 3000 vertical feet up.

Here is a better picture showing what an amazing peak it really is. We hiked through the meadow, around to the left, up to a ridge and then back to the edge of the cliff bands on the left side of the picture. There we had to scramble about 200 vertical feet up through a little gully and then 300 more vertical feet to the top.

Here is a picture of Levi and me at the top! (or close to is, because he must be standing uphill from me!) It was a great trip and I hope to get an entire photo album on photobucket soon. There were 29 guys in the first trip and all of them made it to the top of Uncompaghre. The second trip had 27 guys and all but 3 summitted. There was a case of altitude sickness that stopped one man about 500 feet short of the summit and so two others took him down a ways and stayed with him.

I have again realized how great a privilege it is to climb some of these mountains. The experience is exhilarating, we had lots of fun, and we focused on the reality that God is enough for us. I got to teach and focused on Jesus being the help for the deepest part of our hearts, as being the one who can help us keep our bearings when life gets difficult, and as the great Friend who helps us keep company with others on our path through life.

grace