Come on an adventure with me.

There it is…  We finally made it to the tree line.  An increasingly dense pine wilderness lies behind us.  Ahead of us, the trail winds through a wilderness of brownish-gray boulders… to higher and higher elevations where plants can no longer survive.  What awaits us across the boulder field and on the other side of the mountain pass is the unknown.  Surely, there will be more boulder fields, more pine forests, and more raging rivers to cross.  What lies ahead of us is our future.  That’s where we’re going.  That’s where the trail is taking us.  Our fate is relying on this dirt path underneath our feet. 

Breathing deeply to catch your breath, you wait while the other hikers meet you at the tree line, for this is the last safe place for miles.  The last safe place to shelter from the storm.  Look up at what awaits you.  The highest mountain pass to-date.  13,200 feet.  There is a storm lingering over the 13,200 foot pass. 

Today is day 18 on the trail.  We’ve already experienced storms.  Many storms.  Storms that make you cower within the confines of your tent.  You’ve seen lighting strikes and heard thunder like never before.  Thunder that echoed on the mountains surrounding you while you’re sitting in the darkness, counting the seconds between lighting and thunder in order to gauge where you were in relation to the heart of the storm. 

The clouds above the mountain are dark with anger.  They started to move… but slowly.  There was no way of telling how far the black clouds stretched on the other side of the mountain.  Reports from other hikers with a weather beacon were saying that the storms were going to get worse.  We watched the clouds hoping for a sign that the storm was going to dissipate.  That sign wasn’t coming.  We have to get over this pass today to finish the trail.  We had to make a decision.  Go or no go.  Go now and risk the storm that is hovering over the pass or wait and potentially get trapped on the wrong side of the mountain due to worsening storms. 

The group decided to go.  Before leaving the safety of the tree line, you hear another hiker say, “We’re either going to do something really hardcore or really stupid.” 

One by one the group of four falls in line on the trail.  With the leader setting the pace.  Shortly after entering the field of boulders the sky begins to mist on the land.  Rain hoods go up to protect your eyes from the water.  Losing focus on your foot placement on this rocky mountainside would be a disaster, because we’re days away from the closest town. 

The wind is increasing as we get higher and into more exposed areas.  Following the winding trail, we find ourselves on an exposed ridge looking straight towards the mountain.  Looking up, you can see other hikers that already made it to the top of the pass.  They came from the other side… they came from our unknown.  What’s over there? 

We kept walking.  There was more distance to cover before we were at the pass.  The wind gusts picked up on the ridge.  Quickly, you turn your back to the wind to shield your face!  The storm’s gusts were picking up pebbles and flinging them through the air.  You wait.  As the wind calms, the group continues their trek to the top. 

Stronger gusts begin again!  The group halts in place while two people drop to the ground and the other two slam their poles into the dirt and brace themselves against the tornado-like wind.  The strong forces continue, but the gusts subside enough to make it safe to move again.  Fighting against the force of nature, you continue to trudge against the storm.  More unearthly gusts push against you.  Hikers slam their poles into the dirt or fall to the ground for safety.  Bracing ourselves until it is again safe to move for we are on an exposed ridge with sloped, rocky sides… 

Eventually, we find a reprieve on the other side of a big boulder.  Take this time to catch your breath, slow your racing heart, and rejoice that we made it this far!  But don’t take too long, we aren’t there yet. 

The clouds are still lingering, but the mist has stopped.  Back on the side of the mountain the group is approaching the first snow crossing.  Then again, the wonders and dangers of the wilderness stop us in our tracks.  We watch as a large rock tumbles down the mountain and jumps across the trail right before the snow.  The wind had blown it loose from its previous home on the steep side of the mountain.  Now, we had to watch for falling rocks in addition to bracing against strong winds, watching our footing on the unsteady rocks that covered the trail, and being cautious while crossing the fields of snow. 

We slam our feet into the snow-covered ground with every step.  This is the best way to ensure adequate footing and avoid slipping and sliding down the snow covered slope towards the jagged rocks at the bottom.  While at the same time, jamming our poles into the ground for extra stability, but still being ready to whip them around in front of us to perform a self-arrest in case you did slip and start sliding down the snow towards the rocks. 

We were able to avoid the other snow fields by scrambling across the rocks and climbing straight up the mountain instead of continuing on the long, gradual switchbacks.  The loose dirt and rocks would spill down the mountain as our footsteps disturbed their resting place. 

We kept pushing.  Step after step.  Rock after rock.  Soon we crested the top of the brownish-gray boulders of Forester Pass.  Behind us was over two weeks of trail that we meticulously walked on.  Day after day.  Ahead of us, is the vast unknown of the Sierra Nevada wilderness.  On top of Forester Pass are the other hikers that became our trail family.  The people we camped with, laughed with, and made go/no-go decisions with.  We were all there, present, living in the moment.  We were all just fellow adventurers casually hanging out on top of a mountain pass.  But we couldn’t stay for long for we had more miles to travel into the unknown.