Personal Narrative- Mountain Hike Essay

After three hours of of hiking what felt like a vertical slope, the top of Mount Haystack was right in front of me. I knew that I could keep pushing through because I had suffered so much worse before. I wasn’t about to let this mere incline prevent me from reaching the top. I powered through the aching muscles and throbbing knees, while ignoring the sharp radiating pain in my calves. After what felt like forever, I was standing 5260 ft above the sea and taking in a spectacular view. When I glanced to my left, I realized I wasn’t quite at the top, I still had two more peaks to go before I’d reach the top of Lafayette. So after a few minutes of rest I got started on the rest of the hike.

Here, it is highly recommended to to use supplemental oxygen at this altitude, because the less oxygen you have, the more your brain cells die off. This means that you do not think as well and you cannot perform your best, which could mean life or death in this situation. The climax of the novel is when the team reaches their goal of making their way to the summit on May 10, 1996. The guide, Rob Hall, told the team before the climb that they had to be at the summit no later than two o’clock, and if you are not there by then, they must turn back. Around two o’clock, a massive storm begins to close in. The team must make it down to the lower camos soon or else it will be almost impossible for any of them to get back alive. Some of the climbers have not made it to to summit yet and go against Rob Hall’s judgement, and go the rest of the way themselves. Unfortunately, Jon Krakauer , Rob Hall, and all the other climbers get caught up in the storm. Jon Krakauer by a miracle gets down to the lower level camps and he has been out of supplemental oxygen for a while now. He stumbles upon one of the climbers of his team. His name is Beck Weathers. Beck eventually gets to a camp and they finally get him to the doctors at the Base Camp. When he gets to the doctors, the doctors say that he has the worst frostbite that they have ever seen.

If Mount Everest were an empire, its motto would undoubtedly be “I shall not be conquered”. However formidable, this giant which stands over 8000 meters above sea level into the sky, did not seem to intimidate the owners of the commercial guide companies, Adventure Consultants and Mountain Madness. In fact, these two firms, which earned considerable profit guiding amateurs up the mountain’s notorious heights, felt comfortable enough to attempt the ascent against the comfort of several participants. Both

Wiping the sweat from my brow I called a halt to the crew. Phil and I dumped our packs and found a comfy boulder to rest on. I looked back to where the last guys were coming from back down the trail. They had stopped talking a while back and marched slowly along the dirt trail. Phil produced an energy-bar he’d saved from breakfast and began to munch on it as I drained another water bottle. After the refreshing drink I laid back against the rock and stared up at the pine trees. But a moment later, hearing grumble about sore legs, I sat up, grinning, “By the map we only have another couple hours.”

We were all encouraged to choke down as much food as possible. Any kind of energy was essential. A melancholy atmosphere hung heavy as the journey progressed. Minutes walking slowly progressed into hours, the sky seemed to darken steadily. All of us were oblivious to the danger shrouded by the dim evening. Only moments after scaling a rather steep ledge did nature dice to turn sour. A deafening rumble made each climber perk up. Snow began to descend at an alarming rate. Thunder began to mic the steady beating of a drum, causing more concern among the ranks of climbers. The powdery snow became more of a risk than ever, climbing under pressure and leaving nothing to stand on. Third base was more than three hours away. Three hours wasn't possible at the rate. Snowfall this bad could be detrimental to the climb’s success. Snow obscured vision and numbed faces. Shouts and orders deemed lost in the screaming wind; people’s figure became shapeless blurs frantically shifting, hoping if they struggled against the wind hard enough, they might find someone. Of course, this was to no avail. Not a single person doubted their demise would come at this point: the stakes were high and no-one could play too well against Mother Nature. The snow crept up to knee-level, making it harder and harder to travel. Death and I were face-to-face. To some, they couldn't bare the idea of dying up here; they had families and friends, children who need parents and

Two men on different mountains, in different decades, sit atop snowy, windy mountains, reflecting on what got them on such a cold, towering mound of rock and snow. Jon Krakauer tells his story of climbing the Devil’s Thumb “a dozen or so years,” ago, whereas Erik Weihenmayer, a blind man, pulls you into the middle of his story of climbing Mt. Everest with a team of nineteen. Krakauer, in an attempt to escape his boring, dead-end job, ventures to climb a mountain in Alaska by himself. Jon did not succeed on the route he had originally planned on taking, but did achieve his goal of reaching the summit of the Devil’s Thumb by going a different course. However; Jon found that climbing the mountain was unsatisfactory. Weihenmayer reached the summit of Everest with few problems. Erik states that some obstacles during climbing were made invalid because of his blindness. Although both men are in similar situations, they both have very differing experiences on these summits.

After waking up at site 18, having breakfast and cleaning up, we started up the trail. In retrospect, I would have gotten ready a bit quicker, as it was getting pretty warm as we approached the peak. However, the first three quarters to one mile offered a gradual assent, mostly in the shade and along the side of a creek for a time. We paused to enjoy a small waterfall along the trail. Then it started to climb a bit steeply, and the shade became occasional places where we looked forward to stopping to relax.

Nature inspires us to accomplish big things, challenge ourselves and enlightens the desire to adventure. “Into Thin Air”, a short story by Jon Krakauer is about the expedition of climbing Mt. Everest. In the story Krakauer wrote

Once my dad arrived, we were on our way. I jumped out into the first park that we came to and the fresh new powder exalted me. We then rode over to our friend's cabin to say hello and have a Pepsi. We asked our friend, Bob to come along for the ride and he was delighted to join us. From there we cut across flat lined Twin Lake and then across the untracked Eggleston Lake. To my unpleasant surprise, we approached the lodge, and sleds were buzzing around like crows on road kill. Ten miles down the road I expected to, at least, see some other people riding, but we had the whole mountain to ourselves. We rode from mountain to mountain, crossing open drainages and gigantic playgrounds of snow one after another.

The smell of oak and pine filled my nose, the sky was blue and all you can see was the mountains and trees. It was my cousin, grandpa, uncle, my uncle's friend, then my dad and I. We were in the High sierra Mountains in california. We did not expect the trail to be this difficult. We overcame obstacles that seemed impossible. Once we arrived to the campsite we stayed their for a few days.That hike made me realize what true success really feels like.

My phone hit the floor when travel companion and sweepstakes winner Jack Johnston invited me on an all-expenses-paid Mount Logan expedition from Explorer. As avid climbers, this was the opportunity we’ve been training for but assumed was years within reach. Suddenly, it was right in front of us. Within 48 hours we were driving to Kluane National Park and Reserve with a box of granola and truck full of gear.

The soaring sandstone cliffs never cease to amaze me. They offer a freedom from everyday life. After being cooped up in a classroom all of January and February, I needed a break. Going to the slot canyons to the east of Zion was the perfect way to start that break. Spring break. Today my uncle Wade, older brother Tyler, and cousin Silver were going to climb cougars cliff, which is near Snow Canyon. This was the third time that I had ever gone rock climbing, so it seems reasonable to attempt the daunting 135 foot cliff. I climbed into a harness. Wade tied a double fisherman’s knot, and then the four of us approached the wall.

We reached the summit shortly. The view was a once in a lifetime thing. I could see ice- tipped mountains for miles. The rest of the way was downhill. But, I worried about the speed. We would be flying down the hills with no protection from the forests’ steep trenches. I was scared that we would fall off.

When we got closer to the top I could see the ocean. We went higher and higher up the mountain.

our journey came upon us. The sun had just climbed over the first huge hill and its brilliant