Insurance renewal, manipulating System Engine Optimization for that illusive internet presence, license updating, and locating a new office – because your present office building just sold. Ugh! Remember Hates-Red-Tape from last week’s blog (Healing Parts through Parts Work)? On overload, she is looking rather green and sickly this afternoon. But for once, Hates-Red-Tape thinks to check in on Loves-to-Bike who has been not so quietly pouting in the corner. She is not getting her regular dose of nature therapy and sunshine and unhappy about it. Loves-to-Bike persuades Hates-Red-Tape to get much-needed daylight and fresh air. That evening, they bash it over with Camp Buddy and all decide to head south to go climb a Colorado mountain.
Once in the car, Hates-Red-Tape is a bit more perky and agreeable and Loves-to-Bike is ecstatic. We arrive at our destination, set up camp, have dinner, and plan the route up Redcloud Peak. It’s a gorgeous, invigorating summer-time Colorado evening, here in the middle of the San Juan mountains and excitement is in the high-altitude air.
Predawn, we wake up and have a small breakfast. It’s cold – frost on the windshield to prove it. Up the road, at the base, there are gobs of cars and trucks, a roaming dog or two, but just a few people milling around. Evidently, a very early start is protocol. Packs loaded with lunch and plenty of water we begin our ascent. We chat with a couple other climbers that quickly leave us in the dust.
A stream that occasionally cascades into waterfalls, dominates the narrow canyon. Further up, there is snow and ice to navigate. Further up yet again, there is scree (loose rock that covers the slopes) and fresh avalanche shoots that have torn out the trail. We slip and slide on the icy, snow-packed areas, kink ankles on scree, and climb up and over downed timber. The notable 2018-2019 winter left its mark – timber carcasses strewn all over. Evidence of the exact authority of an avalanche leaves a humbling impression. We are overpowered by a sense of the capacity of Nature. It dampens the pretense of our invincibility, but not our conviction to carry on. More snow, scree, and ice. And still more snow, scree, and ice.
Finally, the canyon opens up and the sun makes its welcomed appearance on topography in front of us. We catch our breath and size-up the rest of the climb. Comparing what’s in front to what’s behind, it looks like we have only put a small dent in our ascent. We momentarily question if we have the tenacity to pull this off. But Loves-to-Bike eggs the rest of us on.
– Stay tuned –
