Hard Hogback Hike

Actually, a regular hike would have been easy, but this one involved snowshoes and heavy, thick snow.  Every year when it snows heavy and I can’t run or ride, I strap the snowshoes on and head for a saddle in the Hogback that rises about 800 feet in a little over a mile.  Traveling that distance today took twice as long as normal, because for every three steps forward, I literally took a step back based on poor footing due to hidden, angled and slick boulders.  It was the first time I’ve done this particular hike and wondered if I was going to make it to the top.  I wavered between telling myself the conditions were way worse than in the past, and part of me not admitting I’m getting older.  I stayed focused on how good it was going to be once I reached the top, and kept imagining seeing myself descending in the same tracks… telling my ascending self that I was doing a good job.  It made me think that any accomplishment costs something.  To have that great sense of accomplishment on top of that ridge, I just needed to keep planting one foot in front of the other.  The price would be a little discomfort, but knowing that my drive over-powered any self-doubt was the real reward.  A small price to pay and it’s a good reminder to me that it applies to all those other things on my list to get done.  Just keep pushing forward despite slips, falls and setbacks.  In the end, it’s worth it.