In his book Into Thin Air, Jon Krakauer references a term used by mountain climbers called “Summit Fever.” Summit Fever is a mental impairment that many climbers suffer from as they get closer to the peak of some great mountain. Naturally, as one gets closer to their goal, they become more driven to achieve it even if it means putting their life in danger.
I experienced Summit Fever…and then I got scared so I turned around.
I experienced Summit Fever…and then I got scared so I turned around.
Taking a step back, so far the journey has gone safe and I have already seen some amazing things, most notably the landscape of South Dakota and Montana. While our drive from Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse was long (12 hours) it was quite possibly the most scenic twelve hour drive I have ever experienced. The Dixie Chicks song, “Wide Open Spaces” kept coming into my head. Not because I was leaving my daughter at college or somewhere other than her home, but because I had never seen so much of NOTHING. Miles and miles of nothing. Not even a billboard. Traffic in either direction was few and far between except when we would hit one of the “big Montana cities” such as Billings.
My food shout-out for this blog goes to Montana Brewing Company in downtown Billings. Not only was it the best fish and chips I have had in this country, (England still takes the crown) but they had free buffalo wings on Wednesdays at 5:00. Erica and I arrived to eat at 4:55. Fate.
After leaving Billings, Erica and I hit the road and watched the long sunset. (The sun didn’t totally disappear until 10:45pm.) John Denver was spot on. The skies of Montana are wild. I have never seen skies that are so vibrant, dramatic, and eventually borderline traumatic. Immediately after passing through Helena, it was becoming clear a storm was in our midst. This is where the whole Summit Fever thing comes in. We were three hours away from our destination. We had to keep going.
After leaving Billings, Erica and I hit the road and watched the long sunset. (The sun didn’t totally disappear until 10:45pm.) John Denver was spot on. The skies of Montana are wild. I have never seen skies that are so vibrant, dramatic, and eventually borderline traumatic. Immediately after passing through Helena, it was becoming clear a storm was in our midst. This is where the whole Summit Fever thing comes in. We were three hours away from our destination. We had to keep going.
The rain started falling. Eh. I can handle this. Heavy rain and a scary sky. Used to it. I live in the Midwest. Then the Hail of God fell from the sky. Initially, I was determined to make it. For about five minutes. The hail was so loud, I could barely hear myself speak. We had to shout to each other. We turned around, waited it out, and eventually made it to our resting spot at 1:00am.
All is well. There is more to come. Stay tuned.
OK, You really got me with the reference to JD's Wild Montana Skies! Sound amazing so far, and can't wait to hear more! Glad I didn't know about the storm while we were texting last night during and after the game, though.
ReplyDelete(P.S. Coda has come down from the mountaintop and is much happier now that her arch nemesis is gone! ;-)