INCREDIBLY Thankful that God Saw Fit to Get Tristan off the Trail…
Time to Say Goodbye to My Company…
1 April 2021
Celebrate the Risen Son of God. Happy Easter!
5 April 2021
(April 1 & 2)— This was the day after Tristan headed home…3 days ago. I am INCREDIBLY thankful that God saw fit to get Tristan off the trail! I had no idea, and neither did the weather forecasters, just how bad this front would be on these mountains! That night had wind circling with such power….I was safe & protected in my tent and just listened with a sense of awe & wonder and complete peace (from God, I know). Then, came the torrential rain. I picked my tent site because it was flat….I awoke with my tent in a puddle because it was flat. BUT, I was dry inside….so thankful for my great equipment. I got packed up in the rain and headed out…then hiked in rain, puddles, and rivers all day.
I stopped after only 5 miles (as I knew I couldn’t make 16 miles to town) and decided to sleep in a shelter since “snow flurries” were expected and my tent was wet. That night brought winds with frightening force and I was thankful to be under cover. When the snow came, it WAS NOT flurries!!! It was snow, ice, freezing wind! I woke up covered in ice and snow! Everything, except my boots, was frozen. The 3 other hikers had hiked in shoes and their shoes were frozen solid! I was thankful for my boots. It was a chaotic unpleasant freezing morning getting all my frozen things packed up but my body was completely warm all day in that horrible weather…as long as I was moving! My fingers were the exception and they stayed cold until I was over the 5.5 mile exposed mountain top. No permanent damage….just uncomfortable for several hours.
I prayed the evening before for protection and received it! Two hikers left at 6:45am when I couldn’t even think about getting out of my sleeping bag! I asked the other one, a 40-something guy, if I could hike with him and he agreed. I cannot tell you how thankful I was for another person on that mountain! We were usually 50-100 yards apart but at least I knew he would not leave me if something happened. So very thankful for kind people.
