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This page contains links to the Adventure Seekers Hike status reports.
For information about scheduled events and project milestones, see our Schedule page.
Well, the Baldy hike took place and was eventful to say the least. The
ski
lift was broken down and the parking lot was closed. This meant we had to
park off the road where you needed an Adventure Pass. This prompted a few
people to drive back down the hill to get day passes.
Since we couldn't take the lift to higher elevation, we had to do a much
longer hike. We went up the ski hut trail. For a starter hike that
had 3
kids 12 and under, this was pretty tough. After two miles, we reached the
hut where 3 of the 12 people turned around and went back down. I can tell
you there was nothing wrong with that. If it wasn't for the determination
of the rest of the group, most of us would have turned around.
The next 2 miles were difficult. We also were under prepared as a group as
far as water goes so this made me a little more uncomfortable. Knowing
that
we could run out of water either before the top or just afterward, we had to
ration the intake.
After about 4.5 hours of hiking we finally summited. At this point, we had
hiked about 4 miles and gained about 3800 feet. My son, who had been
complaining since the climb from the hut, couldn't sit because he was so
excited. The other hikers on top couldn't believe he was only 8! I
must
tell you that all of the kids did a great job. Nelson's daughter Stephanie
,10, couldn't be stopped. She didn't complain once. Even his son
Isaac,
12, had a sucker in his mouth most of the way up.
We were lucky enough to meet someone who had brought a lot of extra water.
He filled most of our bottles before we started our descent. We decided to
the trail that would lead us to the ski lift instead of heading back the way
we came. The steep slope from our ascent would be too much for most of our
legs. There is only one section where you had to be careful because of the
drop on both sides. Watching my son walking a little ungracefully prompted
me to hold his hand. Other than that, we all managed.
By the time we reached the car, it had taken us 7 hours to complete the
hike. We caught up with the first three at a bar down the road. By
the
look of relaxation, I don't think they missed us much. It was a relief
however to have that beer!
Even though the hike turned out to be much more than expected, I think
everyone thought it was a success. I'm proud of the kids for toughing it
out. They were definitely the ones who desire medals here. I
also think
it taught those of us who are going to do the San Jacinto hike how much work
we have to do. We really need to work on conditioning and food and water
preparation.
Now, the next hike is August 27th. This a 4 star hike to Dollar Lake in
the
San Bernardino Mtns. We are going to lose some people from this hike but
I'm hoping we can acquire some more. Think about going and let me know.
Oh
and don't forget, keep training!
John
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