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| Noah, Steph, Linds and I on the trail of Stuart Peak. It was wonderful to have these three lovely people on the trail throughout the day! |
Route: Rattlesnake Main Trailhead to Stuart Peak summit to
Main Trailhead to Stuart Peak summit to Main Trailhead (via trail 517)
Elevation exchange: ~16,800 feet (8,400 ascent, 8,400
descent)
Total Distance: ~38 miles
Total Elapsed time: 8 hours 48 minutes (includes 9-minute
footwear change between laps)
Mode of travel: power hiking (no running)
I don’t think it is an accident that we, as humans, have
come to celebrate the days of our births. It hasn’t always been this way, but I
suspect that, henceforth, it will remain this way.
Birthdays serve as milestones: opportunities to stop, breath
and celebrate.
Tomorrow I turn 29. Last year, at this time, tomorrow was
28. And next year? Well, next year tomorrow I will turn 30 and finally have the
opportunity to celebrate my ‘golden’ birthday, a milestone unto itself.
Since my 21st birthday, I have pitted my mind and
body against endurance challenges in an effort to stretch my sense of what is
possible. It began as annual distance runs at the distance of my new age.
Rheumatoid arthritis and knee problems in my mid-twenties forced a shift from
running to alternate endurance feats i.e. mountain ascents, hiking,
mountaineering, long-distance stationary biking.
For last year’s birthday challenge, I hiked/climbed Stuart
Peak and a neighboring peak in winter conditions, beginning at my house in
central Missoula. The outing was ~31 miles and full of joy!
This year, looking to up the ante, I set my sights on a
Stuart Peak double round-trip. Rather than a single out-and-back or a loop, I
wanted to pit my mind against the concept of doubling up on a long trail.
Stuart Peak provides an 18-19 mile round-trip experience on a relatively flat
trail (~4,200 vertical gain). The mountain is often done in two days or a
single long day. My goal was to do it twice in less than 10 hours (although
doing it at all would be an accomplishment in my books!).
Here we go.
Illuminated by headlamp, I hit the trail at 6:20AM. I would
remain under the guidance of the light for the next hour and a half.
The trail went off wonderfully. I had done ~27 miles on this
trail a couple of weeks ago and over the years have come to know its every
twist, turn, steeps and flats. On several occasions I caught the ‘deer in the
headlamp’ looks of, well, deer. Companions!
About 6 miles up the trail I doffed my headlamp, allowing
the predawn light to illuminate the way. The cloud ceiling oscillated between
8,000-9,000 feet (the summit of Stuart and most of the surrounding mountains is
~8,000 feet). This made for a lovely dawn as the broken clouds made allowance
for the rising sun, permitting its rays to strike the upper reaches of the
Rattlesnake Mountains.
I hit the wilderness boundary in good spirits. How could I
not! It was such a freaking beautiful morning. When I arrived at the Stuart
Peak saddle and the base of the summit ridge a distinct ray of sun broke
through and lit up the lakes below the peak while leaving the rest of the land
in shadow. So beautiful was the sight, I was compelled to cuss: “holy s**t!
This is so beautiful. Ahhhhhh!!!!” I howled and sang out the praises of the
morning. This is the privilege of hiking alone.
Moments later I was on the summit. I had prepped my camera
before the summit ridge to ensure that it was locked and loaded for the
perfunctory summit self-portrait. I snapped the shot and promptly headed down.
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| First summit of the day! |
I had opted to begin the day in my winter boots as I was
unsure of what season it was on the upper mountain. As it turns out, it is
still fall: very little snow. “Rather be caught with them than without them”
was my mantra – thanks be to my brother Jason for that one – as I considered
footwear the evening before. Well, I didn’t need them. I began feeling a hot
spot forming on my left foot on the descent and made the decision to do a quick
footwear – socks and shoes – change back at the trailhead.
The descent passed with a lot of singing aloud and math
calculations. I was working out my pace, elevation exchange, distance to the
rest of the hiking party, etc. I suspected that I would pass Linds, Steph and
Noah, who had begun at 8:30AM on their Stuart Peak hike, between miles 3 and 4
at the bottom of the mountain.
At about 3 miles from the trailhead I heard voices. Hurray!
It was the crew. They cheered and I cheered and we exchanged ‘high fives’ as we
passed on the trail.
What a buoy to the spirit!
I picked up the pace. I purposefully did not check my split
to the top of Stuart on the first round trip because I was certain it wasn’t
great. I was eager to find out how long the first round-trip had taken.
I hit the parking lot and checked the time... 10:36AM! The
first round-trip had taken only 4 hours and 16 minutes! I quickly changed my
footwear, restocked on liquids and was off at 10:45AM for the second lap.
My legs felt as strong as ever on the second outing. I
received many strange looks from folks who had seen me lower on the trail
moments ago headed in the other direction. So it goes…
The second round-trip did not prove as challenge as I had
anticipated. Not to say that it was easy, but I was expecting some sort of
mental or physical breakdown and instead smiled a lot as I appreciated the fact
that this was the last trip of the day.
I dreaded the steepest section of the trail between mile 3
and 4 on the lower part of the mountain. I opted to sink my teeth into it and
just do it, like Nike. I did it and then, again, appreciated, the fact that I
‘just did it.’
I was eager to get to mile 5+ where the trail becomes
relatively flat and provides an easy cruise (4-5 mph). And an easy cruise it
was. What a relief it was to get to that section of the trail! It was at that
point that I knew that I was doing it: that I was going to complete the
challenge and in good form.
I ran into a man with two horses at the wilderness boundary
and smiled. I continued on, with the summit now in sight. I expected to run
into Linds and company somewhere between the wilderness boundary and the
summit. To my pleasant surprise they came into view at the Stuart saddle at the
base of the summit ridge. I stopped to say hello for a quick second and then
finished the job!
I have to admit that the final push up the summit ridge was
less than speedy. I treated myself to a ~2 mph finish. I nearly cried upon
reaching the summit for the second time. It was the culmination of a lot of
hard work – training and RA healing. But more than the challenge itself, it was
the release of a helluva lot of joy. Life is so good! I have an amazing wife,
wonderful family, incredible job, great health, lovely friends, kick-butt dog
and so much more. I sang out praises to god, God and gods. Everyone was
thanked. As it turns out, that’s what this was all about: a celebration of life
through movement.
For the second time of the day, I snapped a summit
self-portrait and headed down.
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| Second summit of the day! |
I ran into the crew moments later on their way down. I
stopped and thanked them for coming out and supporting the effort. We took some
pictures together and I took off.
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| Linds and I (with Stuart Peak background left) on the trail at our final crossing of the day. |
The final hike out was relatively uneventful. I chowed down
on gummy bears, a Clif Bar and an oats-and-honey bar. Mmm mmm. At no other time
do I allow myself the indulgence of gummy bears. Good stuff.
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| Hiking away from the crew after our final passing of the day. |
In no time I crossed out of the wilderness, below the 3-mile
marker and to the 1.3-mile marker. Upon hitting the main trail (1/2 mile from
the trailhead), I kicked up the pace into the 5.5-6mph range.
I hit the trailhead and checked the time: 3:08PM. Holy cow!
Only 4 hours and 25 minutes on the second round-trip. What a pleasant surprise.
I was hoping for a 9-10 hour finish and came in at 8 hours and 48 minutes.
It was a pleasant surprise, but moments ago, on the summit
for the second time, I resolved to dismiss all association with a ‘good time’ or a ‘bad time’ and determined that the measure of success was that I, in
fact, had had a good time. And a good time I had had. Success. The icing
on the proverbial cake (birthday, in this case), was that I had also come in
with a good time.
And so another milestone comes and goes. Without question I
am better for these annual challenges. This year’s birthday challenge marks the
furthest I have moved in one go as a part of a birthday challenge: a milestone
within a milestone.
Pitting mind and body versus the world is a daily battle. It
is in choosing to contrive situations wherein we are tested to the extreme that
we learn just what we are capable of. Applied to our daily lives, it can be
considered training. Unapplied, it is simply a self-serving exercise in
futility.
This year, I feel stronger and more capable than ever. I am
grateful to Linds, my family, friends and The Great One for the wisdom and
fortitude to persist.
With love and gratitude,
Brian
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