Chapter 3: A Hard Hike

It was the third week of August. The temperatures had been much higher than normal to start August, but the forecasters were predicting a cool over the weekend. Stacy had been watching the news nightly, always watching for any trend that may push her to cancel the weekend hike due to high temps.

“It looks like we’re going to be OK,” said Eric as the weatherman wrapped up his report.

“Yeah, weather-wise,” said Stacy.

“Do you not think we’ll be OK?”

Stacy paused for a moment before answering. “I, think so, but,...” she let that last word hang a moment. “But what is your take on Dalton’s ability to take on harder hikes?”

Eric had expected this question for a few weeks. Dalton had remained a good sport on each hike, but it was clearly not his preferred way of spending a Saturday morning. His skills had advanced much slower than the other three.

“I think Dalton would never be able to do a hard trail on his own. However, he’s never on his own. With our assistance he’ll be fine.”

Stacy did not detect any faltering in Eric’s answer so she nodded her and accepted the response at face value.

“That’s good. I think this weekend will be the real test if we have any chance of taking on The Wrangler in October.”

“I would agree with that. Wholeheartedly,” said Eric. “You want to go out for dinner? Doesn’t look like the refrigerator has much to choose from.”

Stacy jumped off the couch and said, “Absolutely. Let me go put on a different shirt and shoes and I’ll be ready in five.”

Over a dinner of fettuccine Alfredo and sausage Eric quizzed Stacy about their upcoming adventure.

“I know we’ve gone over this several times, but let’s run it again. What is the basic schedule?”

Stacy swallowed her pasta, then added a sip of wine, before she said, “We’ll leave town after work on Friday. The last I heard, Nikki and Dalton will be able to get off a little early so we should be able to beat any traffic. If so, we’ll get on the road, stop for dinner about halfway, and arrive at the hotel around eight.”

“Did you have any luck finding a decent restaurant?”

“There are three that seem passable. I figured we would decide when en route. On Saturday we’ll get up at six, have a good breakfast that is provided by the hotel, and then get to the start of the trail by seven.”

“And that’s when the real adventure begins,” commented Eric.

“Yeah, from what I’ve read, the first eight miles seem like they’ll be really easy. My plan is that we get to the falls and have lunch just after crossing the water. We eat, then have about three or four more miles before we camp. There is a well-defined plateau that will need to be climbed. Just beforehand is a protected lea that is good for camping.”

“I still can’t believe we’re going to try and camp.”

“It’ll be fine. We’ll have dinner and relax into the night. The next morning we’ll get up at 6:00. The climb to the top of the plateau is the hardest part of the hike. Once we reach the summit it’s all downhill from there, literally! We should get back to the hotel by mid-afternoon, and home by dark, depending on what we do for dinner Sunday night.”

“And all the delivery boxes we’ve been getting the past week or two are equipment and supplies, I assume?”

Stacy nodded. “Yep, for both us and Nikki. She didn’t know what to get so she asked if I would just buy anything she needs and she’ll give me money this weekend.”

“So, you bought two of everything?” asked Eric with rolled eyes.

“Not really. Because we’re going together I only have one GPS, one medical kit, and one rope. Of course, two tents, hiking poles for all, and new hats.”

“I’m sure you will have us well taken care of,” Eric said as he smiled.

The next two days went quickly. Just as planned Nikki and Dalton arrived a few minutes before 3:30 Friday afternoon. Dalton backed up to the garage door and popped the back of the SUV. Eric opened the garage door and started loading the car with their supplies.

“That’s a lot of stuff for a hike. And we have to carry all of that?”

Eric laughed. “Almost. But here,” he threw a small pack to Dalton. “See how light it is? There is a lot of bulk in some of these items, but Stacy has done her homework and found the lightest options possible. We’ll be fine.”

Dalton looked skeptical but helped square everything before closing the hatch.

Dalton and Eric settled into the car and waited on the ladies. They joined them a few minutes later and they were off on their first overnight hiking adventure.

Stacy’s best-laid plans were soon thrown off when they encountered a mile-long traffic jam due to a tractor trailer that jack-knifed and closed three lanes of traffic. When finally cleared of the accident they made good time for about thirty minutes, but were again delayed when the front right tire of Nikki’s Lexus blew out.

Replacing the tire was quite the ordeal as they had to unload almost all of their gear, replace the tire, and then reload the gear. Luckily, the spare was a full-sized tire and in good condition.

With the delays it was after ten before they arrived at the hotel. They checked in and said their good nights. It would be a short eight hours before they were again awake and getting ready to start their hike.

In the morning, their spirits were lifted with the smell of fried bacon, eggs, and the rest of the hot breakfast provided by the hotel. Even Dalton was in a good mood as he settled into his chair with a plateful of sausage gravy and biscuits.

He saw the look his wife gave him and said, “I’m sure I’ll more than burn off any extra calories this breakfast includes.”

“Probably,” she said as she popped the last bite of pineapple off her plate into her mouth.

The hotel provided an ATV transport to what was widely considered the start of the trail. Two large four wheelers hauled the couples to their starting point and dropped them off. Eric tipped their drivers and turned to the others.

“And we’re off. A real test as to whether or not we’ll be ready to take on The Wrangler.”

“Woo hoo, let’s do this,” called out Nikki as she started along the path. Stacy fell in alongside her while Dalton was third and Eric brought up the rear.

They trekked for two hours when Stacy called for a break.

“Break? I’m feeling fine,” said Dalton, knowing he was the weakest link.

Stacy nodded. “I’m sure you are, as are all of us, but we’ve got a long way to go and it’s best if we don’t push too hard or too fast early on just because we’re feeling good.”

They sat on the ground and opened water bottles and snack bars. After ten minutes of resting they were back on their feet as their elevation continued to rise.