Last weekend, 3 buddies and I took a day trip out to one of the surrounding mountains and decided to test our manhood. The mountain we chose was around 14,700 feet, and the route we took provided the desired adrenaline rush and difficulty we were looking for.
The day started like any typical guy trip… our van got a flat tire!
A slight detour and $3 later, we were back on the road. One of the many blessings about China is that most manual labor type jobs only cost between $3-$15. This includes… patching up tires, welding bikes back together, shoe repair, rewiring electrical stuff, ect.
We arrived at our destination about an hour later and set off on what would be a 7 hour hike through the snow (snow we didn’t know was there).
We chose the ridge-line that we thought would give us the best chance of making it to the top, but it would also prove to be more difficult than we initially thought. And we quickly realized the importance of wearing/having the correct snow gear.
It may not look like much, but here are a few pictures that might help show how steep, and somewhat dangerous, it really was…
Here is a shot of my friend trudging through the snow!
Stop for a mid-hike snack, rest a bit, and more pictures…
Kristen made me banana bread! Not sure what my hat is doing…
After we broke through the clouds, the views were amazing!
Here’s a quick video of us maneuvering slowly up the mountain…
As we were nearing the summit, the last 500 feet or so was the most technically challenging for us. Only two of us decided to continue — the other two would wait for us to come back down.
That’s me waiting on my buddy. Can you see him wedged between the rocks?
That’s me at the top cheering my friend on. This is the spot where two guys decided to stop and wait.
As we neared the summit, the fog begin to set in. Luckily it didn’t bring any more snow. But it did make visibility a little more difficult…
That’s one of us on the far ridge! It was places like these that we all wished we had worn crampons.
After almost 5 hours of hiking, my friend and I summited!
The thought of having to go back down the way we came was discouraging, to say the least. Luckily Bear Grylls, on his show Man vs. Wild, taught me how to properly slide down a mountain.
In roughly 30min we had slid about 2,000 feet… I only came away with some bruises on my left hip and a scrape on my back.
Here is a picture of the mountain we summited. You can see 2 slide marks running through the middle of the mountain… those were made by us!
As we reached the bottom, the skies opened up and gave us an amazing view of the surrounding mountains.
The two victors!
The 4 of us after the hike!
What a blessing it is to live in a place where we only have to drive an hour outside of town in order to experience this. It is so good for the soul. We had amazing weather, great fellowship, and a really tough hike! What more could you ask for?
nomadic texan 