blankhomedotmeet bredotcontactdotoutfitsdotcharlotte socialblank

5.20.2014

On climbing a mountain & such

Last week we had a cookout with a few of our friends here in Charlotte, while grilling out Jeremy suggested we go hike Grandfather mountain on Sunday. Done. Jeremy, as well as the other 5 out of 7 people we hiked with went to Appalachian State University in Boone, so hiking and climbing scary mountains was their thing. Breanne was not aware of the severity of this climb, the intenseness, the anxiety and panic that went along with the 5,845 ft elevation. 
We start the trail with a sign that says, "DANGER, TRAIL FOR EXPERIENCED HIKERS ONLY." Pshhh, thats what they all say, they have to make you think you can't hike this, it's the disclaimer! Wrong, this was not for little blondes who don't like nature and climbing things with no security. 

I took this picture about 1/4 the way up, when just skipping rocks and kicking dirt around was about as exciting as things got. Shortly after this picture Jeremy turned to me and said, "honey do you trust me? You are going to have to fully trust me if you're going to do this." Excuse me, say what? Of course I trust you babe, why wouldn't I? Jeremy decided to not disclose the trails full extent until we were about to climb, he didn't want me to not try, this was the best decision he has ever made. I would have never tried if I knew. 
yep, my boo has rec specs. sexy ;)
This would be where things got scary, shortly before this picture I had a full blown panic attack. There was a very large boulder that was very slick, slanted and should not be walked across, which is why there was a cable for you to grasp and use to get across. I slipped, grabbed the cable for dear life, hyperventilated, froze and started screaming. Jeremy came running for me and saved me from a toothless wedding album. Oh boy was I in for a treat, I should have saved the panic attack for what was to come, the ladders. The first ladder was nothing, the next 5, lets just say there isn't much security, it's you and the side of a mountain. 

But this is the view almost at the top, two hours of the most intense thing I have ever done was so worth these views!




Then there is the top, oh heavens, the beauty! The feeling of reaching the very top I cannot describe, so many emotions were involved that I almost just felt peace and nothing else. 




Oh and it was freezing! Blowing Rock only had a high of 58 on Sunday so it was only about 45 at the peak!

Our friend Nate brought along two beers, once we were at the top he awarded me one saying that out of all the girls he's seen do this hike, I beasted it. Duh, I mean didn't you know I was an experienced hiker? Sheesh. 

 So about the hike down, it takes about half the time, but triple the skill. Just think, you're going with gravity, bad things can happen. Once we were back to the parking lot we walked across to the mile high swinging bridge, the two pictures below show the peak that we climbed to, it was crazy to think where you were standing and where you just had come from. Surreal experience. 




 So sorry if I bored y'all, this was something I knew I had to blog about so I could always remember what I did and the feelings I had! It was incredible, I pushed myself to limits and boundaries I didn't know I had, I defeated a fear that I didn't know I had. I accomplished something with my life partner and we will always share that memory, it's so amazing to think about. I have never felt so many emotions in one day, the best being a feeling of accomplishment. I felt like I had defeated a lot of my anxiety that I had been dealing with, I crushed a fear of failing and succeeded! This was by far more than just climbing a mountain for me, it was defeating anxiety, worry, fear and doing something for myself that I never imagined I could do! So basically, everyone should go climb a mountain, like now. 

signature

6 comments:

  1. You go girl!! This is awesome! It's definitely impressive and you deserved that beer at the top!! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. That's awesome! So glad you did it! I say I'd love to do it but I'd probably lose it before I even got to the ladders!

    ReplyDelete
  3. You def didn't bore me! My husband actually mentioning going hiking there the other day...now I know what to expect if/when we go! Ahh!

    ReplyDelete
  4. This looks like such fun! What great pictures!

    www.madeintheshadeblog.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. This is awesome!! I can't even imagine how terrified you were but the views were gorgeous! Yay!

    ReplyDelete
  6. You're so brave! I get scared just thinking about driving to Boone, I can't imagine actually climbing a mountain!

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for the comment! I love to hear what my readers think, each comment means so much to me! xoxo